The 2022 season has gone about as bad as it could have possibly gone for the Denver Broncos and Nathaniel Hackett. As as a result, many in Broncos Country are calling for Coach Hackett’s head, while a healthy portion of the fanbase believes he deserves more time.
Do you hope Hackett gets dismissed before the Panthers game?
— Zach Segars (@Zach_Segars) November 21, 2022
Why should the Broncos keep Hackett another week? And why should they let him go right now? Let’s look.
The case for Coach Hackett
The argument for retaining Coach Hackett at this point is logical. It asks, what do the Broncos really have to gain from moving off of Hackett, right this moment?
https://twitter.com/flybycygnus2112/status/1594575108361711616?s=46&t=P-JR2VFOmFzOUFdAoFRYwQ
“There’s no point [in firing him] now,” Twitter user Michael Harrison argued. “You’re not finding your next coach mid-season, just finish the season and be done with it.”
Other members of Broncos Country, like Ladd Ryan, echoed Harrison’s sentiment about the move likely not making a meaningful difference until the end of the year.
“Firing coaches mid-season [makes] sense if you think it will make a meaningful difference [on] the season’s outcome,” Ryan wrote. “No imaginable HC could save [2022]. We gotta swallow this effing pill and reassess, retool when the season ends.”
Although it wasn’t a popular argument, some members of Broncos Country also argued for the fact that Hackett’s goose isn’t cooked yet. He could still potentially turn things around, and he’s a first time head coach that deserves a chance, they argued.
“He is a rookie coach, and this fanbase is the equivalent to a black Friday shopper [in terms of] patience,” Aaron M. wrote via Twitter. “I mean we are [just] going to get rid of another coach and hire another one.”
Rich C. argues that Coach Hackett should be spared, because the offense’s disappointments might be on the quarterback instead.
“There was a lot to like about [Hackett’s] play-calling,” Rich wrote. “The issue I had with it was that he went to shotgun too much. What I want to know is if that was [Russell Wilson’s] input or Hackett’s own doing. If the former, I want to see a better OL with Hackett’s scheme.”
The case against Coach Hackett
The argument for dismissing Coach Hackett right now is a simple one, perhaps best summed up by Frankie Abbott of Mile High Report and the Let’s Talk Broncos podcast.
The New York Times puts the Broncos at a 1% chance to make playoffs. The season is cooked. It’s time. pic.twitter.com/GQdBk2pIXu
— Frankie Abbott (@FrankiesFilm) November 21, 2022
“The New York Times puts the Broncos at a 1% chance to make playoffs,” Abbott wrote. “The season is cooked. It’s time.”
The thought that the season is already over, and therefore, that Hackett’s fate is sealed, is a sensible one. It was echoed by a Twitter user going under the name ‘George Paton deserves more blame,’ which is certainly a compelling slogan.
https://twitter.com/plzandthnkyou/status/1594568294467411968?s=46&t=P-JR2VFOmFzOUFdAoFRYwQ
“What would barely squeaking out a win against Carolina tell us about Hackett,” the user asked.
And that’s an excellent point. How would beating the worst team in the NFL really help Coach Hackett’s résumé or job security?
Another point fueling the desire to move on from Hackett now, is that fans want to see what the Broncos have in defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, who is sure to interview for head-coaching positions this offseason.
“It’s probably pointless now,” Twitter user Christopher Mills wrote. “But if they are eying Evero as a HC candidate for next season, I think they need to give him a few games this season. It’ll be hard to justify hiring another guy who has zero HC experience. Use the last 7 games to let Evero audition.”
The last argument for why the Denver Broncos should dismiss Coach Hackett right now is another understandable one.
The guy is simply a bad NFL head coach, and therefore, should be dismissed.
Yes, because Hackett is in over his head. His buddy-buddy style has created a culture of a lack of discipline, a lack of accountability, and preparedness. To think he will be anything different is naive. He is a good hand clapper; reminds me of A less competent Jason Garrett. pic.twitter.com/RatN8NXA1w
— Bethany Reed (@Beth0362) November 21, 2022
“Yes [he should be fired], because Hackett is in over his head,” Twitter user Bethany Reed wrote. “His buddy-buddy style has created a culture of a lack of discipline, a lack of accountability, and preparedness. To think he will be anything different is naive. He is a good hand clapper; reminds me of a less competent Jason Garrett.”
Conclusion
Right now, Broncos Country wants to see heads roll, and who can blame them?
This is maybe the most disappointing season in the history of professional sports in the United States of America.
That sounds hyperbolic, but has a fanbase ever been forced to endure six years of misery, then the moment they get a glimpse of the light at the end of the tunnel, they’re sent spiraling into a deeper, darker, and even more miserable chasm, which appears to be inescapable for the next few seasons.
Someone has to be held responsible, and it won’t be Russell Wilson or George Paton, yet — even if they’re more to blame — so that leaves Coach Hackett.
And, most Broncos fans, understandably, expect Hackett to be dismissed at season’s end anyways, so why not now? Hackett isn’t calling plays, and he isn’t running the team.
On the other end, why now? The only thing to potentially be gained would be getting Ejiro Evero as head coach, but the Broncos seem destined to go with a retread hire.
I wanted Dan Quinn last cycle. Likely brings Brian Schottenheimer with him and keeps Evero. https://t.co/059rHgGnRI
— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) November 15, 2022
Also, reporting suggests that they’d like to bring Evero back as defensive coordinator. Giving him a head-coaching audition only makes it more likely that someone elsewhere gives him a shot, and then Denver would be down Evero. Even if no one else gives him that shot, it would nullify the defensive coordinator contract he’s currently working under.
Giving Evero a shot at head coach is probably the right thing to do, but keeping him as a coordinator is probably the thing that benefits the 2023 Denver Broncos the most.
It seems likely they’ll lean towards the latter, and give Coach Hackett at least a few more weeks.
Ultimately though, it seems silly to get too tied up into either side of the equation, as both arguments seem to rest on there being little to gain no matter the avenue Denver chooses.