As Sean Payton left the stadium Sunday night, he entered the mind field. He had suffered brutal playoff losses before — the Minnesota Miracle, the Ref Rob Job — but those outcomes flipped because of elements out of his control. The Broncos began their offseason Monday because of his decision to go for it on fourth down in the second quarter of the AFC Championship Game. Forty-eight hours later, I asked Payton about the play upon reflection. “I don’t know which is the greater regret, the decision or certainly the play call. Back in the good ol’ days, you were able to get a measurement. I knew (Jarrett Stidham) was short and actually a little shorter than they marked it. But it also buys you time to think of the call you want. So we used the timeout,” said Payton of the fourth-and-1 at the 14-yard line with 9:28 remaining in the first half. “I think probably what irks me more is the call, more than the decision.” This is Payton. Double down. Rock climb without a harness. Break out the driver on the dogleg. His default setting fluctuates between confidence and arrogance. The same qualities that make him a great coach can undermine him in big moments. His belief is so strong that it clouds his vision. It raises the question: Can everything that defines Payton prevent him from taking the checkered flag again? The answer is yes without upgraded talent on offense. And with his coaches. He fired longtime lieutenant Joe Lombardi as offensive coordinator on Tuesday. This move could mean that Davis Webb replaces him, but there are two other candidates on staff in assistant Pete Carmichael and offensive coach Zach Strief. It does not mean Payton will relinquish play-calling. Payton has shown vulnerability in the hours and days since the 10-7 loss to the Patriots. But your skin will have more wrinkles than a Shar Pei if you are waiting for an apology for a 15-4 season. He is not going to say sorry for his success or the way he goes about his business. He is single-minded in his pursuit of a Lombardi Trophy. It is eerie how similar he is in this way to Mike Shanahan. But Sunday, his laser focus required nuance. National radio host Colin Cowherd, a Payton loyalist, casually tossed out this statistic this week: teams that lead by 10 points at any time of a conference championship game boast an 89% win probability rate. Just kick. And you kick the Patriots’ butt. Not Payton’s style. He will always be more Tin Cup’s Kevin Costner than the PGA’s Scottie Scheffler. He wanted the haymaker of a 14-0 lead, which makes sense if the Broncos were inside the 5-yard line. They were at the 14, meaning there was no guarantee they were scoring a touchdown even with a first down. So, if Payton is going to live by the sword, he needs a bigger sword. The Broncos must improve their running game. Payton admitted it will be a point of emphasis this offseason as he talks with Strief. He will always prefer operating out of the shotgun, but he wants to be able to run from under center. Not only when he wants to, but when he has to. Let’s be honest, short yardage situations created squirms without J.K. Dobbins. Or Bo Nix on quarterback sneaks. That’s what led to a naked bootleg for a backup quarterback with one target in the flat and fingers crossed that an obvious pick created space in the biggest play of the season. It failed horribly. It won’t next time if the Broncos bring back Dobbins, pairing him with R.J. Harvey, and move on from Jaleel McLaughlin and Tyler Badie. And if they don’t keep Dobbins, the Broncos must draft a hammer in April. And a tight end like Oregon’s Kenyon Sadiq. Want Payton’s decisions to work out better? Get him better players. Payton is not running a democracy. The calls are in his hands. And they are fidgety. He is not mellowing, soliciting outside opinions or easing off the throttle. Let LeBron agonize over The Decision. That’s not Payton. The Play bothers him. Even when understanding the thought process behind it, it was not a popular call. A cascade of criticism has rained down on the coach. You don’t know Payton, the man who cut Russell Wilson and absorbed an $85 million cap hit like it was a practice squad transaction, if you think he cares. “I don’t pay attention to it,” Payton said. “If I did, I don’t know that we would be in this position.” He is right, you know. Payton replaced Nathaniel Hazmat and became the reason the Broncos are relevant again. He turned Sesame Street into Compete Street — even putting the aforementioned words on a sign on the practice field that first season — as he cut popular veteran players and created a culture of accountability. There is no AFC West title, the first in a decade, no No. 1 seed, without Payton setting the tone in the building. “Really, the credit goes to Sean,” general manager George Paton said. Paton and Payton balance each other out, sharing a thirst for roster building, the draft, and film study. Payton creates templates for positions and intangibles — competitive fire, good learners, love football — that are non-negotiable, making it easier for scouts to identify what a Bronco looks like. Related Articles Should Nuggets take extra precautions with Nikola Jokic after what happened to Aaron Gordon? Renck: Broncos’ Sean Payton puts blame where it belongs — on himself Renck: Stiddy will be ready against Patriots. Will Drake Maye against Broncos defense? Renck File: Broncos’ Sean Payton had guts to hire Davis Webb, and wisely trusts him with Jarrett Stidham Renck: Disastrous Bills presser offers reminder that Broncos struck gold with Walton-Penners There is no gray area, as those inside the locker room willingly acknowledge, with Payton. Sunday’s failure will be a small price to pay if the lessons learned lead to a Broncos’ Super Bowl title over the next three years while Nix remains on his rookie contract. “I told our players, in this industry, you are going to get punched and have some tough losses. It happened a year-and-a-half ago in Kansas City and we responded,” Payton said. “You referenced a few games (playoff losses to the Vikings and Rams), that were holy cow! That can’t discourage you from coming back or you are never going to taste it.” Every season, Payton becomes a needler, lobbing unexpected, sometimes unintended, shots at opponents, testing their patience, crawling their skin. He gets into their heads. Right now, he is living rent-free in ours. We are trying to make sense of his actions with numbers and logic. Don’t bother. Payton is not changing, even if his OC is. This is a good thing. But only if the players’ talent matches his confidence. Want more sports news? 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