David Shaw reveals why he joined the Denver Broncos front office

The Denver Broncos made a big splash in the 2024 offseason by announcing the hiring of former Stanford head coach David Shaw as a Senior Personnel Executive. He will be evaluating college and pro talent for the team. Shaw is reunited in Denver with head coach Sean Payton, as both worked together as assistants for the Philadelphia Eagles back in 1997.

Shaw returns to the NFL for the first time since 2005 when he was the wide receivers coach for the Ravens. He brings valuable experience in player evaluation from his tenure as a draft analyst at the NFL Network. This significant addition promises to greatly benefit the Broncos. It is noteworthy that Shaw was a candidate for Denver's head coach position during the 2023 cycle. The Denver Broncos ended up hiring Super Bowl-winning head coach Sean Payton.

After the announcement of the hire, the new Broncos executive spoke with Chris Tomasson from the Denver Gazette regarding his excitement to be a Denver Bronco.

""I’m very excited to be back in the NFL but really to be back with some great people & that’s what I was looking for. I was looking to join a franchise with people that I knew, people that I trusted...This seemed like a perfect situation. I think they’ve got a really exciting young team retooled from last year and they did a great job in the draft and I’m looking forward to watching it first hand.""

- David Shaw via Denver Gazette

He talked about his relationship with both general manager George Paton and head coach Sean Payton.

""I got to know George Paton pretty well during that process and we just stayed in touch and this offseason we talked about different things, and I thought there might be a role maybe I could fill a need for the Broncos.""

- David Shaw via Denver Gazette

""We hit it off & saw a lot of things the same way (with George Paton). But at the same time, it was a great opportunity for us to forge a relationship and that interview (with Paton) was a big reason to being hired.""

- David Shaw via Denver Gazette

""He (Sean) and I shared an office, so we sat next to each other every single day. I just remember how smart he was, how dedicated he was, how hard he worked and how the players responded to him. That was my first opportunity to be around him, and those things have never changed.""

- David Shaw via Denver Gazette

Thrilled to be a part of the Denver Broncos, Shaw dug into his experience scouting players and even shared his perspective on Sean Payton being named as the head coach over him last year.

""That’s always been one of the things that I really enjoyed, whether it’s evaluating high school players for college or college players for the NFL.""

- David Shaw via Denver Gazette

""There was never any hard feelings about not getting a job...You want to hire the right person at the right time & I knew that was Sean Payton""

- David Shaw via Denver Gazette

With Shaw joining Denver as an evaluator, the Broncos should have a bright future regarding selections, signings, and trades in the upcoming drafts and free agency periods.