Now that Super Bowl 59 is over, the Denver Broncos are deeply entrenched in planning for the NFL Scouting Combine and finalizing their approach to NFL Free Agency. On top of that, Broncos head coach Sean Payton is still working to finalize some of his staff vacancies.
Denver Broncos working to fill coaching vacancies
The new league year officially begins for the 2025-2026 NFL calendar on March 12th at 2:00 p.m. MT and the frenzy of free agency kicks off. Hopefully by the time that happens, the Broncos finalize their coaching staff amidst some of the vacancies they currently have.
Right now, Sean Payton has to add a tight end, inside linebacker, passing game coordinator, and special teams coordinator to the coaching staff. Ideally, the special teams coordinator job might fill very quickly after Chris Banjo departed to take the New York Jets gig, where the door opens up for Darren Rizzi.
Rizzi was in consideration for the New Orleans Saints head coaching job, and a handful of players publicly expressed their desire for him to be the guy, but ultimately, they went with Kellen Moore. This opens up the possibility of Rizzi reuniting with Payton as his special teams coordinator, replacing Ben Kotwica, who Payton fired after the season.
ICYMI: Denver Broncos Mailbag: Can a Veteran addition help accelerate Bo Nix’s development?
Payton will also have to find another tight end coach after Declan Doyle left to be the Chicago Bears offensive coordinator under Ben Johnson. John Morton, who served as the Broncos’ passing game coordinator, took the Detroit Lions’ vacant offensive coordinator job after Johnson became the head coach for the Bears, and Morton also brought along David Shaw from the Broncos to be his passing game coordinator after he previously served in an advisory role for the Broncos front office.
And lastly, Payton will have to add an inside linebacker coach to replace Greg Manusky, who Payton fired several weeks ago. Payton also mentioned during Radio Row that inside linebacker was a position they would look to address this offseason, so having a position coach in place who can have some input or insight would be helpful.
The Denver Broncos have been a promotional hotspot for other teams around the league, from coaches to front-office staff getting opportunities to grow in other organizations. Payton’s culture building has transformed the league-wide perspective of the Broncos in just his first two seasons, and that’s a positive sign as he digs deeper into his third year.
