An offseason of heavy movement in the NFL has produced an array of new coach-player combinations to monitor in 2026, according to the preview. The piece highlights eight pairings it calls particularly intriguing amid a leaguewide shift in personnel and playcalling.
The eight duos named in the report are: Sean Payton with Jaylen Waddle, Brian Daboll with Cam Ward, Josh O’Connell with Kyler Murray, Kyle Shanahan with Jalen Hurts’ target equivalent (labeled Evans), Chris Shula with Myles Garrett, Bill Belichick’s offensive fit (McDaniel-Hampton noted), Kubiak with Bowers, and Saleh with Jeffery Simmons. The author says these represent a small selection from hundreds of possible new combinations across the league.
The preview singles out the Payton-Waddle pairing for detailed examination. Although Payton will not be the Broncos’ playcaller, the piece says Waddle joining what is still largely Payton’s offensive structure is notable. Denver spent two seasons with Bo Nix at quarterback and, the report notes, possessed an acceptable receiver room that included veteran Courtland Sutton as a steady WR1 and younger players such as Marvin Mims Jr., Troy Franklin, Pat Bryant and Devaughn Vele with intermittent production.
Payton’s long head-coaching tenure — 17 seasons, 14 in New Orleans and three in Denver — is highlighted, along with his historical tendency to distribute targets. The piece states Payton has had a receiver account for more than 30% of team targets only once and for more than 30% of receiving yards only twice. By contrast, the preview points to the Mike McDaniel-era Dolphins as an example of concentrated target share: Tyreek Hill produced 37.1% of the team’s receiving yards across 2022-23 while Jaylen Waddle accounted for 25.0%, which the report equates roughly with Sutton’s recent market share as the Broncos’ WR1.
The report also notes Denver’s decision to have Davis Webb handle playcalling as an indicator the team may narrow its receiver rotation and target distribution. It adds that Nix has struggled against zone coverage — ranked 31st among 35 qualified quarterbacks in dropback success rate versus zone and 11th against man — and that, when facing zone, Denver has typically asked Nix to target bigger, more robust receivers rather than the quicksters who lack middle-of-field experience, which the preview suggests affects how the new pairing might operate.
