Good Morning, Broncos fans! John Fox will be introduced as Denver's 14th head coach today at 2PM ET at Dove Valley, just two days after his interview with the team trainer Broncos' executive committee. Fox will turn 56 in a few weeks and carries with him a 73-71 record over nine years as Carolina's head coach, along with a reputation for tough, physical teams that thrive at running the ball on offense and keeping opponents out of the end zone. Fox has worked in the NFL as defensive backs coach with Pittsburgh and San Diego, defensive coordinator for the Raiders and Giants, and head coach of the Panthers.
Over his 21 years in those capacities, Fox's pass defenses have ranked on average 10th-best in the NFL in passing TDs allowed, leading the league three times, and ranking 8th or better ten times. His pass defenses have ranked in the league's ten best in interceptions 11 times in 21 years. In Fox's 16 seasons as a DC or HC, his defenses have ranked on average 12th in both points and yards allowed, including nine top-10 rankings in scoring defense and seven top-10 yardage rankings. In those same years, Fox's defenses have ranked on average 15th in rushing scores allowed and 13th in rushing yardage. In 8 out of 16 seasons, Fox's defenses have ranked among the league's top 12 in takeaways.
Continue reading "Fox takes over; case for McCoy Lard 1-14-11"
Good Morning, Broncos fans! As many of you noticed, I wasn't too easy on John Fox yesterday, and I'll admit that my perception of Fox has been shaped by just a single decision of his. As a New Yorker, I watched his defenses with the Giants thrive for several years, and frankly I was a fan of Fox the DC. Where I lost a bit of respect for Fox was during his Panthers' SB loss to the Patriots; his team fell behind 21-10 at the very beginning of the fourth quarter, and just two minutes later his team scored a TD to close the score to 21-16. With nearly 13 minutes left in the game, Fox decided to go for two, and I yelled at the TV, "No, what is he thinking?!?!" There was too much time left in the game, and anything could happen from there on out. Unfortunately for Fox & Co, it did - Carolina scored another TD less than six minutes later, again went for two and failed - Panthers 22, Pats 21. NE scored next, went for two and converted to go up 29-22, and then the Panthers scored a tying TD with just over a minute to go. This set the stage for the first Tom Brady and Adam Vinatieri Show, and the latter's FG ended the game.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! The Denver coaching search is becoming more puzzling and worrisome by the day. Only last week, John Elway said "Preferably we’d like to have some head coaching background in the NFL, but it’s not a must." So far, this has translated into two guys with 11 games of head-coaching experience between them (Perry Fewell, Eric Studesville) and two guys who've never been NFL head coaches (Rick Dennison, Mr. Dirk Koetter) interviewing, while two former real, actual head coaches decided not to interview (Mark Mike Mularkey, Gregg Williams). The other former head coach scheduled to interview (John Fox) has made two failed attempts to fly out of North Carolina due to a snowstorm. Yet somehow, his replacement in Carolina (Ron Rivera) was able to fly to Charlotte to accept his new gig. Maybe they're just hoarding airplanes in NC by allowing landings and no takeoffs?
Good Morning, Broncos fans! As mentioned yesterday, Gregg Williams will indeed interview for the Broncos' coaching vacancy on Wednesday. According to Klis, this may round out the group from which Denver will select its next head man - Perry Fewell, Eric Studesville, Rick Dennison, Mr. Dirk Koetter, John Fox and Gregg Williams. Klis does go on to say that Denver may add another coach or two to the list after the weekend; obviously it'll be interesting to see if Mark Mike Mularkey gets an interview after saying "Thanks...actually, no thanks" to the first invite, should the Falcons get knocked out. It appears Ron Rivera has the gig in Carolina, so he's likely out of consideration.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! You know all that talk about the Broncos' ironclad secrecy under Josh McDaniels? The Belichick-like tightening of the lines of communication? If the past few days are any indication, the Broncos under John Elway will be overcompensating like a teenage girl who just discovered eyeliner. In a rather bizarre (and frankly unnerving) twist, the team posted a video of Perry Fewell (who speaks very well) riding to his interview from DIA, and then a mid-interview picture of Fewell and a pre-interview shot of Eric Studesville.
Transparency is great and all, as is the unprecedented access that Elway has provided with his new Twitter account. But while an NFL head-coaching gig is a very public job, and it's desirable of any candidate to be comfortable in the spotlight, there's just something uncomfortably voyeuristic about this new approach. What's next? Is Elway going to tell Peter King that Fewell had bad breath or that Studesville was mixing tenses?
Makes one again wonder why Mark Mike Mularkey snubbed the Broncos on their interview request, no? If you were a seasoned coaching candidate (ie. not a young hotshot), and a team said, "Come interview with us. One condition though - the second you get off the plane, the cameras will be rolling and you'll be on Bravo later that night," what would you say? It'll be interesting to see if John Fox gets the same treatment today...
Good Morning, Broncos fans! It seems John Elway has learned his first tough lesson in running an NFL team - be careful what you say to Peter King. Yesterday on NBC, King related a conversation he had with Elway in which the new football exec says he "(doesn't) think Tim Tebow is a good NFL quarterback at this time." King went on to say that if Josh McDaniels lands a job with a team in need of a QB, he could see the former Broncos coach pushing to acquire Tebow. Shortly afterward, Elway scrambled to clarify his remarks via Twitter, saying that Tebow could "turn (himself) into a great QB," that Elway and the organization "think very highly of him," and that any trade speculation is "completely false."
Meanwhile, the Broncos have received permission to interview John Fox and are expected to do so sometime this week. Plus, Gregg Williams is suddenly available to interview after his defense got torched yesterday by the 7-9 Seahawks.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! The Broncos have asked the Panthers' permission to speak with John Fox - although it was announced that Fox will not return to Carolina, his contract isn't up for a few weeks. Denver will be interviewing Jaguars OC Dirk Koetter and last night received permission to interview longtime Broncos player and coach Rick Dennison, who was Houston's OC in 2010 after fifteen seasons as a Broncos assistant. John Elway also said Chargers DC Ron Rivera is a candidate for the head job, while Brian Xanders added Gregg Williams to that list. Elway also stated that Jim Fassel's name had come up in discussions.
Continue reading "Broncos interested in Fox, Rivera Lard 1-8-11"
Happy Friday, Broncos fans! It was an eventful day for Denver yesterday, but it doesn't seem like anything that happened is actually good for the Broncos. Andrew Luck is staying at Stanford, which decreases the value of Denver's #2 overall pick. Jim Harbaugh is likely out of the picture after turning down the Dolphins and is now apparently the subject of a bidding war between Stanford and the Niners. Mark Mike Mularkey has told the Broncos to go scratch he's too busy to talk to them now, although he does have time to meet with the Browns. Gregg Williams says he hasn't yet heard from Denver, although they wouldn't be able to meet until the Saints' season ends, anyway. So the Broncos are going to meet with Perry Fewell and Eric Studesville on Sunday, and as of now that is it.
Well, maybe this wasn't so bad a chain of events. While it would be nice for the Broncos to have a new HC ASAP, perhaps it's best that John Elway's first coach hiring takes more than a week or two. After all, what's more important here - finding a new coach quickly, or finding the best man for the job? In his chat session yesterday, Andrew Mason surmised that Denver would wait to speak with Williams, as long as some other candidate didn't "knock their socks off."
Good Morning, Broncos fans! John Elway was introduced yesterday as the new EVP of Football Ops - in case you missed it, or the sound dropped out of it yesterday (like it did for me), watch the presser here - Part 1 and Part 2. In speaking for almost an hour, Elway covered what he's seeking in a new head coach (offensive or defensive background matters not), the future of Tim Tebow (he's still unproven) and Champ Bailey (his status is up in the air), the new power structure at Dove Valley (Elway will be the tiebreaker between Brian Xanders and the HC), why he wanted the job (he loves the Broncos, and he's competitive) and how he'll be performing it (in a very hands-on manner). Best thing Elway said? "I know what I don't know," although that was followed up by a puzzling "I will find out what I don't know as fast as I possibly can." Hopefully, John's self-awareness means the Broncos will be run sans hubris going forward.
As of now, Elway & Co. will interview Falcons OC Mark Mike Mularkey on Friday and Giants DC Perry Fewell and former Broncos interim coach Eric Studesville on Sunday. Elway said the Broncos are interested in speaking with Jim Harbaugh about the job, although it sounds like the Dolphins are making a big push for his services.
UPDATE 11:20AM ET - The Broncos have posted a full transcript of yesterday's presser - it probably took that long to compile it...
UPDATE 11:58AM ET - ESPN will broadcast their documentary "Tim Tebow: Everything in Between" tonight at 7PM ET and will re-air it at midnight ET on ESPN2.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! John Elway is officially a member of the Denver Broncos again, having signed a contract last night that makes him the organization's Executive VP of Football Operations. Woody Paige was apparently given an exclusive interview with Elway last night after the contract was finalized. Elway said,
This is all I've really wanted to do since I retired as a player. Football has been my life. I've waited for years, but the timing is perfect. The stars are aligned.
Additionally, Elway stated that Brian Xanders will in fact "be responsible for most of the personnel decisions, the scouting, the draft," and that the search for a new head coach is expected to be completed within a week or two. Elway cited an odd-sounding "study" Xanders performed of previous NFL coaches to placate the folks calling for the hiring of a head coach with a background in defense. Elway said of Tim Tebow,
I was impressed with what he did in the last three games, considering how few reps and plays in games before that, but the questions now are can he translate that grit, the winning attitude, that athletic ability into maturing into a great quarterback on the pro level.
According to Paige, the Broncos will seek permission to interview Saints DC Gregg Williams and Giants DC (and former Bills interim coach) Perry Fewell in addition to Mike Mularkey and Eric Studesville, and that there will be more candidates added in the next day or two. Elway says he did not have an opportunity to speak with Jim Harbaugh about the coaching job at Monday night's Orange Bowl.
UPDATE 10:05AM ET - According to denverbroncos.com, Elway will be introduced at a 1:30PM MT press conference which the team's site will stream live. We'll have an open thread here on IAOFM for your commentary.
