The Broncos announce more changes to the coaching staff

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos moved on from head coach Nathaniel Hackett on Monday, but that wasn’t the only change they made to the coaching staff after their 51-14 loss on Christmas Day.

Here’s what else went down:

• The Broncos announced that senior assistant Jerry Rosburg will serve as interim head coach.

• The Broncos fired special teams coach Dwayne Stukes and replaced him with assistant special teams coach Mike Mallory.
  
• The Broncos also fired offensive line coach Butch Barrry and replaced him with assistant offensive line coach Ben Steele.

---

Jerry Rosburg joined the Broncos in September to help then-head coach Nathaniel Hackett with in-game decision-making. To that point in the season, Hackett had made several surprising decisions, like trying to kick a game-winning field goal from 65 yards away in Week 1. Rosburg’s voice was in Hackett’s headset to help with things like whether to punt on fourth down or go for it and when to call timeout.

Rosburg, 67, was chosen because of his lengthy NFL experience. He’d coached major college football from 1987 to 2000 and in the NFL ever since. He primarily served as a special teams coordinator in the NFL, with the bulk of his experience coming from 2008-18 with the Baltimore Ravens under John Harbaugh.

Now, Rosburg will take over as head coach for the final two weeks of the season. According to multiple reports, he wasn’t the Broncos first choice.

The Broncos initially offered the job to defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, but the 41-year-old rejected the offer. Evero was Nathaniel Hackett’s college roommate and longtime friend, which may have played a part in the decision.

---

From blocked field goals to muffed punts, Denver’s special teams have been among the league’s worst this season. According to Football Outsiders’ DVOA, they’ve been the worst special teams unit in the NFL.

The Broncos rank 30th in field goal percentage and 28th in extra point percentage. They rank last in kick return average and 20th in punt return average. They rank 22nd in punting average and 18th in net average. Remember, the Broncos play half their games at altitude so they have an advantage in any of the distance stats.

Given all of the above, the Broncos’ decision to fire special teams coordinator Dwayne Stukes, 45, hardly comes as a surprise. Stukes has been in the league since 2006, primarily as a special teams assistant. His other stint as the coordinator came in 2011 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Broncos’ replacement for Stukes is Mike Mallory, who was assistant special teams coach to this point. He was also the Jacksonville Jaguars’ special teams coordinator from 2013-16.

---

On the surface, the Broncos’ offensive line doesn’t seem that bad.

The line is 20th in adjusted line yards, which is a measurement of a lines contribution to the running game. It gave up a run stuff on 19% of carries, which is just above the league average of 18%. They fall behind in adjusted sack rate, which places them 31st. Pro Football Focus ranks them as the 15th run-blocking offensive line and 16th pass-blocking line.

Those aren’t ideal marks, but they don’t indicate that the Broncos had a bottom-feeding group. Factor in the slew of injuries and some of those numbers are almost acceptable.

Although the stats may say the Broncos’ line was alright, it appeared to struggle week-in and week-out. Denver only put together a dominant running attack on a couple of occasions. The most damning fact is that the wide-zone scheme the Broncos tried to install over the offseason was abandoned for a large stretch of the season because the line couldn’t handle it.

Denver needs to be better in the trenches, and that’s why the Broncos opted to move on from Butch Barry. Barry joined the Broncos this offseason after six seasons of coaching in the NFL. He had never served as an offensive line coach at the NFL level, only at the University of Miami and as an assistant offensive line coach with the Buccaneers and 49ers.

The Broncos will replace Barry with Ben Steele, 44. Steele’s only other job as assistant offensive line coach was with the Minnesota Vikings last season. He also served as tight ends coach for the Buccaneers in 2017-18 and the Falcons in 2020.