The Denver Broncos made major changes on Monday following an incredibly difficult loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Christmas.
Not willing to wait until the end of the season, the Broncos parted ways with first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett on Monday, making him just the fourth coach in league history to be fired during his first season as a head coach.
To replace Hackett on an interim basis, the Broncos elevated Jerry Rosburg to interim head coach. Rosburg was not even on the staff when the season started but was hired by Hackett in order to help with his game management.
But the Broncos were not done there, deciding that special teams coach Dwayne Stukes and offensive line coach Butch Barry needed to go as well.
Stukes was brought over to coach the special teams after being as assistant special teams coach with the Los Angeles Rams last season and being part of the team that won the Super Bowl. He was considered a strong hire when Hackett chose him for his staff but as James Merilatt of 104.3 The Fan discusses, there were issues between him and Rosburg.
Broncos fire three coaches with only two weeks remaining in 2022 season
Barry worked with Hackett and Green Bay and has been an offensive line coach for both the San Francisco 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers along with several college teams, most notably with the University of Miami.
The housecleaning that has taken place in Denver on Monday is not entirely surprising that it is happening, but that the organization has chosen to do it now, rather than wait two more weeks for the season to officially be over, is quite peculiar.
It seems that at least some of these coaches had left a sour taste in the collective mouth of the front office.
For the final two weeks, Mike Mallory will coach the special teams and Ben Steele will handle the offensive line duties.