Music, 'Star Wars' and analytics: Here's how Nathaniel Hackett changes the vibe of the Broncos

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — When I was in elementary school, I went through a phase where I refused to smile for my photos — or when I did, it was a smile that was clearly manufactured. It was as genuine as cubic zirconia.

Exasperated, my mother told me to think of something that made me smile.

The magic words? “Star Wars.”

Problem solved. Glum stares and fake smiles replaced by a twinkle in the eye. I still sometimes think “Star Wars” if I want to smile for a picture.

I thought of that moment Friday after I asking new Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett the question that will probably launch a thousand memes throughout Broncos Country.

Of course, Hackett didn’t need the title of a space-opera series to bring a smile to his face. He walked to the lectern bursting with as much energy as the sun itself.

That settled into an up-tempo series of questions and answers about his philosophy, his points of emphasis, his thoughts on what he wants to see from the quarterbacks. Several minutes into the press conference, I asked him about analytics — and his response should please anyone who wants to see the Broncos modernize their approach.

When it comes to thoughts on numbers from Broncos offensive play-callers, consider that we heard this today from Nathaniel Hackett … pic.twitter.com/aA7M19F2Uo

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) January 29, 2022

“Analytics — I think they’re awesome,” Hackett said. “I think that numbers are an amazing thing in this world. I’ve been very enamored by so many things from when I first started as a quality control [assistant] — I was a quality control guy for eight years. The amount of stuff that we built from reports across the board were awesome.

“I think what they do, especially as a play-caller and anybody that utilizes them is that they’re a great baseline. They are great things to show you and help guide you and check what you do. They’re a great way to check what you’re doing yourself. I think there’s so many different ways you can utilize them. When you look at game day, there’s so many things that can help guide you to make the best decision because for anybody that’s on that field, every decision is very quick.

“I think the more that you have the analytical data to help you make a better decision, it’s going to help the whole team. I think that we’ll use that quite a bit. It’s not necessarily going to be the only thing we’re going to do — it’s not going to be exactly what we’re going to do, but we’ll definitely utilize it to help us make great decisions.”

Hackett’s words were music to any number-cruncher’s ears — and a long way from former offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur’s response at a press conference 43 days earlier, when he replied to a question asking which data he took into account by saying, “Just points — and wins.”

But when I asked Hackett a follow-up question about a galaxy far, far away, a smile crossed his face and his eyes twinkled.

“Gosh, I did not know I was going to get that one right now,” Hackett said, beaming.

I knew that look.

I recognized it from when my mother showed me pictures to point out that her little Jedi mind trick actually worked.

And although Hackett is known to have used the name of Yoda, the Jedi Master as a playcall, the Broncos’ new coach said that the character that best reflected his personality was the swaggering smuggler, Han Solo.

Me: “Which [@starwars] character sums up your personality best, & why?”

New @Broncos HC Nathaniel Hackett: “I have always felt myself that I feel like I’m a Han Solo. I just feel like he was always smooth & cool, & he got the beautiful princess, too.”pic.twitter.com/b057QjFRD9

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) January 29, 2022

You have to possess some swagger if you’re going to succeed as an NFL head coach. But you also need to be charming, and there was no more charming rogue than the Millennium Falcon’s pilot.

And of course, Han Solo got the girl.

“I have always felt myself that I feel like I’m a Han Solo,” Hackett said. “I just felt like he was always smooth and cool — and he got the beautiful princess, too. Sorry I had to say that — she [wife, Megan] is so mad at me right now.”

But Hackett also cited Yoda, and that is apt. There is a wisdom to Hackett’s words that matches that of the 900-year-old sage. And certainly, the Broncos hope that he can pull the team out of the muck and mire, just as Yoda levitated Luke Skywalker’s X-wing from Dagobah’s murky swamp.

The first step will come with changing the atmopshere — through force of personality, meetings tailored to the “YouTube generation” and even something as simple as music at practice.

It won’t be the “Star Wars” soundtrack. It may not even be a selection from Hackett’s beloved Justin Timberlake catalog; it’ll be players’ choice.

“When it comes to that energy, of course you know music is going to be out there and it’s going to be the guys’ music because that’s what it’s about. It’s about feeling that rhythm and having fun,” Hackett said.

“It’s the demeanor of the coaches. It’s the demeanor of how we handle it. If somebody makes a big play you want to be excited. You want to be excited for the defense, the offense, the special teams — for everybody. That’s kind of the atmosphere you want to create so it’s not about just going out there to practice. You’re going out there to compete, play football, and have fun.”

Of course, Yoda, despite his powers, came to understand his limitations. So does Hackett.

One example came when he discussed game management — and the need to have someone focused on game management who could help keep him from blindly following the go-for-it instincts offensive play-callers often possess.

“When I was an offensive coordinator, you’d always want to go for it, but I had someone [the head coach] saying, ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ Now, it’s, ‘I get to go for it any time, so I need to make sure I have somebody that’s holding me back a little bit,” he said.

But one thing the Broncos probably don’t want to restrain is Hackett’s sparkling enthusiasm.

Like a crisp, bracing wind blowing along the surface of Hoth on a typically snowswept morning, Hackett breezed into UCHealth Training Center on Friday and made it clear that change was in the air.

There’s a gleam in Broncos Country again, and it comes from the new man in the big chair with the sparkle in his eye and the pop-culture references on the tip of his tongue.