METAIRIE, La. -- Sean Payton’s fiery sideline demeanor has gotten more attention this season than ever before because he’s been captured on TV chewing out defensive coordinator Rob Ryan three times.
But to those who have been around the New Orleans Saints head coach for the past nine years, it’s nothing new. Payton long ago earned the nickname “Game Day Sean” from players -- or at least, his alter ego earned that nickname.
“It’s kind of a running joke as to the ‘Game Day Sean’ demeanor,” said quarterback Drew Brees, who also earned a tongue-lashing that was caught on camera after an interception earlier this season. “Because he can be so calm, cool, composed in practice, meeting room, that kind of thing. And then game day rolls around, it’s just like (Brees then waved his hand over his face to signal a transformation), ‘Don’t get on his bad side.’
“He’s intense. He’s just competitive. That’s the best way to describe it. Just ultra, ultra competitive. And fiery. And again, everybody’s fair game. I’ve gotten plenty of it over the headset that most people don’t see because it’s over the headset. ‘Turn that volume down.’ But that’s what you love about him. That’s what keeps you on edge in a good way. Obviously we’re out there to play well. We want to execute well. But you don’t want to be at the wrong end of one of those.”
We’ve also seen Payton chew out tight end Jimmy Graham and special-teams coordinator Greg McMahon, among others, this season. And the list goes on and on over the years. Remember Mike Bell wearing the wrong cleats during the Super Bowl? Or the “Juicy Fruit” incident when a sideline assistant accidentally brought him spearmint gum?
The Times-Picayune’s Katherine Terrell went in depth in this great piece on the “Game Day Sean” persona, talking to current and former players alike. Many of them said they try to hide from Payton when they make mistakes.
Cornerback Corey White shared a hilarious anecdote about this past week, when he knew Payton would be upset about his facemask penalty late in the 35-32 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. White said about 13 plays later, just as he figured he was in the clear, he heard: “Get me Corey White!”
"I'd never gotten a chewing out like that before, ever," White said. "If you know you've done something wrong, you might want to run to the locker room. You know you're going to get that chewing."
So where does that leave Payton and Ryan? It’s still not completely clear. I’ve talked to several sources on and off the record and gotten no indication there is a growing rift between the two -- as two reports indicated this past Sunday. And Payton passionately denied it after Sunday's game. But I also can’t completely dismiss the reports since Payton obviously can’t be happy with the results his defense has produced on the field this season.
Either way, it’s impossible to try to gauge the relationship based on how Payton acts toward Ryan on the sideline in the wake of a substitution penalty.
As Payton himself explained, he does that to everybody. Brees laughed when someone described Payton as being an “equal opportunity yeller” and said that’s the “perfect way to describe it.”
"That's me, man," Payton said Sunday. "Pick somebody. Pick Greg McMahon. Pick Corey White. Pick the game. Pick (assistant head coach) Joe Vitt. That's just me being fired up. It's more obvious when it's Rob because the camera's going to be on him more than it's going to be Greg McMahon or a player.
“Yeah, I get upset when there's 12 men on the field. That doesn't mean I'm looking for another defensive coach."