Aaron Rodgers, the quarterback for the New York Jets, referred to Sean Payton’s remarks against Nathaniel Hackett as “out of line” and “inappropriate.”
The Broncos recruited 59-year-old Payton this past offseason to replace outgoing head coach Hackett, who was fired following a 4-11 record in his final season in charge. Hackett is now the Jets’ offensive coordinator.
Payton has issued an apology and described his criticism of the team’s prior head coach and coaching staff as a “mistake.” In his inaugural interview with USA Today, he claimed that his predecessors had performed “one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL.”
In an interview with Peter Schrager on Back Together Weekend on NFL+, Rodgers came to Hackett’s defense saying, “Yeah, I love Nathaniel Hackett, and those comments were very surprising, for a coach to do that to another coach.”
“My love for Hack goes deep, you know, we had some great years together in Green Bay,” Rodgers continued.
“(We) kept in touch, love him and his family, he’s an incredible family man and an incredible dad. And on the field, he’s arguably my favorite coach I’ve ever had in the NFL. Just his approach to it – he makes it fun, how he cares about the guys, just how he goes about his business with respect, with leadership, with honesty, with integrity.
“It made me feel bad that someone (Payton) who’s accomplished a lot in the league is that insecure that they have to take another man down to set themselves up for some sort of easy fall if it doesn’t go well for that team this year.
“I thought it was way out of line, inappropriate, and I think he needs to keep my coach’s name out of his mouth.”
Hackett coached Rodgers for three seasons while the two were with the Green Bay Packers, from 2019 to 2021, before taking the helm of the Denver Broncos. While Hackett was the offensive coordinator for the Packers under head coach Matt LaFleur, Rodgers won two MVP awards.
Payton has coached the New Orleans Saints for 15 years and has enjoyed great success in the NFL. He nine times took the team to the playoffs and won the Super Bowl in 2010.
Payton retired as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints after the 2021 season and worked as a broadcaster the previous year. He was signed by the Broncos in February following a disastrous 5-12 campaign.
After a league investigation revealed the Saints operated an “active bounty program” during the 2009, 2010 and 2011 seasons, Payton was given a season-long, unpaid suspension in 2012. Players received “bounty” rewards for hits that injured opponents and forced them out of the game.
On Thursday, the annual NFL Hall of Fame game will be played between the Jets and quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Cleveland Browns.