Vic Fangio’s staff is coming together. According to Mike Klis, the new defensive coordinator for the Denver Broncos is Ed Donatell. Dontatell has previously coached in Denver under Mike Shanahan and Josh McDaniels, but most recently worked with Fangio in Chicago.
Donatell reportedly interviewed for the position on Tuesday and was hired the same day, becoming the second Bears assistant to join Fangio in the Mile High City. Denver also brought over outside linebackers coach Brandon Staley.
Donatell, 61, has been coaching for 40 years. Originally a graduate assistant at Kent University in 1979, Donatell first broke into the NFL in 1990 as a secondary coach with the Jets.
After spending five seasons in New York, Donatell first came to Denver in 1995, where he won two Super Bowls in five years, before spending multiple seasons in Green Bay (2000-03) and Atlanta (2004-06). Donatell briefly returned to Denver for two seasons (2009-10), but spent the majority of the last decade with San Francisco (2011-14) and Chicago (2015-18).
Although Donatell will be the team’s defensive coordinator, Fangio told the media at his introductory press conference that he will be calling the plays on that side of the football. That being said, there is plenty of room for improvement in the secondary.
The Broncos used to be known for the “No Fly Zone”, but there have been plenty of frequent fliers in Denver over the last few season. Denver gave up 26 passing touchdowns last season and 29 in 2017. When the Broncos won the Super Bowl in 2015, the defense only gave up 19 touchdowns through the air.
