The Denver Broncos have had a phenomenal season thus far, going 14-3 in the regular season and securing the No. 1 seed in the American Football Conference as well as the coveted first-round bye.
The Broncos will get to watch the Wild Card Round from home as they heal up and get ready for the lowest remaining seed between the Pittsburgh Steelers, Houston Texans, Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers.
Although the team will be resting and awaiting their first playoff opponent, part of having a great team means other teams in need of coaching will interview and pluck the good team’s coordinators.
The Broncos’ coaching staff is a perfect example of that, as several teams including the Las Vegas Raiders have requested to interview defensive coordinator Vance Joseph and quarterbacks coach Davis Webb, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
“Vance Joseph will be a busy man this week, planning to squeeze in five team interviews -- Raiders, Cardinals, Giants, Titans and Falcons -- before Friday,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote Wednesday. “That's the loose plan. Denver is giving a ringing endorsement to Joseph, most notably his ability to work well with others, known as being a good teammate in the entire football operation.
“Denver also considers quarterbacks coach Davis Webb a rising star. Some in the building believe he's got some Sean Payton-level confidence. While he might be a future head coach, his next step could be calling an offense somewhere as an OC.”
It would hurt to lose those guys because of how much they have impacted this team, but at the same time, fans should be rooting for them to get promotions and grow.
While not a coach, fans should be on the lookout for news regarding general manager George Paton, who only has one year left on his contract after this season.
“GM George Paton is finishing the fifth year of a six-year deal. He doesn't have an extension yet. Signs point to Paton staying in Denver,” Fowler added. “The Broncos have 24 regular-season wins in the past two years with Paton and head coach Sean Payton together. The drafts have been successful. Perhaps Denver works out an extension this offseason. But if he became available for some reason, he'd be a hot GM candidate.”
Joseph is the most likely candidate to take a head coaching job elsewhere, and he very well may take Webb with him to be his offensive coordinator if that’s the case.