Comics » Whoever replaces Vance Joseph as the Denver Broncos‘ fourth

ENGLEWOOD Gary Zimmerman Jersey , Colo. (AP) — head coach in six seasons may not find a franchise quarterback awaiting him.What he will find is a roster packed with promise.The Broncos (6-10) had a terrific infusion of youth last season led by running back Phillip Lindsay , the first undrafted offensive rookie ever to earn a Pro Bowl berth, although wrist surgery will keep him from playing in the all-star game.General manager John Elway’s highly touted 2018 draft class features first-rounder Bradley Chubb, receivers DaeSean Hamilton and Courtland Sutton, linebacker Josey Jewell, running back Royce Freeman and cornerback Isaac Yiadom.NFL players typically make their biggest jump between their first and second seasons, so this group anticipates a big “leap year” in 2019, and they’re pledging to lead the franchise out of its three-year playoff drought, too.“Broncos country doesn’t have to worry about us going 6-10 again,” Sutton insisted. “Our core is going to be so strong and so tight, we’re going to show up and we’re going to go to work every single day, every week. And we’re not going to leave it up for chance in any games.”Chubb led all NFL rookies by collecting a dozen sacks, something he said was just an appetizer.“I’ll definitely make a bigger impact” next season, Chubb said, “whether it be in the run game, the pass game, whatever it takes.”With the middling Case Keenum at quarterback, the biggest personnel attraction for head coaching candidates is the league’s best pass-rushing duo of Chubb and Von Miller.“I’d like to think that I’m a coach’s dream,” Miller said. “We’ve got a lot of big-time players here. We’ve got Bradley Chubb, who’s coming into his second year.”The pair combined for 26½ sacks in their first season together.Star cornerback Chris Harris Jr., who is in line for a big contract extension this offseason, said he hopes the new coach injects some juice into the playbook so it can catch up to the likes of Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City, Baker Mayfield in Cleveland and Lamar Jackson in Baltimore.Harris said the Broncos have been stagnant since winning Super Bowl 50 three years ago on the strength of a historically good defense and they’ve watched other teams incorporate college game concepts and sweep right past them.“We kind of just stayed doing the same thing we’ve been doing since 2015,” Harris said. “It’s 2019 now. We’ve got to evolve. We can’t do the same thing. I’ve got to evolve my game. I can’t think I’m going to still play the same coverage and the way I played in 2015 or 2013. I have to evolve my game and we have to evolve Tom Jackson Jersey , too.”He wants the new coaching staff to incorporate the RPO (run-pass option) philosophies on both offense and defense, and Elway is on board.“Yeah, no doubt, especially if you look at where the rules are going. The rules are getting shifted to the offensive side, too,” Elway said. “We’ve relied on our defense for a long time. I think that we’re still going to rely on the defense, but we definitely have to get better on the offensive side.”Aside from the arduous search for a franchise QB, the Broncos have an ongoing ownership squabble and a demanding general manager who wants a quick turnaround, mandates immediate results and won’t sign off on a slow rebuild “because that sounds like an excuse.”“I hate to lose,” Elway said . “I hate it more now than I ever have, and we’re going to do everything we can to get us back on track and get us winning football games and get back to competing for world championships.”Candidates will also see a rabid fan base that’s equally impatient, an organization with sparkling training facilities and three shiny Super Bowl trophies and a team with the wherewithal to make a big splash in free agency for the first time since Elway signed Aqib Talib, Emmanuel Sanders, DeMarcus Ware and T.J. Ward to Denver in 2014.The next hire will be the Broncos’ sixth coach in 12 years.“It’s a short leash for anyone that comes in,” cautioned linebacker Brandon Marshall.But still an attractive gig, linebacker Todd Davis said.“I don’t think there’s anywhere better in the NFL to coach,” Davis said. “I feel like it’s a big position that a lot of people want to fill.”Elway’s wish list includes a mix of experience and youth, offensive and defensive roots.Three candidates are around his age: former Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, 58; former Titans head coach and current Steelers O-line coach Mike Munchak, 58; and Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio, 60.Two others are in the mold of 32-year-old Rams coach Sean McVay, including his QBs coach, 35-year-old Zac Taylor, and Brian Flores Dennis Smith Jersey , the 37-year-old de facto defensive coordinator for the Patriots.“We are going to try to find that guy with the ‘it’ factor, that can make those right decisions and also lead men,” Elway said. “We’re confident we can find that guy.”Because he sure doesn’t want to be doing this again anytime soon.“I hope that we can hire a guy that can be here for the next 10 years, 15 years,” Elway said. ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Denver Broncos are getting some healthy bodies back at cornerback as they try to win their final two games and avoid the franchise’s first back-to-back losing seasons in 48 years.With Denver out of playoff contention and facing a slew of injuries at the position, the Broncos placed star cornerback Chris Harris Jr. on injured reserve and signed free agent Craig Mager, who was released by the Chargers earlier this season.Harris sustained a chip fracture in his lower right leg two weeks ago and was hoping to return for the Broncos’ final game, Dec. 30 against the Chargers, but that was only if Denver remained in playoff contention.The Broncos (6-8) were eliminated last weekend when they lost 17-16 to the Browns.The Broncos also expect to get Brendan Langley and Isaac Yiadom back from concussions when they visit Oakland (3-11) on Christmas Eve, and they’ll have Bradley Roby back.Roby required five stitches last week after lacerating his chin tackling Nick Chubb.“I could put my tongue through my face, so it was crazy,” Roby said Wednesday. “I’d never seen anything like that. And I was spitting up a lot of blood. It was one of those freak accidents. It’s football. I signed up for it. So, stitched it back up and get back out there.”They’ll also have cornerback Jamar Taylor back. His ejection last weekend left them with only one healthy cornerback in Tremaine Brock, and Cleveland scored its game-winning TD with safeties Justin Simmons and Dymonte Harris forced into route coverage in the fourth quarter.Mager was a third-round pick from Texas State in 2015 who played in 24 career games, 10 starts, with one interception for the Chargers before he was released with an injury settlement in September.“He’s got some physical tools we like. He’s a pretty good (special) teams player,” coach Vance Joseph said. “He was actually in the mix to start for the Chargers before having a major hamstring injury. So, we’ll see. It’s just one more good, young corner that we’ve added to the mix.”Harris, who was named a Pro Bowl alternate this week, moved into the No. 1 cornerback role following Aqib Talib’s trade to the Rams last spring and had another spectacular season before getting hurt two weeks ago.“He had a great year,” Joseph said. “Obviously, his role changed with Aqib leaving Terrell Davis Jersey , I mean, he was the No. 1 guy all year. Toward the end of the season, he matched the best receiver each week. But he had a great year, leading and playing good football. We’ve missed him, obviously. He’s a great player.”For the first time this season, Roby said he hopes the Broncos re-sign him in the offseason. Roby, who’s making $8.536 million this season, struggled early on in moving from nickel back to starter but came on strong as the season went along.“I want to be here. This is the team that drafted me,” Roby said. “I bought a house here. I love the organization. Why would I want to go anywhere else?”If the Broncos move on, they’re likely to target cornerback in the first or second round of next year’s draft.So, Roby has two more weeks to state his case, beginning with what could be the last NFL game in Oakland.“It’s going to be live out there,” Roby said. “The fans are going to be into it. They’re always into it, especially when they play us. It being Monday night, last game there, I’m sure it’s going to be like a playoff game.”The city of Oakland recently sued the Raiders and the NFL in federal court, asking for damages that will help pay off the approximately $80 million in debt remaining from renovations on the Coliseum. The antitrust lawsuit could push the Raiders to play somewhere else next season before they move to Las Vegas in 2020.Roby, for one, isn’t melancholy about never having to play on the stadium’s dirt baseball infield again.“I hate playing there. Their field is terrible. I’m glad they’re moving,” Roby said. “I’m not sad to see them go at all.”