Macdonald Says Payton Threatened Spygate Accusation

Seattle Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton threatened to publicly accuse the Seahawks of a Spygate-style cheating operation over the team's use of fan-posted training camp footage before the 2024 season opener. Macdonald recounted the episode in an interview with Graham Bensinger, saying his staff assembled roughly 100 plays of Broncos training camp footage from clips fans had posted to social media while preparing for Denver's 2024 Week 1 matchup. The Seahawks won that game 26-20, Macdonald's first victory as an NFL head coach. According to Macdonald, Payton learned of the scouting effort in the middle of the 2024 season and called Seahawks general manager John Schneider. Macdonald said Payton threatened to go public with what he described as a "whole Patriot, like, Spygate type of thing." The 2007 Patriots case resulted in a combined $750,000 fine for New England and coach Bill Belichick and the loss of a 2008 first-round draft pick, according to league records. Macdonald said Seattle countered by warning Payton that the team would pursue legal action if he made the accusation public, arguing the allegation was untrue.