Broncos officially land their new special-teams coordinator

Broncos coach Sean Payton got his man on special teams.

Friday, word broke that Payton had officially landed Darren Rizzi, his former special-teams coordinator with the New Orleans Saints who remained with that team for three more seasons, finishing his tenure there as interim head coach down the stretch of the 2024 season.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero was first to report the move.

Rizzi was the favorite for the position virtually from the moment Payton dismissed previous coordinator Ben Kotwica in the days following the regular season.

Kotwica, who came aboard with Payton in 2023, was brought aboard in part because of his connections with Mike Westhoff, the longtime special-teams guru who guided the Saints special teams before retiring. Westhoff came out of retirement to serve as Payton’s assistant head coach with the Broncos, but stepped away again in November after the loss to Kansas City due to health concerns.

Another special-teams assistant, Chris Banjo, left to move up, taking the special teams coordinator position under former Payton assistant Aaron Glenn with the New York Jets.

The Broncos’ special teams improved markedly under the watch of Westhoff and Kotwica, with Marvin Mims Jr. emerging as a two-time Pro Bowl punt returner and a first-team All-Pro last season under their watch. But despite the high points and high analytics rankings the last two seasons, there were some bumps, none more damaging than when the Chiefs attacked a weak spot in the Broncos’ placekick protection in the final seconds of the Week 10 game at Arrowhead Stadium, resulting in a decisive blocked field goal by Leo Chenal that cost the Broncos what would have been their first win in Kansas City since 2025.

Rizzi served as special teams coordinator in New Orleans for the last six seasons. The Saints went 3-5 under his watch as interim head coach after the dismissal of Payton’s successor, Dennis Allen.