One candidate that could be a real dark horse to land Broncos coaching gig

The search for a new head coach for the Denver Broncos will soon hit a fever pitch as the team completes its round of interviews.

While Greg Penner and George Paton are diligently working to identify which coach will be the right fit for the team, the list of “big names” is dwindling. Now that Jim Harbaugh is officially out of the mix, unless the Broncos can sway Sean Payton into taking the job, whoever gets hired won’t be seen as a home run hit.

Payton completed his interview with the team on Tuesday and he is the name at the top of the list of most in Broncos Country. He may be at the top of Penner and Paton’s list as well. But the team interviewed another candidate on Tuesday who should not just be skimmed over.

Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris is not going to be seen as a splash move or an exciting hire. But that doesn’t mean he may not be the best choice.

Morris checks many of the boxes that the Broncos should be looking for.

He comes with a wealth of experience. Though he is only 46 years old, has been a coach since 2002, most of which has taken place in the NFL.

He has worked on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball and has been part of some very successful teams, including leading the defense of the team that won last year’s Super Bowl.

He has also been in tough situations, such as taking over as head coach of a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team that fired John Gruden in 2009. Coincidentally, he also interviewed with the Broncos that offseason as they were looking for a replacement for Mike Shanahan.

Broncos head coach candidate Raheem Morris has a solid resume

Morris then worked on Shanahan’s staff in Washington before working as the assistant head coach and passing game coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons where he also worked with Kyle Shanahan.

He has earned respect around the league and has gained a wealth of experience since his first head coaching job with Tampa Bay over a decade ago.

The Broncos are not just interviewing him because they happened to be in Los Angeles to talk with Payton. There is likely real interest in Morris as a head coach and he could definitely emerge from the pack and get this job.

The betting odds are not going to be in favor of Morris as names like Payton and Dan Quinn will still be considered the favorites, but Morris has the kind of resume that will be hard to pass up.