The Denver Broncos hired the 16th head coach in team history this week when they named Vance Joseph the next head coach. A decision that seems to split Broncos Country on how they felt about the new hire. Joseph, who played quarterback and running back at the University of Colorado, but is now known as a defensive coach, as he has spent his coaching career on that side of the ball.
Therefore the side of the fan base that asks why hire a defensive coach when that side of that ball has not only carried their weight they have picked up the slack for the lackluster offense at times as well? A good question to ask, and their argument got a little help when the Atlanta Falcons put a beat down on the Seattle Seahawks, fueled by the Kyle Shanahan offense and Matt Ryan.
Shanahan, the son of former Broncos Coach and two time Super Bowl winner Mike Shanahan, was candidate 1b when it came to Elway’s list of coaches. Kyle will no doubt be a head coach in the NFL, if not by next season, then perhaps the following.
Before Broncos fans deem the Joseph hiring a failure without even giving him a chance let me remind you of one thing: Matt Ryan is probably going to be the league’s MVP. Granted, I think it should be Tom Brady, but you know he and Roger Goodell have some issues. However, Matt Ryan is having a great year and some of that credit should go to Kyle Shanahan, but only some.
Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch could be future NFL MVP candidates, but I think we all know what the odds would be of that happening. Again, not to say Shanahan would not have helped one of or both of those quarterbacks, but neither is Matt Ryan, in fact they are not even close.
The Falcons also spent roughly $6 million more on their offensive line this season than did the Denver Broncos. That may not seem like a ton in terms of how it relates to their roster, but you get what you pay for in this world; and the Atlanta Falcons are preparing for the NFC Championship while the Broncos prepare for next season.
So lets not deem the Vance Joseph era a failure because John Elway did not hire the guy you wanted him to hire and give the guy a chance.
Yes, there is a lot of work to do, and the expectations are high in Denver. They always are and always will be. It is what makes the franchise so great. The good news is John Elway is in charge. You can knock him for missed picks and the contract extension for John Fox, but one thing he does better than any other general manager in the NFL is fix problems. He fixes them quick, so I expect the offense to be fixed much sooner than later and maybe you should too.