The Denver Broncos’ search to find their next head coach is underway and there’s no doubt who is in charge.
Joe Ellis has made it very clear George Paton will lead the search and make the final decision.
With that being said, who should Paton hire to be the Broncos’ next head coach?
The DNVR Crew breaks it down in the 19th, and first postseason, edition of Broncos Pick ‘Em.
All odds below are courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Who should the Broncos hire as their next head coach?
Zac: Kevin O’Connell — The Rams’ 37-year-old offensive coordinator is the next young offensive coach to take the NFL by storm. The Broncos don’t want to miss out on him, like they did with his boss, Sean McVay.
O’Connell isn’t just a bright offensive mind, he sees the game through the eyes of a quarterback. As a former third-round quarterback, McVay has tasked O’Connell with working directly with the quarterbacks in Los Angeles. For years the Broncos haven’t been able to get the most important position in sports right. O’Connell would help them in a massive way.
On top of being one of the bright offensive minds in the NFL, he has another major stamp of approval to his name.
When Brandon Staley left the Rams to become the Chargers’ head coach, he attempted to bring O’Connell with him to be his offensive coordinator with play calling duties, since McVay is the play caller for the Rams. Because McVay thinks so highly of O’Connell, and because he’s so an integral part of the Ram’s offensive operation, the Rams blocked the move and didn’t allow O’Connell to leave. This tells me that two of the most respected, young head coaches in the NFL value O’Connell an extreme amount.
The Broncos shouldn’t pass him by.
Mase: Dan Quinn – The only current candidate with previous head-coaching experience should be the call.
Quinn’s five years in Atlanta ran the gamut: The Falcons quickly rose from mediocrity to the franchise’s second Super Bowl appearance, then advanced to the divisional round the following year before a steady decline. Quinn’s defense struggled in those years, in part because he ceded control to his coordinators so he could focus on running the entire operation. If there is a lesson for Quinn to learn, it is on the hiring of defensive coordinators; until he moved Raheem Morris into the role in 2019, the returns were mixed, at best. But Quinn’s identification of offensive coordinators was top-shelf, giving the Falcons the best sustained offense in their club’s history. The Falcons never dropped out of the NFL’s top quarter in total offense in any of Quinn’s five seasons, even though he had to change coordinators twice — first from Kyle Shanahan to Steve Sarkisian, and then from Sarkisian to Dirk Koetter.
Further, the fact that Quinn and George Paton have worked together before and reportedly discussed joining forces again in the 2015 hiring cycle matters. Some of the best rebuilds in recent years have come from coaches and GMs whose background and affinity for each other allowed for a shared vision and strong working partnership, particularly in San Francisco (Shanahan and John Lynch) and Buffalo (Sean McDermott and Brandon Beane, who worked together in Carolina). Harmony matters in creating a functional operation.
Also, note this: There have been 64 playoff teams in the last five seasons. Nineteen were guided by “retread” coaches on at least their second NFL stop; 45 were led by first-time head coaches. But by the ends of those five seasons, just 42 teams were led by “retread” coaches, compared with 118 guided by first-timers.
So, on a percentage basis, 45.2 percent of “retread” coaches had their team in the playoffs, compared with 38.1 percent of first-time coaches. And this year, 66.7 percent (4-of-6) of the “retreads” stalking sidelines have their teams in the postseason, compared with 38.5 percent (10-of-26) of the first-timers.
The crowd says, “retread.” I say, “experienced.” Quinn should be the choice.
RK: Kellen Moore — Look, it’s time to get with the times.
We are in the golden era of offensive football in the NFL and yet, somehow, the Broncos’ offense has about as much creativity as a suburban home builder.
Denver needs an offensive innovator to pair with a quarterback to get this team back to playing an exciting brand of football and Moore just may be that guy.
Last cycle, the Broncos were lauded for “zigging while the rest of the league zagged” and where did that get them? On their couch, watching a playoffs where nine of 13 permanent head coaches are offensive minded, including several that Denver has passed on in the last two cycles.
Time to zag.
Picks Picks Picks
Raiders @ Bengals (-6)
Zac: Raiders.
Mase: Bengals.
RK: Raiders cover and lose.
Patriots @ Bills (-4)
Zac: Patriots.
Mase: Bills.
RK: Pats cover and lose.
Eagles @ Buccaneers (-8)
Zac: Bucs.
Mase: Tampa Bay, all the way.
RK: Eagles cover and lose.
49ers @ Cowboys (-3)
Zac: 49ers.
Mase: Cowboys.
RK: Niners win straight up.
Steelers @ Chiefs (-12.5)
Zac: Chiefs.
Mase: Chiefs.
RK: Steelers cover and lose.
Cardinals @ Rams (-4)
Zac: Cardinals.
Mase: Rams.
RK: Cards.
Leaderboard
RK: 6-4
Zac: 3-7
Mase: 2-8
Overall
RK: 120-136
Zac: 119-137
Mase: 115-141
