He isn't coaching the New Orleans Saints anymore, but Sean Payton is still the same old Sean. The Denver Broncos head coach relished a preseason win over the Atlanta Falcons on Friday night -- it was a game Payton's Broncos won 27-7, but he didn't even wait until the second half to start taunting Atlanta, telling Denver 9 News Sports at halftime: "A lot of people dressed up as empty seats today."
Preseason games aren't known for being well-attended, but Falcons fans are notorious for arriving late and leaving early when they do show up. And with one of the few playoff droughts running longer than New Orleans' five-year dry spell (Atlanta is at eight seasons, second-longest in the NFL), their fans aren't in a rush to crowd Mercedes-Benz Stadium and see whether it'll be Michael Penix Jr. or Tua Tagovailoa quarterbacking their team this year.
As for Payton? His 21-9 record against the Falcons as Saints coach fueled a very personal rivalry, that has at times bled into Payton's appearances away from the field. That passion was missing with Dennis Allen at head coach, and it didn't go unnoticed by his locker room. Seeing Kellen Moore already adopting it with his playful comments about "the team in red" is a step in the right direction.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Same Old Sean: Ex-Saints coach takes jab after Falcons preseason game
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