Who Will it be Now?

 A lot of fans are nervous about the Broncos’ head coaching search. I'm kind of not. There's nowhere to go but up after last year.

The big name candidates appear to be out of it and I’m happy about that. Shelling out big cash or draft compensation for Jim Harbaugh or Sean Payton only to yield power to their tremendous egos is not the direction I had in mind. Not that I'm being consulted on the hire... but perhaps I should be.  

DeMeco Ryans, the 49ers defensive coordinator, is rumored to be the leading candidate but they can’t hire him until the conclusion of the 49ers season which might still be a couple of weeks away if they advance to the Super Bowl. I’m a little bit nervous given his limited experience and the Denver's recent run of bad luck with first-time head coaches. I heard that ownership really likes the 49ers model, but that reminds me of back in 2009 when the Broncos thought hiring Josh McDaniels would bring them Patriots-like success.

I haven't heard much speculation that current Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero might get the promotion to head coach. I guess he already turned down the interim position when Nathaniel Hackett was fired although I don't know how that plays into this decision. I might be more inclined to be excited about the Ryans hire if Evero was staying on as the defensive coordinator. Because I've had enough with head coaches who insist on calling their own plays. Just delegate it to the coordinator and focus on being the head coach. Please!

The problem with Ryans and Evero is that they have options. Jobs with the Texans, Cardinals, and Colts are also still open. Ryans has ties to Houston so he's also a leading candidate there. Evero has also interviewed with all three teams.

Jerry Rosburg, who finished out the year is the interim head coach, is definitely interested. The team terminated his contract the other day but it was unclear if this was just a technicality or if it meant the team was not interested in him coming back next season.

I was most interested in Dan Quinn as he follows more closely the John Fox/Gary Kubiak mold which brought the Broncos a lot of success from 2011 to 2016. All who had previous experience and success as a head coach in the NFL. But apparently Quinn chose to stay in Dallas so he's no longer an option.

Jim Caldwell also fits that mold, having had success as a head coach both with the Colts and the Lions. And a lot of NFL experience. The drawback would be that he's 68 years old and hasn't had a coaching job the last three years.

David Shaw, most recently the head coach at Stanford, is apparently a sleeper in this race. He has some experience in the NFL with the Raiders and the Ravens, but he's been at the collegiate level the past 17 seasons. The transition from college to the pros is often rocky for coaches, so I'm not sure how I feel about his candidacy.

The only other known candidate to interview is Raheem Morris, who was the Rams' defensive coordinator the past two seasons. He has head coaching experience with the Buccaneers and Falcons, though without much success. I've heard almost no buzz on him being near the top of the Broncos' list.

It seems like it's headed in the direction of Ryans, but if he takes another job then who knows. With Quinn out of the picture, I guess I'm hoping for Caldwell. He wouldn't be the long-term solution but hopefully would stabilize things and break the string of losing seasons.