Denver Broncos head coach Vance Joseph has experienced a nightmare ride in his first season as head man. He’s already following beloved coach Gary Kubiak, who walked away from the position for health reasons in January of 2017 — and Kubiak won a Super Bowl.
In contrast, Joseph was inexperienced when hired this spring, even as a coordinator previously, and he’s been handed a team with no quarterback, strong voices on defense that are growing frustrated and middling-at-best offensive line, and is just trying to get to the end of the year without setting franchise lows.
Joseph’s team has dug themselves a hole, now seven straight losses deep after their 21-14 loss to the Oakland Raiders on Sunday. The Broncos haven’t lost seven in a row since 1967, when Lou Saban was head coach of a Broncos team that would ultimately lose nine games in a row… something that is unfortunately within reach of this year’s team as the slide continues.
In short, it’s been a disastrous season, meaning that Joseph’s future may very well be shorter than most expected if nothing changes quickly in the Mile High City.
John Elway, who hand-picked Joseph, may have to fire him in short order. Here’s why:
1. The leader of men has lost his leadership
Joseph’s was introduced as ‘a leader of men,’ and the term served as the Broncos’ sales pitch to their fan base. Joseph would serve as a CEO-type, overseeing a strong group of coordinators to game day.
That notion quickly dissipated as Joseph appeared to make mistake after mistake in communication and losses began to pile up. Seemingly indecisive regarding his starting quarterback after every game, Joseph’s waffling eroded fans’ confidence in him, and perhaps even from some of his players, as well.
Practices, according to Joseph, were excellent every single week, but game days have been a complete failure. A lost locker room is almost always the kiss of death for coaches, and with players verbally fighting on the field late in the season between offense and defense, veterans and rookies, and even a few crying in despair doesn’t bode well for a coach and his chances as they hang in the balance. This team was supposed to be led by someone who’s strength is supposedly avoiding this very issue altogether. That strength never showed this season, and the team has crumbled around him.
2. The definition of insanity
Doing something over and over again, expecting a different result. That’s what Joseph ultimately did with Isaiah McKenzie at punt returner, constantly trotting out the rookie, even after it was clear he wasn’t ready for the big stage. Joseph watched his offense operate poorly in what seemed like a carbon-copy of failures, turnovers and undisciplined play.
Reports of the team running plays on game day that weren’t even practiced happened on Joseph’s watch, as well. It may have been one of the major pieces in the reasoning for the firing of former offensive coordinator Mike McCoy, but the reality is it happened under Joseph’s watch — and that’s a big problem.
3. Unprepared teams
Week after week, the Broncos look like a team completely unprepared for the opponent. It’s hard not to see game plans that are clearly ineffective; teams that look uninspired and never seem to be able to punch back after being initially punched in battle. This is a roster full of talented players on paper, and for them to come out so flat in games week after week speaks to Joseph’s ability — or lack thereof — to get them ready for game day.
Joseph was reputed to be a leader; the person that gets the most out of everyone on his staff and roster and yet, those traits have been all but invisible.
As badly as the season has gone, however, there are reasons for the Broncos to keep Joseph, as well.
1. It’s ultimately on John Elway
The team’s talent? Picked by Elway.
The team’s coaching staff? Picked by Elway.
What appears to be direct control of depth chart positioning, particularly at the quarterback position, lands on Elway too.
With praise in successful times, comes criticism in failure. Elway’s poor drafts and lack of ability to find a franchise quarterback in the post-Manning era has plagued the team and set the them up for pedestrian play in this year and beyond. This isn’t entirely on Joseph, who’s pinned between a rock and a hard place; trying to manage poor talent while still asked to crank out five-star production. A great coach may be able to deliver on this, but to ask a first-year head coach to create wine out of water is simply too much to ask.
2. One-and-done is a deathtrap
No team wants to step into a revolving door at head coach in the NFL. That’s Cleveland material. That’s what the Raiders were. That’s not what Denver wants to be.
A shaky foundation at the top affects how you recruit quality coaching and players. Never establishing continuity at the highest spots on the totem pole in your organization can be a major blemish on how your franchise appears to others, outside of the bubble of your fan base.
Joseph signed a four-year deal when he was hired, telling you how much the Broncos organization truly believed in him when he signed — but also, what plans they may have had for him. Even in the rocky first-year scenario that’s playing out right now, a second year seems all but committed, regardless how badly things go, allowing Joseph to put his stamp on the team. It’s rare to find a head coach that immediately has success out of the gate, and then sustains it. Young coaches need time.
3. The lack of a quality starting quarterback doomed the Broncos before they began
Without a clear starter at quarterback, this team was going nowhere anyway. Joseph will get his opportunity in the off-season to collect one, which is why he needs time. While the team hasn’t played well off the field, on paper, there is still plenty of talent on the roster.
A franchise quarterback can alter a team’s trajectory completely; nobody knows this better than Denver fans. Banking on nabbing one of them and giving Joseph a fighter’s chance with that quarterback could be reason to keep him, and lead to success in the future.
