The Denver Broncos had an incredible season led by the defense in 2025, so it was shocking to Sean Payton that his defensive coordinator didn't get hired to be a head coach this offseason.
Midway through the 2025 season and towards the end, several coaches were gaining traction as possible head coach candidates including Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.
Joseph was expected to be a lock for one of the 10 openings around the league, yet he didn’t land any of the jobs and will continue to coordinate Denver’s defense for at least another season.
Joseph has done a phenomenal job with the Broncos defense, and the unit has established itself as a powerhouse over the past couple of seasons. When Joseph came back to Denver in 2023 after a four-year stint as the Arizona Cardinals DC, the defense was one of the worst in the National Football League.
The Broncos allowed the fourth-most yards per game (370.8), the sixth-most points per game (24.3) and tied for the ninth-fewest sacks (42) in 2023, but the defense underwent a total transformation in 2024 and 2025.
Denver allowed the seventh-fewest yards per game (317.1) and third-fewest points per game (18.3) in 2024. In 2025, they allowed the second-fewest yards per game (278.2) and matched their points allowed per game total from the year before, also finishing third. The Broncos have led the NFL in sacks over that stretch as well (63 in 2024, 68 last season).
It’s safe to say Joseph has played a huge role in this defense being one of the best in the league and it should have resulted in him getting his second chance at becoming a head coach.
On Tuesday at the scouting combine, ESPN’s Jeff Legwold asked Head Coach Sean Payton about his thoughts on Joseph not landing a head coaching gig and what it means for the Broncos to retain him on the staff; Payton couldn’t believe he would be back.
“I love that he's back, (but) I am a little surprised with the season we had and how we played defensively and with 10 openings ... He's a got a presence about him, I think one of his superpowers is his calming presence and he pulls the best out of his players that play for him.”
So, why didn’t Joseph get hired elsewhere? He emerged as one of the most likely candidates to land a job and it didn’t happen. The only logical reason I can think of is how poor his first stint as head coach went, coincidentally with Denver.
Joseph was fired after going 11-21 over two seasons from 2017 to 2018 (5-11 in 2017, 6-10 in 2018) because of many reasons that plague first-time head coaches. His time management was poor and the team was undisciplined, often resulting in bad penalties and turnovers.
Most coaches learn from their mistakes from their first go-around, but no teams wanted to give him that chance during this hiring cycle. Denver is thrilled to keep him, though, and I’m sure Joseph will use this opportunity to prove his worth for the next hiring cycle.