Sean Payton bypasses opportunity to go for onside kick under new rules after Colts, Niners try
DENVER — Sean Payton made the gutsiest call in Super Bowl history, ambushing Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts with a stunning onside kick coming out of halftime at Super Bowl 44 to nab the New Orleans Saints’ only Lombardi Trophy.
Payton also ushered in the second chapter of his coaching career by attempting an onside kick against the Las Vegas Raiders in the Denver Broncos’ opener last year.
It failed when cornerback Tremon Smith touched the football just before it had traveled the requisite 10 yards, and that may very well have been the reason Payton lost in his Denver debut. But it proved that he hadn’t abandoned his risk-taking disposition when Greg Penner hired him out of Fox’s broadcast studio.
The NFL’s new kicking rule s have taken away coaches’ ability to pull a fast one on unsuspecting opponents while also making them think long and hard about trying one when desperate times call for it.
Teams can only try it in the fourth quarter now and only if they’re losing. And, most importantly, they have to declare their intention to try an onside kick.
Two teams tried and failed Sunday.
Green Bay’s Evan Williams recovered the Colts’ onside kick with
