ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Not all MVPs wear pads.
“I thought Bill called a game to win,” Denver Broncos’ head coach Vance Joseph said as he sang the praises about his new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave. “He helped call a game to keep drives alive and keep the third downs manageable. It was fun to see.”
In fact, for the Denver Broncos’ offense the last two weeks, the meaning of MVP doesn’t stand for “player,” it stands for “person.”
In their last two games, the Broncos have not only strung together two wins, they’ve averaged 24 points in a two-game stretch for the first time since Week 2 of the season—some three months ago. They’ve had two different quarterbacks running their offense, but one consistent play caller: Bill—Billy as his friends call him—Musgrave.
Musgrave started the season as Denver’s quarterback coach, but was promoted to interim offensive coordinator when the team fired Mike McCoy following Week 11. In his four starts since taking over the reigns of the offense, he’s had to work with three different quarterbacks. Yet the past two weeks he’s been able to find a winning groove, even without a consistent signal caller.
“The last two weeks we haven’t turned the ball over at a high rate,” Joseph stated after his team rolled of two-straight wins in five days. “I truly think how Billy has called the game for the quarterback has minimized mistakes and has minimized the ball being batted around.”
In the past two games, the Broncos have turned the ball over a total of one time—an egregious interception by Trevor Siemian against the Indianapolis Colts that should have never been thrown. That’s the first time all season the Broncos have had less than two turnovers in a two-game stretch. In fact, since Musgrave took over the Broncos’ offense, they are averaging over one less turnover per game than they did under McCoy.
Musgrave’s most impressive job all season was Week 15’s win over the Colts, when he devised the team’s best offense all season in terms of yards (462) even with a change at quarterback midway through the game.
“I think he’s done a good job,” Joseph said as evaluated his interim head coach. “Our formula was to run the ball, not turn the ball over and play dominant defense. It’s happened the last two weeks. I think it’s simple, not giving the ball away and playing to our strengths as a football team. That’s what’s happened the last two weeks.”
Every time Denver has had more rushing attempts in a game, they’ve won. Although it seems like a simple formula, McCoy was only able to execute that plan three out of ten times. In Musgrave’s four games, he’s done it twice. For an offense that looked incompetent much of the season, there have been clear signs of life the last two weeks.
“I think he’s done a tremendous job, if you look at the success we’ve had with the offense and the running game,” John Elway said on the Orange & Blue radio earlier this week, putting his stamp of approval on the interim coach. “He’s simplified things and players have really taken to it.”
This isn’t the first time Bill has found success, either. Just last year, Musgrave was the offensive coordinator of the Oakland Raiders where they finished the season as the seventh-best scoring offense (26 points per game) and sixth-best offense in yards (373 per game).
After firing Musgrave because they thought they had the next “hot” coordinator behind him, Oakland’s offense has gone from one of the best in the league, to average at best in just a season. Through 15 weeks of 2017, they have the 14th-worst offense in terms of yards (326 per game) and the 11th-worst offense in terms of points (20.1).
Coincidence? Perhaps. But if Musgrave continues to lead Denver’s offense to similar outcomes of the last two weeks, it will be hard to ignore his impact. So much so, in fact, his boss may just have to take the “interim” tag off his title after the season ends.
It isn’t solely about the numbers on the field that drive up Musgrave’s value to the team, either.
“It was great; it really was,” quarterback Brock Osweiler said with great joy of Musgrave’s play calling and coaching in the win against the Colts. “I love Coach Musgrave. I have told him that many times this year. I love his approach that he brings to the building every day, the way he leads the offensive unit, how he calls plays and the things he says in our earpiece during games.”
“He is just a tremendous coach, and I can’t say enough great things about him.”
