The Denver Broncos are an ugly 1-4 this season, the fan base is fuming, and the team only has a couple of days before they have to travel to Arrowhead to play the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. With Week 6 already fast approaching for the Broncos, it's fair to wonder if the team will make any sweeping changes with a bit of a longer break between Week 6 and Week 7 against the Packers.
Nobody is really expecting the Broncos to win this game in Kansas City. This team is down bad right now, the fan base is over it, and it sounds like many in the locker room are expecting wholesale changes to be made. But which players, coaches, or executives could be on the hot seat? If the Broncos fall to 1-5 on the season, they will effectively have no shot at doing anything competitive this year. That's just the reality of the situation at hand.
Changes will be made, and I think a loss to Kansas City would put a number of folks on the hot seat. Let's take a look at five, specifically, and start with the obvious:
5 Denver Broncos on the hot seat if the team loses to the Chiefs
1. Vance Joseph, defensive coordinator
I think it's safe to say that Vance Joseph is probably already on the hot seat. The Denver Broncos have one of the worst defenses in the NFL right now, and they are trending toward having one of the worst defenses in NFL history. This level of incompetence has been the most significant contributor to the team being 1-4 and heading towards 1-5.
If Vance's seat isn't already hot, the team could potentially make a major change after Week 6's matchup in Kansas City. The most logical transition might be to have secondary coach Christian Parker call the plays, but the Broncos also have inside linebackers coach Greg Manusky who has called plays at the NFL level before as well.