With the surprise announcement that head coach Gary Kubiak was stepping down for health-related reasons, the Denver Broncos were back in the coaching hunt just two years after they last put on their safari gear and ventured on to the Serengeti.
It’s not as dire as it could be for the Broncos. Since this was a “retirement” and not a firing, all their assistant coaches can stay and they have a solid bunch. Whoever the next head coach is would be a fool to even tough anything on the defensive side of the ball. Wade Phillips should be their defensive coordinator for life at this point. That’s a big reason why I don’t think they’ll hire a defensive head coach. Why fix what ain’t broken.
Still hoping to be with Broncos,of course.
— Wade Phillips (@sonofbum) January 2, 2017
The offense, on the other hand, needs some work. Kubiak’s staff on that side of the ball will be in limbo until the new guy is brought in. So who has the edge? Of the three guys they’re already scheduled to interview (Kyle Shanahan, Vance Joseph and Dave Toub), only Shanahan seems like a serious contender. I know Joseph is high on a lot of teams’ lists this offseason and he’ll probably get a job. Just not in Denver.
The problem with Kyle Shanahan is the Broncos have to wait out the Los Angeles Rams. Both Shanahan and former Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels are the two leading non Sean Payton/Jon Gruden/Jim Harbaugh candidates and they’ll likely get their pick. And if the Rams pick Shanahan, then the Broncos are kind of in limbo. If the Rams pick McDaniels, then Shanahan walks into Denver as the man.
Wade Phillips said this is the best secondary he's ever had. He said it's the best in the NFL and it's not even close.
— Cameron Wolfe (@CameronWolfe) December 22, 2016
But there are some other serious candidates out there that haven’t shown up on the radar yet. Kyle Shanahan’s dad Mike being the most likely possibility. It’s no secret Elway likes to hire his friends and it helps that his friends have hands full of Super Bowl rings. Mike Shanahan coached Elway to two championships and it would be natural for him to come back to Denver. Hell, Wade Phillips did.
After Mike Shanahan, I wouldn’t sleep on Todd Haley, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive coordinator. The physical comparison between Ben Roethlisberger and Paxton Lynch is apt and Haley could come right and install an offense that’s been one of the best in the league for years. Another dark horse? How about Scott Linehan from the Dallas Cowboys. Yes, nobody knows better than I do how horrible Linehan was as the then St. Louis Rams’ head coach, but guys can learn from their mistakes. They can be mentored by better head coaches to do better the second time around. If the Cowboys win the Super Bowl this year, Linehan’s name gets off the “dark horse” list and on the serious contender roster.
How about the #Broncos bring back #MikeShanahan instead of his son. Closest thing to #GaryKubiak. @dmac1043 @VicLombardi
— JV:DoneHERE (@webdad3) January 1, 2017
Looking at the roster, the Broncos will open the 2017 league year with more than $38 million in salary cap space. The only legitimate free agent choice they have is defensive tackle Sylvester Williams. All their other free agents are reserves they can lose with the exception of DeMarcus Ware who will probably retire. That means they’ll have plenty of money to upgrade their offensive line, which should be the focus of nearly every personnel move they make this offseason. Except one. And you know what I’m going to talk about.
Tony Romo should be the quarterback of the Denver Broncos next season, however that has to happen. We all know it. We all talk about it all the time. The announcers on any Broncos game bring it up. The analysts on the pregame shows. It’s just got to happen. For the Broncos and for Romo.
News: Tony Romo leads Cowboys to TD on his first drive back from injury. Views: There's your Broncos QB in 2017. Go get him.
— Mark Kiszla (@markkiszla) January 1, 2017
When it comes to the draft, the Broncos, as of today, have picks in the first, second, third and fourth rounds and two picks in the sixth. They could be awarded as many as four compensatory picks for free agents lost last year, including two third round picks. The other compensatory picks would be a fourth and a seventh. So Denver will likely be holding 10 picks come April and five in the first three rounds. Whatever way they have to package a pick (or multiple picks) for Romo, the Broncos need to get it done. These Super Bowl windows can close quick and Romo kicks Denver’s open for at least another season.
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