The Broncos are set to hire a new head coach for the second consecutive offseason after the Nathaniel Hackett era proved to be a colossal failure.
It appears that Denver is targeting a more proven coach this time around after entrusting Hackett, a first-time coach, in its 2022 hiring process.
And ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the Broncos are going to be "ultra aggressive" in landing the candidate that they want.
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Who could those candidates be? NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that Denver is expected to treat the likes of Sean Payton, Jim Harbaugh and Dan Quinn as its top targets.
The @NFLGameDay Notebook with @MikeGarafolo and @TomPelissero: The #Raiders plan to try to trade QB Derek Carr; #Jets QB Mike White has military-grade rib protection; The #Broncos will swing big on their next coach; The #Ravens won’t rush Lamar Jackson back from his PCL injury. pic.twitter.com/aeQRE5JAQD
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 1, 2023
It's no surprise that Payton, Harbaugh and Quinn are among the top targets for the Broncos. Each has been an NFL head coach before and found success, with each making it to at least one Super Bowl.
The only question about the trio is whether the Broncos would be able to land any of them.
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Payton is expected to have his pick of the NFL's coaching vacancies, and it isn't clear how he views the Broncos job. The team hiring him will likely have to surrender a first-round pick to the Saints as compensation; Denver acquired the 49ers' first-round pick from the Dolphins in the Bradley Chubb trade, so the team would have to be comfortable with giving up that asset to get Payton.
Meanwhile, Harbaugh is not guaranteed to leave Michigan even after losing to TCU in the College Football Playoff semifinals. And Quinn interviewed for the Broncos job last year but ultimately decided to remain a coordinator in Dallas.
Still, the Broncos are now owned by the Walton-Penner group, which is the richest ownership group in the NFL. So, they can incentivize these candidates to come to Denver in exchange for hefty contracts.
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Soon, we'll see if any of these coaches believe they can be the one to fix Russell Wilson or if the Broncos will have to pursue another option as the coaching carousel begins to spin.
