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Broncos get a coach!

The Denver Broncos have hired Josh McDaniels, an assistant member of the New England Patriots' disgraced coaching staff, as their new head coach. For more details on the man, see McDaniels' Wikipedia page. If I'm reading it right, McDaniels had a different job during each of New England's Super Bowl-winning seasons, serving as a personnel assistant, defensive coaching assistant, and quarterbacks coach. That's not quite the same as being a "head coach" or "offensive coordinator" during that time, you know, though he did serve in the second capacity during New England's most recent Super Bowl appearance, a loss in which the team's vaunted, record-breaking offense scored just 14 points.

Of course, one reason the Broncos went with such a young coach—McDaniels is 32, which means we probably had some of the same toys as kids—is that they still have eight figures in obligations to their living legend, the recently-terminated Mike Shanahan.

Yeah, next season's going to be great.

To be fair, he got fifty touchdown passes out of Tom Brady last season, not that I have any interest in being fair.

Comments

blaine said…
I was surprised when I heard they hired McDaniels. I still think they should have looked at someone with a little more experience. To my knowledge Jim Fassel is still available. However, the Broncos clearly weren't interested in interviewing candidates with previous head coaching experience.

I think in order for McDaniels to have a chance at having any success with the Broncos that Pat Bowlen will need to hire a good GM and a good Defensive Coordinator. At least we know that McDaniels will be skilled at the art of inconspicuous video taping of his opponents.
8:37 AM
Mike said…
Jim Fassel? Marty Schottenheimer? Blaine, where do you come up with these guys?
9:06 AM
John said…
I was worried we were going to hir this guy, and not only becuase we owe Shanny the GDP of Denmark over the next few years. McDaniels strikes me as the safe but uninspiring pick: there has been so much hype around the Patriots and their offense that some has invariably rubbed off of him, so guys like Sean Salisbury can claim they knew about him all along. But, unsurprisingly, I disagree with the conventional wisdom here: based on what I have seen, Patriots assistants have not been working out all that well as head coaches (see Crennel, Weis, and Mangini), and I have no real reason to think McDaniels will be much different.

Besides, isn't our problem player personnel decisions? And how does this help us there?

Jim Fassel and Marty Schottenheimer? I couldn't think of two more undeserving retreads. What are you thinking, Blaine? Particularly in the case of Schottenheimer - he has made his career out of losing to the Broncos, not beating them.
10:15 AM
blaine said…
Why is everyone opposed to a proven winner? Schottenheimer has had a winning record with every team where he has been the head coach. For his career he's won over 60% of the games he's coached and his overall record is 200-126 (in the regular season).

The point is moot considering the Broncos have already made their decision, and I'm not saying that Marty was the right man for the job. I just think his record at least warrants an interview with the Broncos.
11:49 AM
Mike said…
Golly, Blaine, you're right. Wait, what did you say his playoff record was? 5-13? You realize the man was on the wrong side of The Drive, right?

John, I agree about the hype, and that was more or less my point of pointing out his job titles: he wasn't the critical in the glory days, and when he was o-coord, the team collapsed in the Super Bowl.
11:56 AM
David said…
agree with the retread comments. us denver sports folk love this tactic (see rockies, nuggets). something about the thin air must translate to frugality.

but seriously, mcdaniels must be one hell of an interviewer. i'm disappointed with the pick.

what happened to defense? freak, this move does nothing.
12:14 PM
John said…
if Marty Schottenheimer was such a proven winner, why hasn't anyone else hired him in the two years he has been out of the game? The 60% winning percentage in the regular season v. 5-13 in the playoffs tells you all you need to know - the guy gets on good teams and then chokes on "Marty Ball" in the playoffs.

Mike: That was exactly my point about the hype. It is more important that Chris Berman talks about you on air than it is that you haven't gotten it done.

DP: I had the same thought about the defense. Do we not even care about that side of the ball anymore?
4:14 PM
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