George Paton’s next head coach hiring will be predictable
Denver Broncos General Manager George Paton is likely going to make another head coaching hire for the 2023 season, and it will likely be predictable. I am not saying predictability is a bad thing at all. In fact, it could be quite a good thing for the team.
Being that so many teams across the NFL were adopting the “young, offensive-minded” coaching trend, it became no surprise to see the Denver Broncos follow suit. Most head coaches that are hired now in the NFL are on the offensive side of the ball, but that does not take away from how successful some defensive coaches have been.
The Broncos appeared to have hired the wrong offensive mind in Nathaniel Hackett. Kevin O’Connell, the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, was a finalist for the job in Denver. KOC, as some call him, has his Vikings team at 5-1 and was clearly the better hire. Simply put, George Paton hired the wrong offensive brain.
It’s likely to me that the team fires Hackett if they lose to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday in London. Being 2-6 at the bye week is monumentally inexcusable on so many levels, and there would be no reason to continue adding insult to an already massive injury.
This would then force the Denver Broncos to go on another coaching search for 2023, and now that the ownership situation is in place, George Paton does have a clear structure of people above him who are now his superiors. The responsibility that Paton has for his decisions is now amplified, and hiring the wrong coach will likely result in his termination.
He’s largely been a very good GM, but if the ship cannot get turned around soon, Paton himself will be out of the job. GMs in the NFL do not get a ton of chances to get the head coach right. That’s just a fact. Perhaps they’d get two, maybe three coaches before they get the boot. Given that the team has Russell Wilson for the short-term, at least, Paton is going to have to get this next hire nearly perfect.
What kind of coach will George Paton hire for 2023?
Barring a massive, massive turnaround, Hackett is a goner. I type these words as if the turnaround does not happen, which I find to be much more likely. The coaching search is on, and it’s clear who Paton will likely target:
A veteran coach who has BEEN a head coach in the NFL before, likely an offensive mind
To me, it’s clear what route Paton will take. If you aren’t sold on the idea of them definitely being an offensive mind, it’s safe to say that it’ll be someone who has had head coaching experience before. Having that type of experience is valuable, as many head coaches perform much better in their second gig than their first.
It’s perhaps way too early to say who would be available, but I think there is a possibility that all or some of Kevin Stefanski, Kyle Shanahan, Frank Reich, and Doug Marrone could be in the market for a fresh head coaching gig.
They are all veteran minds with HC experience. Guys like this on the defensive side include Leslie Frazier and Dan Quinn. I’d personally welcome all of these men as the next head coach of the Denver Broncos, and I see no way that the 2023 head coach is another fresh, offensive mind.