Sean Payton joined a very exclusive club on Thursday night and all he had to do to join it was beat his former team.
Going into the 2024 season, Payton had beaten 31 of the NFL’s 32 teams with the Saints being the only team he had yet to take down. Payton was the head coach in New Orleans for 15 seasons before stepping down following the 2021 season. After spending one year out of football, he decided to make a return to the NFL in 2023 with the Denver Broncos.
Payton didn’t get a chance to beat the Saints last year, but he finally got a chance on Thursday night and he took full advantage of it. The Broncos destroyed the Saints 33-10, making Payton just the seventh coach in NFL history beat all 32 teams.
Here’s a look at the full list of coaches who have beaten every team (via CBS Sports research):
- Bill Belichick
- Tony Dungy
- John Fox
- Bill Parcells
- Mike Shanahan
- Andy Reid
- Sean Payton
- Mike Holmgren* (This stat only counts regular-season games and Holmgren only beat 31 teams in the regular season, but we’re including him on the list because the only team he didn’t beat in the regular-season (Washington) was a team he ended up beating in the playoffs).
As you can see, Payton is one of just two active coaches — along with Andy Reid — who has beaten all 32 teams. It’s crazy to think that only two active coaches have pulled this off and they’re coaching in the SAME DIVISION.
The Broncos coach was actually asked about the stat during his postgame press conference.
“Someone brought that statistic up and we were trying to guess who was on that list,” Payton said, via PFT. “[John Fox] is one of them. Someone had brought it up yesterday or the day before. We don’t think about things like that, but I know you had to have worked at two different organizations to do it. I’m glad I am here.”
If you’re wondering why Belichick is on the list, it’s because he beat the Patriots during his five-year stint as the head coach of the Cleveland Browns (1991-95). As a matter of fact, Belichick’s first career win in the NFL came against the Patriots.
Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy could join this list at some point in the near future. McCarthy has beaten 31 of the NFL’s 32 teams, but he still hasn’t beaten the Packers. The Cowboys aren’t scheduled to play Green Bay this year, but they will be hosting the Packers in 2025, so McCarthy will have a chance to join the club then, as long as he’s still around in Dallas.
