Mike Shanahan Press Conference Transcript

Opening statement

“Being here 21 years, I have a lot of people to thank so you are going to have to bear with me and the people I do miss, please, it wasn’t intentional. Joe Ellis, obviously our CEO… Joe, thank you for everything you have done for me. Rich Slivka our general counsel, Jim Barlow-VP of finance, Dave Abrams-VP of security, Rich Tuten, Russ Trainor, we just got him in from the technology department. Russ, you have done a great job since you have been here.

Jim Goodman, Jeff Goodman and Brian Xanders. Jim (Goodman) is the VP of football operations and is a very good friend. He has done a great job the last few drafts. He gets all the credit for those drafts. He has done and unbelievable job. Cindy Galloway-Kellogg and Greg Carney in the marketing department. Obviously, Jim Saccomano, our VP of public relations. Patrick Smyth is a guy who has helped me out since he has been here. He has really grown.

Steve Antonopulos, obviously our head trainer. I don’t know what I would have done without him. I have never had to worry about his area. Chris Valenti from equipment, Kent Erickson and Gary McCune in video. Chip Conway the VP of operations and Troy Smith in turf. My assistant Cindi Lowe… She was really the head coach over the last 14 years. She did a heck of a job and really called plays most of the time, so the bad plays were Cindi’s fault and the good ones, too.

Kristi Nichols, Pam Papsdorf, Meghan Zobeck and so many support staff. I know that I have missed a few of guys and gals that have been here through the years. You are not here 21 years unless you have the best people around you and I have been able to have that. What I would like to do is go through a few players, just bear with me:

Obviously John Elway. You know what he has meant to this organization. Obviously our Super Bowls and his legacy. A guy like Terrell Davis, you just don’t get better. Shannon Sharpe and Steve Atwater. Tony Jones, Romo (Bill Romanowski), Gary Zimmerman, Mark Schlereth, (Tom) Nalen, Alfred Williams, Howard Griffith, Rod Smith, Ed McCaffrey, Steve Beuerlein, Neil Smith, Ray Crockett, Dennis Smith, Karl Mecklenburg. I can go on and on. Jim Ryan and Rick Dennison, both as players and coaches. (Gary) Kubiak and Rick Dennison have done all different things for me. Bobby Turner right from the start. Greg Robinson, Larry Coyer, Ray Rhodes, Bob Slowik, (Mike) Heimerdinger, Alex Gibbs, Jeremy Bates, Steve Watson, Jedd Fisch, Karl Dorrell, Pat McPherson, Brian Pariani, Bill Johnson, Jacob Burney, Ronnie Bradford, the late Jack Elway and Jerry Frei, two guys that were just unbelievable.

I would also like to thank Dave Logan and what he has done putting up with me on the radio shows. Obviously channel 9 and channel 4, the Rocky Mountain News and Denver Post. Any time you are in a two newspaper town, and Denver is so popular. One thing I have always respected is the jobs you guys would do. I know it wasn’t always perfect, but I understand the environment and I understand the Denver Broncos and how competitive it was. One thing I can say is that you guys were fair and that is all you can ask because you have a tough job.

Scott Hastings, David Diaz-Infante and the current team. The one thing that was really exciting to me is the football team we have and the character of this team. I think the things we were able to do this year, when you leave a football team and you leave a team that has the utmost character then you feel good about it. You take a look at where we were offensively and what we did, you feel like you are leaving a team that has a chance to be a difference maker. Compared to the teams that I have been on, even going to Super Bowls or the teams winning the Super Bowl, this offense will be as good as any of them and that just is right from top to bottom with character and talent. It is a lot of guys going in the same direction. I would also like to thank the fans, the community and the state of Colorado for their support. Even up in Greeley for all those years, people in Greeley were the best. There are so many people and like I said, when you are someplace for 21 years, 14 as a head coach, it is kind of hard to say it in a few minutes what everyone has meant to you but that is the reason why I am here. The reason I have had success is because of those people.

Obviously Pat Bowlen. That is tough because he is a great friend and he will always be my great friend. He is the best owner throughout sports, and I appreciate every opportunity he gave me to be successful. I can go on and on but you have to make tough decisions being the owner of this organization. Pat made a tough decision and you have to do that in an organization. I just want to thank him for giving me the opportunity to do the things I have been able to do. Questions? ”

On if he deserved to be fired

“The thing about deserving is it really doesn’t matter about deserve. I feel good about the job I have done. The thing is, you have to make some tough decisions when you run an organization. You have to do things that are in the best interest of the organization, and I felt that that was right and I understand the direction he went. I have no problem with it because he is the best owner in sports. What I have to do is regroup, think about the things that I want to do. Relative to this team, Pat is going to keep the offensive staff intact as much as he can. We are going in the right direction. He is going to make some changes obviously on the defensive side. He is going to do what he thinks is going to give the Broncos the best chance to be Super Bowl champs. Sometimes you have to make those tough decisions. I have been here for 14 years, I had 14 great years and it has been fun. It has been a great ride. Twenty-one years all-in-all, when you go back to those experiences I don’t give anything up. Do you deserve it? We didn’t win for the last three years. We were 8-8, heck we were a .500 team. You get judged by performance, and I didn’t get the job done, that is the bottom line. Your job is to win and to win championships and we have not won a championship in awhile. The next place I go to, that will be the one thing that I am thinking about—What gives me the best chance to win a championship?”

On if he had any idea he was going to be let go

“I think you understand sports and you really don’t know what is going to happen. I wasn’t really sure. I didn’t really think it was going to happen because of the character of the team and the way we were doing it offensively. I know we were not doing it defensively but I think it did catch me by surprise. I can understand the reasoning behind it.”

On if he will take time off

“Yeah a little bit. It sounds like I got a lot of time off right now.”

On the hardest part about being let go

“I don’t know if it is the hardest part. I think what you do is reflect through your relationships and what you are able to accomplish. I think we have done a lot. When you leave an organization, sometimes you leave it and you say, ‘Hey, it is time to go because we don’t have a very good team.’ I don’t want to put any pressure on the new head coach, but if you take a look at the offense and the youth and the talent. Defensively, we lost a couple of our captains this year, they will be back. We get some guys that were out, they will be back. Through free agency and the draft, people want to be a Denver Bronco. This is the best organization in sports. Pat Bowlen does unbelievable job of giving the best chance to be successful. When you look at everything, you say, ‘Hey, it has been fun.’ We will always be friends; we will always be best friends and appreciate people having to make tough decisions. It is not easy, but you have to do what you think is in the best interest of the organization. I have mentioned some but there are a couple guys I think I have missed. I want to thank Ted Sundquist, Bob Ferguson and Rick Smith. I think I passed over those now that you mention it. I had to make some tough decisions, it is always tough but you are doing what you think gives you the best chance to win. That is what the Denver Broncos are—They want to win and they want to be champions. I think we will in the near future and I will always be a part of that. I will always be rooting for them. Hopefully we get it done.”

On how it felt to be let go by someone he described as his ‘best friend’

“When it happened with me the first time with the Raiders, it was very tough, the first time you are fired. All of a sudden you start getting used to getting fired and it is not quite as bad because you understand sometimes people have to make some tough decisions. On the serious side, it is always tough when you put your heart and soul into something and you are let go. That is all you care about is winning, and that is the bottom line. When you are not able to do that, it is hard especially when you think that you are not too far off. The bottom line is you understand people have to make decisions that they feel gives this organization the best chance to win. Those decisions for me over the years have been very tough. I have loved a lot of these guys that you have to let go, but you do things that you think are going to give you the best chance to win. Those are tough decisions, the toughest there are. That is what leaders do. You have to look at something and say, ‘Hey I made a mistake or I think it is the best interest of this organization to go in a different direction’. Sometimes you have to do that with coaches and you have to do it with support staff. But you better be on the cutting edge because if not, it is going to pass you by. The executives will tell you if you don’t like those tough decisions, it won’t be long until you are very average.”

On what it was like meeting with Broncos Owner Pat Bowlen

“I felt for Pat. Pat was telling me something and I said, ‘Hey, I understand where you are coming from, I understand how tough of a decision it is.’ It was harder on him to tell me than it was for me to accept it because I have been in those shoes before. It is tough, especially with the great relationship that we have had over the years. It lasted about five minutes and I think that part of the reason is because we both would have broke down.”

On if it hurts from a personal standpoint

“It does. It does hurt, but tough times don’t last, tough people do. That is life. You regroup and you go find another job. My goal has always been to win a Super Bowl. My next job that I go to will be based on one thing: It gives you the best chance to win because this thing is about winning, all the time you put in.”

On how much he wants to coach in the NFL next year

“I am not going to make any decisions whether is will be this year or next year, two years from now. I can’t make those decisions but you sit back and get away for a couple weeks and look at your opportunities. You have to go from there. My decision will be based on what gives that football team the best chance to win.”

On if he will want to keep his same dual title of general manager and head coach

“The thing that people don’t understand very often is that titles really don’t mean anything. What matters is people making decisions. What you want is competent people to run different parts of your organization and that is what I have always wanted. If I got a general manager that is taking care of personnel, they may give me the final say but how often do I have the final say? What I want is advice. I want the guy that is coaching those quarterbacks or the offensive line to coach it better than me. I know they are putting all their time into it. I want the GM that is a lot more qualified than I am in the personnel because he is doing it 24 hours a day to tell me who to sign. That is how you develop a strong organization; you want to find people that are stronger that you in certain areas that have a chance to be successful and I have always tried to do that. Every assistant that I have hired knows that position better than me or else I could coach that position. That is not my specialty. That is what I think they try to do in every organization, try to get the best. If a certain position needs help then it is my job to go and help that certain position whatever it may be. That is why you are the head coach, that is why you are put in those situations.”

On if his message got stale to the players

“Well, the team changes. To be honest with you, I felt the best I have felt about a team is this team in the last five or six years. They are young, the character and the direction we were going. From that standpoint it is always tough. The message with free agency and the draft, you have third of your team that turns over every year so it is not like you have the same guys.”

On if something changed in his relationship with Broncos Owner Pat Bowlen

“I don’t think so. I have always had a great relationship with Pat and I still do. We will be friends for a long time. Like I said, sometimes you feel like you have to make a change that is in the best interest of the organization. I have been here for 14 years. Three years is very average even if you have a chance to do some things. The bottom line with me is that you either get it done or you don’t get it done. It doesn’t matter if it is offense defense or special teams, do you get it done? We haven’t gotten it done. We had a chance the year before (2005) being 13-3 to get Pittsburgh in our backyard (AFC Championship Game) and we didn’t get that done. We had a chance to go to the Super Bowl. We are all judged by what you get done and the expectations are very high and they should be.”

On what happened to the defense over the past few years

“I don’t think it is really fair for me to go in that direction. The bottom line is that it came back to me. I didn’t get it done. It doesn’t matter if it is what happened relative to anything. The bottom line is that it comes back to me. That is how you are evaluated and obviously we talked briefly about the offense. Defensively, we could come back, I guarantee it. With a good draft and a couple free agents there are a lot of guys going in the same direction. We’ve got some strong character. So that is the key, where do we go from here? Not why, because I couldn’t answer that, honestly.”

On if he had any idea why he was called into owner Pat Bowlen’s office on Tuesday

“No, I did not.”

On what he thought Bowlen was going to talk to him about

“I wasn’t really sure. Maybe lunch, my new restaurant that I have to promote that I’m not getting any cash for right now.”

On if there was a sense of relief when he was let go

“I don’t look forward to not having something to do because that’s my personality. But I will have some time to sit back. My wife put up with me for about two-and-a-half days (after getting fired by the Oakland Raiders in 1989) and was nice to me before she left. I was fortunate enough for Pat to call me back to the Broncos after I got fired by the Raiders. I was out of a job for just a couple of days and had a chance to come back here. Like I said, I’ll sit back and make a decision that gives me the best chance to win the Super Bowl.”

On what he is looking for in his next job

“Everything… and players. (Whatever) gives you the best chance to win. A person (owner) that wants to compete, a person that wants to win the championship as badly as you do. That would be No. 1. Ownership that wants to win just like you do and is willing to go to extremes to get that done.”

On if teams have contacted him

“I haven’t answered a phone call. I’ve answered two phone calls in the last 24 hours, so I haven’t talked to anybody.”

On if he talked with QB Jay Cutler

“I did talk to Cutler this morning. He tried to get in contact with me last night, and I called him this morning.”

On what he and Cutler talked about

“Oh, just general things (laughing).”

On what he wants to say to the Broncos’ fans

“I would say Denver fans are the best. We’ve got the best win-loss record at home, and I attribute that to the fans. They’ve got the best. Like I said, when I got here, it’s a college (football) atmosphere and they deserve the best. Unfortunately we haven’t been able to do that over the last couple years, but they are behind you and I love them.”

On how he will begin his job search

“I don’t know. I really don’t know. I haven’t been on the market for a while, thank God. So, I’m going to find out.”

On if he could be part of a rebuilding situation, such as with the Lions

“I don’t want to talk about those things because it’s really a slap to the Detroit Lions just talking about ‘complete rebuilding.’ I’ll weigh the options when they come and make a decision on what gives me the best chance to be successful.”

On if there is a team that he couldn’t turn around in a year

“Like I said, it depends on ownership and people willing to compete. Do they want it as badly as you do? So that’s a good question. Obviously there are teams that won three or four games that aren’t in the playoffs, so if you are willing to compete and go to the limits you have a chance, that’s for sure.”

On telling his assistant coaches about being let go

“Well that’s the hardest part about this job. Don’t feel bad for me. I’ve been lucky enough to last in this organization for 21 years and people that I have the most concern for are the assistant coaches and the support staff—people that have to move their families. That’s the toughest thing there is about being fired as a head coach. You let a lot of people down and a lot of families down—people that you believe in, people that you are for—and you are not able to take care of those families. So that’s the toughest part about it, by far.

On the importance of Denver keeping some of its offensive staff

“Whoever the head coach that comes in (is), if he doesn’t see what the offense did both in the running game and the passing game and the youth, (he) would have to be crazy not to try to keep the people that made it happen.”

On if he wants to coach in college or the NFL

“Yeah, I think I’m an NFL guy. I’m not ruling anything out because when you don’t have any jobs, beggars cannot be choosers. I’ll just kind of wait and see. I’ll look at anything out there to be honest with you, but I do love the NFL.”

On any regrets he has

“My regret is not getting it done. The last couple years, that’s my regrets. If I would have left two years ago, I would have felt miserable because I didn’t think we were going in the right direction. We kind of hit a lull. With the youth that we’ve gotten in here, a couple of good drafts and just the attitude and character of this team, at least I feel like I’m leaving on a high note—a note with character, a note with a team that’s going to be on the rise. So from that standpoint I feel good.”

On what he will miss the most about the Broncos

“I think relationships with the people that you work with any day. Anytime you work 100-hour weeks and you’re busting your rear end to make things happen, that’s where football is—that’s what the family is about. Just working your tail off and trying to make it happen, trying to win a Super Bowl. And that’s what I’ll miss because I think we had a lot of things in place going in the right direction, which is great for the Denver Broncos because (if) you talk to the assistant coaches they will tell you exactly the same thing. The difference between this team and two years ago: big difference.”

On how much easier the situation is with time left on his contract

“Well that’s what I’m saying. That’s the difference between a head coach and an assistant coach—You’re financially secure. You don’t have to work. You don’t have to do the things that. You know your assistant coaches are going to have to find jobs. Guys you care about, families, young kids. All of a sudden they have to take off and move somewhere. But Pat’s always been great, too. Pat has always given me the ability to give a guy at least a year on their contract where a lot of owners wouldn’t do that. That kind of gives you an idea of what kind of guy he is because he has always allowed me—that if something happened to me besides being fired, if somebody came in—that he is going to take care of them for a year if they can’t find a job. Not every owner will do that. And so those are the things you miss—when you are able to run an organization the right way and he (Bowlen) allows you to do it. You miss those things when you leave because not everybody does that.”

On if he would be surprised with John Elway working in Denver

“I think it would be great. You know what John Elway means to Denver. If I was a free agent coming in and John Elway was there, I would sign for no money. So it all depends on what John wants to do. There is a lot of time involved and John has got a lot going on. But I think John would be perfect for any organization, especially this one, if that’s what he wanted to do.”

On if he thought about walking away

“No, because I’m going to try to find a away to get it done. If I’ve got a contract, I’m not going to walk away. We were 13-3 (in 2005) and we lost to Pittsburgh here (AFC Championship). I thought that was as good as we could get offensively. So we did make a change, we did decide to go in a different direction. And then we had a chance (in 2006) versus San Francisco (in last regular season game). Obviously we lost and we couldn’t get it done. The next year I felt that I just did a horrible job coaching. We were 7-9. This year, I felt good about the direction we were going, some of our draft choices and just overall—just the general attitude of our football team. If you take a look at the offense giving up 12 sacks in 600-some throws—that just doesn’t happen. Find a quarterback that is a franchise quarterback (Cutler)—that doesn’t happen. You take a look, you have a left tackle (Ryan Clady), you have wide receivers. So from that standpoint you feel pretty good. That’s why when I do leave I feel excited for Denver. And I’m not trying to put pressure on anybody, but it’s what they’ve done this year. Then you have to go out and get the defense the right way and this organization will always do everything (it) can to go out there and get that done. So that’s why I’m excited.

“Like I’ve told you, you have to make changes sometimes that you feel are in the best interests of the organization. And Pat gets to make those decisions. All my job is to work and try to make it happen. But if he feels that hey, at the end of the day if he feels best thing to do is make a change—hey, it’s tough. I can understand why he wants to go in that direction. I can understand. But that still doesn’t change my goals, my aspirations and what I want to do.”

On packing up his office and leaving for the last time

“Well I did that a little bit last night and this morning. It’s always tough. What’s tough though is not packing the bags up, it’s the people, the relationships that you have. That’s the hard part.”

On if he will coach next year

“I’m going to be coaching. I can’t give you a time frame. I’m going to look at my options, see what options are out there. Like that gentleman asked me, ‘Is it college or pro?’ I don’t know. I love the NFL, so I don’t see myself getting out of it, but you just never know.”

On what he has learned from coaching in Denver

“That’s a good question. All I can say is in my experiences here, it was just off the charts. You know, how you develop the friendships, how you develop relationships is going through those experiences together—going through the tough times, going through the good times. And I’ve had a lot of those experiences with the Denver Broncos as an assistant coach and as a head coach. And that’s why I appreciate everybody in this room, because you don’t make it happen—one person doesn’t make it happen. Everybody makes it happen. You have to have an owner that gives you the ability to go out there and get the best people and keep the best people. You get the best players and you get the best coaches because all I am is one of many. To win a Super Bowl and separate yourself you have to be the best at every area. That’s what I enjoy about here, that’s what I will miss about here—that Pat gave me the opportunity to go do that. We still have a fun relationship. The door is always open. He supported me through some very tough times where other people would have dumped me in a heartbeat. And I appreciate that. Because he knew that we were going to get it done. And then you ask ‘Well, why did this happen?’ I said ‘Hey, sometimes you have to go with your gut. Sometimes you are at a place for 14 years and hey, it’s the best thing for the organization. I’m not saying it is, obviously. But this place will always be the tops in the NFL because of leadership.”

On how he wants to be remembered

“I think I gave it everything I had as an assistant and as the head coach. I think people will look at me that way and say, ‘Hey, we were able to accomplish some things. We did finally win a couple of Super Bowls. That was kind of fun.’ We had a chance to get back (to the Super Bowl) a few years back and we had home field advantage. Those things don’t come (often), so when you miss those opportunities you know it sticks with you. I didn’t realize the first three Super Bowls I went to that we were going to lose. You just don’t think about losing. Then after you lose three you say ‘Hey, am I ever going to get back there again?’ Then the next three that we go to, hey, we win them. That’s why you’re in this game—for those opportunities, those memories, those relationships with people you will never forget. Some of the guys I just mentioned here. I can’t mention a lot of guys obviously that are on the current team now or I would be throwing out names, but they know how much I appreciate what they’ve done to help me stay in one place for 21 years.”

On if he could coach in the AFC West

“I don’t know. I have a sign on me—I’m looking for a job, I don’t know. We’ll see what happens.”

On Pat Bowlen once saying he was his coach for life

“Yeah, I believed him. I believe Pat Bowlen meant exactly that. But hey, I’ve meant that too (when) I’ve hired different people. And then all of a sudden it’s the timing—it might not be perfect. But you have to make those tough decisions. You don’t always like those decisions because they do affect a lot of people, but sometimes you have to make those tough decisions and do what you think is in the best interests of the organization. Like I told you, Pat Bowlen and I will be friends forever. Pat Bowlen has stood by me time and time again. When he has to make a tough decision I can relate to it. I can relate to it. I know one thing: it was tougher on him than it is on me. I guarantee you that.”

On the emotional roller coaster

“You sit down with your family. My family has been home, so we’ve been with the kids.”

On looking forward to the next challenge

“Oh, I guarantee you I’m looking forward to it. I’ll be rejuvenated whenever it comes, but that’s my mindset. When I go someplace—wherever it’s at—I’ll go in with both feet and it will be what I just talked about, getting an opportunity. But do I look forward to it? I’m sure going to reflect on this for a while and kind of sit back and get away. I’m hoping our coaches get away. These guys have been working like crazy for the last six, seven months without a day off, working 100-hour weeks. So the coaches in here I’m hoping will get away before they come back to work, but yeah, I think you look forward to accomplishing your goals. If you come up short it’s always disappointing, but we know what it’s like to win and hopefully we can get it done again.”

On talking with his family

“My son (Kyle Shanahan) is obviously at the (Houston) Texans, so he understands. My daughter is in town. She is getting married July 4 and her fiancée was here, too. They understand the business, they understand how tough it is, they understand how I felt being in positions to let somebody go. They understand how tough it was on me. So they can relate to what Pat had to go through last night. They can relate to those stories because it’s not easy, especially when you care about people. But hey, this is a tough business and if you want to be the best then sometimes you have to make those tough decisions.”

On the new home he is building in the area

“Well, I have a chance to live here. I love Denver, so hopefully we will be living here for the rest of our lives. I will always want a home here. Maybe you guys could at least get the square footage right in the paper one of these days (laughing).

On the square footage of his home

“I’m not going to tell you (laughing).”