Sean Payton's second chance: Inside the Denver Broncos' Super Bowl quest - ESPN

Monday, Six Days Before Kickoff

SEAN PAYTON FORGOT about today's 9 a.m. staff meeting, so he enters a few minutes late. He's in a bad mood, six days before his Denver Broncos will face the New England Patriots in the AFC championship game. He was in a bad mood yesterday, too, after reviewing film of Denver's overtime win over the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round. He hated that the Broncos couldn't run the ball, which ultimately falls on him, or stop it, which ultimately falls on him, too. But what's really set him off is invisible: that a practice squad lineman named Jordan Jackson didn't see the field against the Bills on defense. Not one play — after the defensive coaches had fought for him to be active, arguing that Jackson could help against the run. NFL teams can only activate 48 players on game day. Dressing Jackson came at the expense of another player. Something nobody noticed about a player nobody has ever heard of has one of the most successful coaches in NFL history on edge with a Super Bowl at stake.

Yesterday, Joe Vitt, a defensive assistant and one of Payton's oldest and best friends, stopped by Payton's office. He wanted to thank Payton for the opportunity before them: to be in the playoffs, to live with the intensity and energy of every minute, not knowing if the play at hand will end up being the play that decides the game and season, that defines a legacy. Payton wasn't feeling sentimental. He ripped into him about Jackson. Vitt gave it a second try, thanking him again. That was a mistake. «You're welcome!» Payton shouted. Vitt left.

Payton takes his usual seat at the head of a conference table in the main meeting room for the Broncos coaches, a large and windowless space on the second floor of