Thing is, people seem to forget that in the beginning, Peyton was as diplomatic as i think one could expect when asked about what he thought of Russ's entourage. I think he was annoyed, but didnt blast him.
He also didnt tear him down in the preseason and during camp when reports said he was often struggling to execute concepts. Hackett was actually passively more direct when he saw the same thing in camp, remarking that his number 1 challenge with Russ, several weeks into camp was getting him to understand his reads
. Many heard that and eyebrows went up. What followed over the course of 2022 was essentially Russ's audition tape for Sean. And in almost every respect, Sean saw it as a failure and non starter for his system. I think he also sae Hackett as a weak leader for not calling a soade a soade and demanding accoubtability
i think Peyton would have been easier on Russ's failures if not for the tone defness and seeming lack of awareness or acknowledgment for his faults he brings along with him. But Russ can never ever say ' hey, i have to learn how to read defenses better and be able to really grasp this offense'. Thats never going to occur. Nit if he wants to maintain his legacy. And for Peyton to have lived with Russ, that ackowledgment had to be reality. Without that, its all a circus where staff and players have to go along with the version of truth that HAS to be if Russ is going to be allowed to do what he does to succeed and the offense (and team) have to follow.
Peyton is cut from the same cloth as Bill Parcells. He's never going to suffer players who's personas are more formidable than their on the field ability. The article bashes him as if HE were in the wrong for knowing from day one who Russ really was and rejecting the self entitlement Russ brought with him from Seattle.
None of it was a shock. Russ never was a fit for Peyton. Ever. Despite fans and pundits thinking that the QB whispering coach and he would be a great fit. Im sure if Peyton never had to deal with the media hoopla Russ himself created, or if Russ flat said 'im not playing the position the way i need to' he'd not have been so hard on the dude.
But if Peyton saw through the thin veil of who folks thought Russ was and who he HAS to portray himself to be, even while he was in Seattle, and then whitnessed all the BS with Russ demanding X and Y and carrying on as if he's something he's not (in SP and now many others eyes - an true QB capabke of running an NFL system), ... i think any hard-nosed coach or leader who demands accoubtability and improvement, especially from his team leaders, is going to look to set that situation straight.
I personally think Peyton is also a bit full of himself. But this was always going to end up a situation where 2 immovable objects - a HC who is known for his play design and ability to design wins schematically , and a QB who would never openly admit that he's not able to process the game at the level required to realize the value of a complex scheme would collide. And only one would be allowed to stay in Denver.
I think SP knew it would fail (theres no way it coukdnt) but tolerated the 'show' for as long as he could.
In Denver, Russ played it all as humbly as he could without giving up the truth of his struggles, licked his wounds, and is now in Pittsburgh, hoping he can find a little bit more of the freedom PC afforded him to just play Russ-ball. I doubt it will ever happen for him again. The cost is simply too high to sustain the facade that everything is ok when in so many instances, THE thing required to see improvement as a team and an individual is a player (ESPECIALLY THE QB) or coach acknowledging the truth of why something is failing. Russ cant do it and the moment a HC chooses to deny the truth himself, in front of the other 52 players he leads, the system falls apart.
It happened in Seattle. It happened in Denver. It will happen in Pittsburgh IF Tomlin doesnt correct things if they start to go south and Russ's struggles arent somehow addressed. One benefit Russ has in Pittsburgh is that Tomlin was soft on Ben during the tail end of his career and actually stood silently while Ben was openly critical of him as a coach. In other words, Tomlin is seemingly the antithesis of SP in that regard. So maybe he does find a bit more latitude to 'be Russ'.
Its gonna be an interesting year, thats for sure.
