Broncos' Vance Joseph draws eye-opening comparison from Joe Woods

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — A lot has changed at Denver Broncos headquarters over the past few months. A juiced up offense, a beefed up defensive line, a recharged offensive line and much more.

The catalyst of it all, of course, is new head coach Vance Joseph.

Many of the changes that have taken place are quite public, but it’s the intricacies that a coach brings to the daily operations of the team that can sometimes have the greatest impact. On Wednesday, a man who is quite familiar with ‘VJ,’ defensive coordinator Joe Woods, helped shed some light on what the new coach has brought to the building.

“I think everybody has a different personality and a different type of attitude that they bring to the team as a coach,” he explained. “VJ has always been a defensive-minded coach. There were about four of five guys that I stayed close with throughout my career at my position, and he was one of those guys. I’ve known him for about 15 or 16 years. The thing with VJ is—guys have said he’s a leader of men. VJ has the ability that when he tells you something, even though you may not believe it, you’re going to believe it. He just has that special gift in him.”

Woods then went on to make a pretty gleaming comparison.

“I had the luxury of working with [Steelers Head Coach] Mike Tomlin, and he is very similar to Mike Tomlin in terms of those traits. Right now, he’s doing an outstanding job, and I think the players are taking to what he’s bringing.”

Mike Tomlin is one of those names that instantly makes ears perk up. You’re talking about a guy with a 103-57 record over his ten-year tenure with the Pittsburgh Steelers, a guy who is widely respected as one of the best coaches in the league.

Tomlin has some similarities with Joseph in terms of the path traveled to the head coaching seat. Both spent extended periods as defensive backs coaches before becoming a defensive coordinator for one year, and then making the jump to the lead man. Both are considered player’s coaches, and both, as Woods pointed out, have the ability to capture the attention of a room at the drop of a hat.

If Joseph can become anywhere near the level of coach that Tomlin is, it will be huge win for the franchise. As for now, ‘VJ’ is taking it one day at a time, winning over the fan base and more importantly his team and staff.

“I mean, he’s at all my meetings,” special teams coordinator Brock Olivo said, a bit shocked by his own words. “He’s listening in, and he knows what’s going on. I love that. And then he’s right there in practice, getting in the thick of things, and you can hear him. I mean, just his presence there is huge for us, especially to the young guys, the rookies. They say, ‘OK, the coach is here during special teams practice.’ This is saying something. It’s awesome. VJ gets it, and I’m very fortunate to be his special teams coordinator.”

Vance Joseph has a long way to go as a head coach, but he’s certainly making all the right impressions early.