Reunited and it feels so… well, weird for this Denver Broncos fan. Former Broncos BFF’s Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler are about to be teammates again after the Chicago Bears reportedly traded two third round draft picks to the Miami Dolphins to acquire the 27-year-old, high maintenance wideout.

Marshall is the type of tall playmaker the Bears have been looking for since they acquired Cutler via trade in 2009.

The Dolphins traded two second round draft picks in 2010 for Marshall’s services, who tallied 167 catches for 2,228 yards in two seasons with the club. Not bad to get that production then turn it into a pair of third-rounders.

The reunions don’t stop there — Marshall will also be joining former Broncos offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates, who signed with the Bears this offseason. Cutler and Marshall’s on-field relationship was the focal point of Bates’ offense in Denver, and it led to both Cutler and Marshall having their best statistical seasons in 2008.

It’ll be surreal seeing this trio performing together again, in blue and orange no less. Now if only we can convince the Bears to hire Josh McDaniels as head coach next year…

Bears acquire Pro Bowl wide receiver Brandon Marshall [Chicago Tribune]

• Somehow this escaped our radar last week – charges against rookie tight end Richard Quinn were dropped.  [Colorado Springs Gazette]
• The Broncos enter the offseason with two plans in mind that depend on the ongoing CBA negotiations.  [CSG]
• Brian Howell grades the 2009 Broncos, giving the O-Line a dismal D+.  [Longmont Times Call]
• Mark Klis believes that will be an area of significant change this offseason.  [Denver Post]
• Mark Kiszla continues to agree with just about all the changes the Broncos have made the past few seasons.  [DPO]
• Woody Paige discusses the lack of “O” in the Brncs this season.  [DPO]
• After a lot of silly back-and-forth, Pete Carroll is “officially” heading for Seattle.  [DPO]
• Former Broncos O.C. Jeremy Bates appears headed to join Carroll – not his former quarterback, Jay Cutler, in Chicago.  [ProFootballTalk]

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McDaniels is regarded as the next greatest thing in the NFL, but can he live up to the hype? (Reuters/Nathan W. Armes)

When in doubt regarding the purchase of a supposedly authentic piece of art, one is forced to ask questions regarding the piece’s provenance… Who has owned the piece before, where did it come from, can we trace it all the way back to the originator? Is there a piece missing, is it a sham? An authentic? Is the former owner reputable, is the current owner reputable? This exploration is called the ‘provenance’ of a piece.

CUT TO:

The National Football League, modern era– only winning is tolerated, and football is perennially at the top of the ratings game. Is there anywhere else that these corporations in the US and overseas are willing to pay two to four-million dollars for thirty seconds of commercial time? Not specifically, no. So where do we get off as fans accepting anything less? In Denver specifically, Mike Shanahan’s time had passed, so here’s what the Denver Broncos’ Pat Bowlen did, he brought in the new Shanahan. This new guy? Yeah, his job is to win now, the quarterback under the Shanahan regime wasn’t as concerned with winning as he was about an offense’s reputation. So the regime in Denver made an example of him and gave a giant Mile High Salute on his way out.

So, we’re left with tens of thousands of Bronco fans wandering the earth, begging, nay- wishing they still had that orange tinted blindness. Those colored glasses had shattered simultaneously as that franchise quarterback was traded for two firsts, a third and a no-name former fourth rounder from Purdue.

I’d penned then and I let everyone know that I’d gotten my lasik earlier this off-season. I am high as ever and I’m not planning on coming down. When current Broncos General Manager Brian Xanders and Shanahan’s replacement Josh McDaniels gave up the Bronc’s first round in 2010 for Alphonso Smith in the second round, they were making the boldest of statements, ‘It’s now or never Denver town…’ Three months later Sports Illustrated‘s Peter King would choose the Chicago Bears (whose pick Denver had retained in 2010 and had traded Cutler to) to go to the Super Bowl. Yet, in my gut I have a feeling after this season the price of McDaniels’ rookie card isn’t coming down.

There has been constant talk of the Bill Belichick tree and how unsuccessful the offspring has been consistently. With the exception of one who went to the college level, none of Belichick’s offspring have been from the offensive side of things. Yes, there is no denying that Belichick is a mastermind, hell even McDaniels has been reminded several times this off-season (remember my Chin Check article?). Can a student ever surpass the teacher? Do you remember when Shanahan beat Dan Reeves in the Super Bowl?

“There are things we will do that other teams have never done,” McDaniels stated prior to training camp. That quote has stuck in my mind since I first heard it. Why? Because this is a man responsible for not only Tom Brady throwing for more touchdowns in one season than any other quarterback in history, but also was at the offensive helms for the only team to ever go 16-0 in the regular season (or 18-0, if you want to be a wise guy and include playoffs). A man with all of that provenance, a man who led a no-name quarterback in Matt Cassel to a 11-5 record last season is now stating that here in Denver the Broncos will do things that have never been done. Before. In history.

You can already see it, amongst the Brady accolades I listed above, he also holds the highest ever completion percentage for a single game (26/28, 92.6%). Now with all of the horrible things that you can say about Cutler’s replacement Kyle Orton, you can’t deny that he completes passes (he just had one preseason game where three of them were to another team)… We’re already starting to see McDaniels bloody hand prints molding this offense.

“All I can tell you is I’ve never been a part of a losing season in my life — not when I started playing in the seventh grade, not in high school, not in college, not at Michigan State, not in all my years in New England. I don’t want to put a cap on what we’re going to do,” Got it yet? I’m guessing no. The man doesn’t know how to lose, it doesn’t make sense to him… Why lose when winning is so easy?

It's the questions and McDaniels has them for Rick Dennison. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Yeah, Denver could have had Steve Spagnuolo and you know what? Our defense would have been better probably, we’d probably even still have Cutler and Offensive Coordinator Jeremy Bates, but would we have been better off? Do you think that the St. Louis Rams (or the Southern California Trojans for that matter) are any better off this season? Bowlen tries to do it right the first time and last time he had a defensive coach at the helms he got burned bad. Mr. Bowlen understands that defense doesn’t win championships, incredible offenses do. Look at the Indianapolis Colts.

It takes one to know one and McDaniels has got it bad, I promise you, that in the time that it’s taken you to read this essay he’s accomplished more than you will in your entire week.

“You can’t judge teams on the basis of last year. Schedule strength is a hoax. Coaches, players, owners change. There are so many variables,” McDaniels uttered to the Denver Post’s Woody Paige. You want my take? No one’s going to, no one is giving the Broncos credit, never mind that with Cutler as the starter at quarterback the Broncos went 8-8 and 7-9, matter of fact Paige himself predicted 4-12 this season… Well you know what? Paige is a dick and so are you if you think that this year will not be the Broncos best season in the last three seasons.

Signing McDaniels as the head coach in Denver may very well have been Bowlen’s best decision ever as the owner of the Broncos, his parting shot, his swan song. The similarities to Shanahan are scary- groomed under the greatest head coach currently coaching, an offensive mastermind and noted as being too young to take on a head coaching job. Yet when Shanahan was hired Bronco fans had suffered a season with Wade Phillips as the head coach, so they were aching for Shanahan. Only this time Bowlen didn’t need to hire Spanuolo first to prove that he needed McDaniels instead.

I look forward to this Sunday and every Sunday/Monday/Thursday afterwords, because in this league you just need to realize that every man in this room is one play away from replacing you. However my favorite expatriate has at least at least a  little while before those words are going to be prevalent. Nation? Support!

Marshall lined up on scout team offense for Denver last week. (AP Photo)

NOTE: Brandon Marshall is appearing on ESPN’s NFL Live to talk about his practice behavior.  10:30 p.m. MST (8/27/09).

Who does this guy think he is? Jay Cutler? Just kidding. Sorry, I’m being hissed at by thousands of fans, I can tell. You’d think just in the sense of team spirit that Brandon Marshall would want to suit up to play his buddy Cutler in those prime time Sunday night lights. Instead, given the opportunity, he’s attempting to outshine Cutler’s return to Denver and the media highlighting that. He’s giving his best effort of being bigger than the game on his own, without even playing.

I’m guessing that by now you’ve seen the footage from TheDenverChannel.com showing Marshall, punching passes instead of catching, walking through running drills and overall just being about as disruptive as possible to practice. Here’s what we’re forgetting and maybe Marshall is as well, no one wants this kid. He’s been on the trading block, ESPN’s John Clayton reported back when Marshall Saga first opened that the Denver Broncos never received anything over a fourth round draft pick offer for the brain dead wide receiver.

Kyle linked to a story earlier today over at The National Football Post titled ‘Is [Marshall] killing the [Broncos],’ (sorry they have two misspellings in the title). In which Matt Bowman stated that it’s time for Marshall to put his contact behind him, but I think at this point, we’re even past that. Marshall might as well put his career behind him and hope that his degree in Liberal Studies from the University of Central Florida can sustain his new career as a real estate agent. Who is going to want this guy? He’s damned, even if he’s not a trouble maker, trouble finds him! In nearly every aspect of his life, I don’t need to go through his rap sheet here- you all know the multiple stories… We’ve all defended the man, but he has just become indefensible. The man is a loser and it’s time for Denver to suspend him.

It’s almost painful to say as a Broncos fan, because as disappointed as I’ve been in him and as frustrated as I’ve been with the fact that nearly every time Marshall is thrown the ball I’m not sure if he’s going to catch it or drop it. Well, come to think of it, maybe Marshall’s been trying to get traded since 2007… Dropping passes on purpose and there was that incident of him and former offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates. I digress.

I have no problem calling the man what he is, a cancer, as Mercutio screamed as he lay dying in Romeo and Juliet, “A plague on both of your houses!”

There is one certainty though, we can live without him, but can we ever live with him again? Sure, fans may point to Jabar Gaffney’s drop in the endzone when Denver played the Seattle Seahawks last week, but did you happen to see Marshall in the Pro Bowl last season at the goal line? Neither Peyton Manning or Cutler could get this guy to catch the ball, and those are two of the greatest quarterbacks in the league!

Let my kids look up to Brandon Stokley before they ever catch a glimpse of Marshall, I’ll take Eddie Royal at his worst over Marshall at his best. Yes, not having Marshall lining up at wide out is going to burn this season, but like a bad relationship that you should have cut off years ago, we’re just going to have to deal. As I’ve mused in previous podcasts and during live blogs I’m looking for rookie receivers Kenny McKinley and/or Nate Swift to step up a lot towards the end of preseason. Matter of fact, at this point we’re at the same place that we were last preseason, not knowing if Royal would step up, we only had Marshall and Stokley at receiver as sure things.

Well, now we’ve got sure things in Stokley and Royal and we’re only hoping that Gaffney, Chad Jackson, McKinley and Swift will step it up. Let us not forget about Tony Scheffler and Daniel Graham, not to mention our extremely talented backfield and the fact that they can catch. There are still only a handful of receiver sets in the NFL  that are more loaded with talent than Denver is, even minus Marshall.

So Nation, save the, ‘Trade Marshall for Anquan Boldin!’ Rants, there are free agent wide receivers as talented as Marshall still available. We’re not going to get anything for Marshall, he’s worth about as much as stock in an American car factory is right about now. We’ve got to stand strong as a team and hope that something brings Marshall to his senses. If he doesn’t have faith in Josh McDaniels, let a couple of wins prove him wrong. This situation isn’t going to turn into a Terrell Owens in Philadelphia thing, Marshall doesn’t have the talent that Owens did at that point. Nor are the Broncos returning from a super bowl loss.

Suspend him for conduct detrimental to the team, I’m pretty sure his lawyer can’t sue Denver, as at one point, if not currently he probably represented the Broncos (he represented Travis Henry two seasons ago as well). Play ball Marshall, you’ve seen what happened to Javon Walker when he tried this and read up on Ashleigh Lelie, because former Broncos receivers go the way of former Broncos running backs. They don’t survive outside the system. Now let’s focus on what’s important here, beating Jay Cutler the Chicago Bears.

UPDATED POST NFL LIVE INTERVIEW:

Just after publishing this post, Marshall did an interview with ESPN’s Trey Wingo, where Marshall said amongst a lot of ‘truthfully,’s and ‘honestly,’s (which is an indicator that he’s being anything but ‘truthful’ or ‘honest’ ), he started off by stating that he was just being, ‘Truthfully honest,” and that some of the footage was being blown out of proportion. He said that him sitting down and fixing his pants (which do not appear on the video) was blown out of proportion and that punting the ball was, ‘An air in judgement.’ If he could do it again, “I definately wouldn’t have punted the ball…” “Unfortunately yesterday, I kind of let my frustration get the best of me.” “I let my emotions get the best of me, but then again, half of that video was blown out of proportion.”

When asked what would happen if he didn’t get traded, “Well, then I have to be professional about it, I have to get ready for the season with the Broncos. Go out their and put my team in the best position to win… I feel like we have a great group of guys and a great chance of winning.”

He also referred to the fact that he was told that he would be traded, “Way back in the summer time,”

When asked if he would be a part of the Broncos roster when they played the Cincinnati Bengals Marshall stated that, “Honestly, you know what, there’s a lot of things up in the air right now… I can’t predict the future, I can only prepare for it.”

Overall, I felt like Marshall knows that he’s not going to be traded, he’s buckling down, is ‘honestly,’ embarrassed and will play for Denver this season.

But first a big back hand from a man that’s been to a couple of Super Bowls with Denver.

Former Bronco offensive lineman (and current Denver resident) Mark Schlereth followed the interview up immediately by stating that Marshall looked like a petulant child that hadn’t gotten his way and going on to say that,”The Denver Broncos are not Pat Bowlen, they’re not Josh McDaniels, they’re those other guys that you line up with and what you’ve done to them is disgusting.”

“A pupil is not above his teacher; but everyone, after he has been fully trained, will be like his teacher.”

Hmm.

That’s been going through my head more than a few times since this team started coming apart at the seams. Who is the pupil? Who is the teacher? Who is training and who is learning, what has been learned and who is teaching?

Is it– was it Mike Shanahan? Dan Reeves? George Seifert, Bill Walsh? Bill Belichick? Josh McDaniels?

Or was it Jake Plummer?

Did Jay Cutler pull a page from the Plummer playbook and doom himself to moving back to Tennessee to marry a Vol’s cheerleader and take up flip-cup as his sport of choice?

You really want to go that road Cutler? I guarantee that you’re heading to 0-16 Detroit, in my younger days I would have done that trade out of spite: The number one pick in the 2009 draft, a six-pack and a blueberry snow cone… Easy.

Here’s the thing Jeremy Bates was let go because McDaniels is the rich man’s Jeremy Bates. McDaniels donned the Denver D and stated, “En signa vinces,” in this sign we conquer. He’s not about to let the new him step on his toes during some random meeting. If Bates was so prolific what is he doing coaching the next USC quarterback who will choke once he catches a break in the NFL? Why didn’t Belichick call him up for the vacant job in New England? Or anyone in the NFL call him up for that matter?

Use your head Cutler, before you make yourself look like Icarus. I’m not blaming Bus Cook, Cutler graduated from Vanderbilt, he’s gotta be a smart guy. Cook’s ruined every career that he’s gotten a hold of, check the track record, what’s done in the dark will come to light. I’ve never run to press with any of the horrible things that I’ve heard about Cutler personally. However, let’s just put it this way, he’s a dick.

You know what though? There are a lot of people like that in the league who are, so being such a dick, why is he acting like a man-child, a grown baby? Here’s the thing about managers and agents, they are employees of the people that they work with. They get 10-15% of what you make as their client, it’s their job to get you the next deal. Cutler obviously needs a manager, someone to tell him first you go along, then you get along.

Jay Cutler being sacked by a Navy linebacker in 2004.

Jay Cutler:

Starting quarterback for the Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers,  Denver Broncos.

Denver will do what is right: sit on Cutler for the next three-years of his contract. Honor those contract bonuses (if he chooses to play, he’ll have bonuses/contract elevators of ten-million dollars in 2010 and then fourteen-million dollars in 2011). If that’s not good enough, not fair enough… Then let Cutler sit out, force him to pay back his bonuses and the Broncos can collect mountains of fines. Either way he’s yours for three more years.

Love is blind, but we haven’t been blinded just yet by the heir. He’s going to have to do better than 25 and 24. Yes, you can say that he needed a defense, but Peyton Manning didn’t. And Tom Brady went 17-0 by simply outscoring the opposing teams offense… Under McDaniels guidance. Cutler couldn’t do that, under Shanahan… Or under Bates.

And a final note to Mr. Cook, you know the difference between a roster bonus of 10-million and 14-million by next season and a new contract that allows for 16-million over the next three seasons? Well, I’ll let the math majors tell it. That 15% won’t be much to you though, do your best to salvage your career, before you have scouts refusing your clients and let that reputation leak to any potentials. It would be really horrible if the NFL were to be made aware of a couple of conversations that took place between your office and players who had yet to declare for the draft.

Jay Cutler (AP Photo)

An interesting tidbit nugget bombshell in Peter King‘s latest edition of MMQB regarding the Jay Cutler fiasco over the weekend – Cutler might have asked the Broncos for a trade after offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates moved on to USC.

I heard one other interesting thing Sunday: Cutler asked for a trade shortly after the Broncos lost offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates — Cutler’s confidant — to USC after the season. So maybe both sides need to go into marriage counseling here.

There are conflicting reports that Head Coach Josh McDaniels and GM Brian Xanders shopped Cutler instead of simply listening to offers. This would add some reliability to those reports.

I don’t know what to think. Either way, the Broncos brass should have never even listened to trade offers for Cutler. King is an excellent reporter; there’s no doubt he heard this from somewhere, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he needed to hear it twice before putting it to print. This fiasco keeps getting stranger and stranger; the second I think I have my head around it somewhat, even in the least, the latest report throws me for a loop. I don’t know how the Broncos and Cutler recover from this.

To make all you Denver fans feel comfortable out there, newly hired offensive coordinator Mike McCoy understands the importance of this relationship. Jake Delhomme even helped McCoy make his decision to move to Denver easier. Delhomme talked to McCoy’s 9 year old daughter and calmed her down about the move across the country. The article states:

“According to Mike McCoy, Delhomme talked to little Olivia and put her at ease, sharing that it was hard for him to leave the New Orleans Saints in 2003, but that coming to the Panthers was one of the best decisions he’d ever made.”

If your starting QB will do that for you then that’s the type of coach every player wants to play for.

Mike McCoy has accomplished many feats throughout his 9 year tenure for the Panthers. In 2007 Carolina became the first NFL team to win one game with 4 different starting quarterbacks each. Those QB’s would be pre-injured Jake Delhomme, 45 year old Vinny Testaverde, bona fide backup Luke McCown, and undrafted rookie Matt Moore. Whether or not they single-handedly won their respective game McCoy apparently did a good enough job preparing them to win, and that’s what being a QB coach is all about.

I can’t wrap my head around why people say it’s a bad omen that Jake Delhomme is McCoy’s claim to fame. Remember that Delhomme was once a backup in NFL Europe.

• 1997: In his first and only game played he completed 15/47 passes and threw 4 picks… in NFL Europe.
• 1998: Threw for 1,410 yards, 12 TDs, and 5 picks during an 11 game period… in NFL Europe.
• 1999-2003: Sat bench on the Saints, played 6 games, 2 in 1999, 4 in 2002, massed 3 TDs and 5 INTs.
• 2003: Delhomme’s first year in Carolina he threw for 3,219 yards, 19 TDs, and 16 INTs.
• 2004: Threw for 3,886 yards, 29 TDs, and 15 INTs en-route to a Super Bowl appearance.
• 2005: Delhomme was almost as prolific the next year throwing 3,421 yards, 24 TDs, and 16 INTs.
• 2006: Despite an injury in only 13 games played Delhomme threw 2,805 yards, 17 TDs, and 11 INTs.
• 2007: Delhomme was injured again but managed 626 yards, 8 TDs, and 1 INT in 3 games.
• 2008: Threw for 3,288 yards, 15 TDs, and 12 INTs. His production was cut due to the amazing run game of DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart. 

A fair amount of the production Delhomme showed had to have came from McCoy, seeing how he was already in Carolina when Delhomme arrived. Say what you want about Jake Delhomme, but he was purely a backup until he went under the helm of Mike McCoy, that’s a fact.

Im sure all Denver fans were wondering when Cutler would finally talk to McDaniels and release a statement about his hiring. Well Denver fans we are half way there. According to the Denver Post McDaniels and Cutler played phone tag for awhile before actually having a conversation. Lets hope that Cutler is as excited as McDaniels is

“We had a great conversation about where we’re going, what we’re going to do and some of the things we’ve done in New England in the past and some of the things they did here. We had a very, very lively conversation. I can’t wait to meet him.”

Another positive thing the Denver Post reports McDaniels mentioned is the importance of a growing a rapport with Cutler.

“McDaniels told reporters Monday that establishing a relationship with Cutler will be important to him, and that he intends to work closely with the quarterbacks.”

Now I don’t know what that means for Jeremy Bates who was given permission to interview with Oakland, but it doesn’t look exactly too bright.

However, the future is looking bright for the new hires Ed Donatell and Adam Gase. These hires will be the new secondary coach and receivers coach respectively.

Good news for Rick Dennison and Bobby Turner, because they both will stay on the coaching staff. Turner will keep his old job as the running backs coach and Dennison will take a demotion to the offensive line coach, even though he will most likely being doing the same job he did last year. 

McDaniels will now work hard on hiring an new offensive coordinator. It is rumored that McDaniels is trying to hook in Mike McCoy, who is the Panthers Quarterbacks/Passing coordinator. 

Denver fans what are your thoughts? Is Mike McCoy fit for the job? Where will Jeremy Bates end up? Speak up!

Josh McDaniels address the media as Denver Broncos Head Coach for the first time. (Reuters photo)

BRONCOS PRESIDENT AND CEO PAT BOWLEN

Opening Statement

“Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. I’m ecstatic, I’m excited and I’m ready to introduce the new head coach of the Denver Broncos, Josh McDaniels.”

BRONCOS HEAD COACH JOSH McDANIELS

Opening statement

“I’d like to thank Pat Bowlen and the Broncos organization for giving me this opportunity. I’m excited and looking forward, very much, to the opportunity to lead this team. I’d like to thank my wife, Laura, who is here with me today, for all of her support and understanding. This is a difficult business to go through and she’s given me an opportunity every day to pursue my dreams and I couldn’t ask for someone better to stand beside me. I’d like to thank my parents Thom and Chris. I come from a football family. They’ve given me all of the direction and guidance that a young man would want to have if given the opportunity to fall in love with this game that I’ve been a part of for, basically, all of my life. I owe them so much and am looking forward to sharing this process with them. I’d like to thank (New England Chairman and CEO) Mr. (Robert) Kraft and the Patriots organization for all of the opportunities that they have given me professionally and all of the things that they have allowed my family to be a part of with the New England Patriots for the last eight seasons. I’d like to personally thank (Patriots Head Coach) Bill Belichick for providing me my foundation in this league and for mentoring me for eight years. I’ve formed a special bond with him that will last long after I am done coaching in this game and my appreciation for what he has done for me I can’t express just in words. I’d like to thank (Notre Dame Head Coach and former Patriots Assistant Coach) Charlie Weis for teaching me the basics of the system offensively that we’ve used for the last five seasons in New England and for also teaching me how to handle adversity, because anybody that has worked for or with Charlie knows that you are going to have to handle adversity. This is an opportunity that doesn’t come along very often and I know that I am coming to a place where winning is the most important thing. It’s been very clear to me during this process that it is the most important thing to Mr. Bowlen. It’s the most important thing to this organization. I’ve learned very quickly that it is the most important thing to the fans and community and it’s certainly going to be the most important thing to the coaches and players of the Denver Broncos. I want this team to be tough, smart and prepared to play well under pressure and the evaluation process of how to get this team to that point is going to start today, and is going to be ongoing. Everybody here in this organization is going to be held accountable to do their job, their piece of the puzzle to fit in to make this team competitive for championships every season. We’re going to be as precise as we can in every phase of our preparation and in every phase of our daily operation and in our performance on game day. I’m very excited to share in this commitment to win and I can’t wait to get started. Thank you.”

On whether he could have imagined at such a young age (32) he would be a head coach in the NFL

“I don’t really think that that is something that I stop and think about at all. My age has never been a factor. It’s never going to be a factor, it is about performance. It’s about what you are capable of getting the players to do. It’s about the information that you can give them and it’s about doing your job to the best of your ability. That is what I am going to do. It is what I’ve done my entire career and that is what I am going to do going forward.”

On how much he studied the Broncos before his interviews took place

“When the job came open, certainly, it was something that I had to look at very seriously. It’s a great place with a great history and tradition. It’s a place where you come and where the culture is about winning. It’s not somewhere where you have to re-create that culture and that was something that was very attractive to me and I’m sure to other candidates. I did as much research as I could before the process began. I worked through that with a couple different meetings with the people that I met with in the Broncos organization. This is definitely a dream come true to have an opportunity to lead this team and this organization. I couldn’t have imagined it would come up, but once it did it was certainly an opportunity that I was going to jump at.”

On what changed his mind after passing up head coaching opportunities in the past

“I think last year the timing wasn’t right for me. Our season that we were having last year in New England (2007) was a little different than the one we were having this year. Not making the playoffs allowed me to get into this season right away as soon as the season ended. I’ve spent a lot of time in preparation over the last year getting myself more ready to go in case this opportunity did present itself again and I just feel like the timing is right. I’ve had the opportunity to experience a lot of things. This year was certainly a different experience for me, the way that our season went, and it better prepared me to go into this next step of my career. This year the timing is right and I am thrilled to be here.”

On whether he has spoken with QB Jay Cutler

“I have not. That is something that will take place here very shortly. There are a lot of people that I want to reach out to and speak with, here shortly—players and coaches that are still on the staff and that will happen here soon.”

On whether he has a list of assistant coaches in mind

“There are some people that I have spoken with and the process today and tomorrow will really start to pick up. There is definitely a short list of candidates that we would like to get in, interview and go through the process with and make the best choices we can for those positions.”

On how he describes his coaching and leadership style as compared to his mentors (Bill Belichick, Charlie Weis)

“It’s different. I’ve had a lot of great mentors. Nick Saban was also someone that I worked for and under. I’ve tried to take some things from Nick, from Bill and Charlie along the way. I hope I’ve taken all the good things from them. The way I coach and try to lead is by being more prepared than everybody else—trying to do that on a daily basis because I think that is what players respond to. Players want to win, they want to be taught and improve and they want to have an opportunity to be successful, and as a coach that is your job. That is what I want to do every day when I come into the office. I want to be prepared and give them an opportunity to succeed, with what particular scheme or system we are using on that particular day or week. That’s what I want is to be prepared and for them to be prepared. We are going to play tough and smart and well under pressure and that is the way that preparation is going to extend to them on the playing field.”

On whether he considers himself a “tough” coach

“At times, of course, if that is what has to happen. That is what you do when you are in this profession. I don’t think you do it unnecessarily but I like to believe I’m a teacher. I’d like to believe that I can communicate. That is a very important word for me. I think that goes from the top down and when you need to get your hands dirty in this game you need to be willing to do it. I think the players accept that, look forward to it and will respond to it accordingly.”

On being offered a head coaching job after growing up in Canton, Ohio

“It has been a long road with a lot of great influences for me. When that conversation took place I was very eager to accept that. Growing up in Canton is a very important part of my life. Football is next to nothing; the people of Canton love this game and cherish the weekend that they get to really shine in August. I have been going to two-a-days since I was five years old. For 27 straight years—I know that sounds silly because I am 32—but for 27 straight years I have been going to practices from the beginning of August until now. That is where I learned to love the game. My father loves the game. I think that kids that grow up in Canton, Ohio, that is something that you have a great opportunity to fall in love with because it is right there, it is present and it matters. It certainly matters to me.”

On his plan to improve the defense

“First of all I would say that, as much as I have coached offense in the past four or five years, I am a football coach that has been built to understand defense. That is where I have learned my foundation. Defense is very important to how we will attack people offensively. As much as I can say that I am proud to have worked with the offense the past couple years, I am a football coach and I want to have an opportunity affect the kicking game, the defense, offense and every phase of the game. My goal as the head coach is to not just improve the defense, it is to improve the team. There are areas where this team is going to improve offensively. They can improve defensively and in the kicking game and that is part of the evaluation process that begins today. We are going to evaluate the people, we are going to evaluate the scheme, we are going to evaluate the coaches that we bring in here and determine what the best way to go about winning championships is. That is our goal and our focus and it is not just specific to the defensive side but certainly we can improve in that area as well.”

On what defensive scheme he may use

“Once the coordinator is named we will discuss the personnel that we have here and the direction that we want to go. I don’t necessarily think that it is always the same based on what they have done in the past. They may have personnel that is more suited for one scheme but you may want to start to go towards another. There are going to have to be some decisions made in the near future with where we want to go here in the long term. We want to have a consistent scheme. As somebody who has played against this team for quite a few years here—I have had the opportunity to play them five or six times in New England—the scheme and the system has changed quite a bit and we want to bring some consistency to that and make sure to improve whatever that scheme is from day one.”

On whether he will call plays for the offense

“Yes, yes I will be.”

On who will make personnel decisions

“I have met (Vice President of Football Operations/Player Personnel) Jim Goodman and his staff in the personnel department. I think it has to be a situation where we are going to collaborate on what we feel is best for the football team going forward from a personnel standpoint. Certainly Jim has done a great job of evaluating players from the college level (and) free agents and he knows this league and the players that are going to come into this league. I look forward to working with him in collaboration to try and create the best roster with the most depth that we possibly can.”

On who will have the final say if there are any disagreement in personnel choice

“Hopefully there are not many of those but Jim (Goodman) would make the call if there is an issue in terms of personnel.”

On if his personality differs from his former co-workers Bill Belichick and Charlie Weis

“Sure. I try to focus on the positive things that those people have given me the opportunity to see. I think that you will certainly see me bring a little bit of a different vibe. I am going to have a lot of energy, I can smile. I will do some things that I think people will like and get used to. Like I said, I think the personality of a coach—and this is true of everybody, any coach and any player—it comes through over time when you get the opportunity to see how I differ from them. It is hard to describe that standing right here. There are going to be some things that are going to be different.”

On if he was involved in the “Spygate” scandal and how he felt about it

“No. That situation was something that happened. I was not aware of that. I wasn’t aware of it and all the things that did happen in terms of that whole scenario. It really didn’t affect us to tell you the truth. It was all about preparation and trying to do whatever we felt was best that week. It really didn’t have anything to do with that.

“I don’t think it is good. To have that kind of attention was a distraction and I think that is how we all treated it. We tried to do the best we could to limit those distractions every week and it will be no different here. Certainly we are never looking to do anything that is not within the rules established by the National Football League. They determined the punishment on that and it was what it was and we moved on.”

On growing up in a football family and his father’s influence

“He is very proud. I am sure he is very, very proud today. My father, I have had the most opportunities to witness him. I started out when I was very young. I have had more years around him than any of the other coaches I have mentioned. He is a very good teacher and is great with the players. He is emotional when he needs to be and those are all things that I hope to take from him. I think the one thing about my father that I know I do take every day into this job is his passion. There is nothing about this game that is unimportant to him and I would say that is true for myself. That is how I approach this job every day and I think everyone will see that come through.”

On his assessment of last year’s Broncos defense

“That will be something that will be ongoing. I don’t have every single answer here relative to the defense, the offense or the special teams, but starting early tomorrow morning we will be looking to try and evaluate what we have. I think that is the first place you want to start is evaluating— what you have done and what you have here.”

On if he has had time to evaluate the Broncos

“I have done it some back in New England. I haven’t even had the opportunity to sit at my desk yet, but I will be looking forward to that. I can’t wait to get started on that process. I think that is something, like I said, that is not just applicable to the defense, it is not one side of the ball here. This is a team that won eight games and anytime you win eight games and fall short of your goal I think there are a lot of things that need to be improved and that is what we are going to do.”

On whether he will retain any of the offensive assistants that were not released by the Broncos

“I am going to have an opportunity to meet with them as soon as I can. I haven’t had conversations with them but there is no preconceived notion with what is going to happen with them. I don’t know most of them but I have a relationship with a couple of them. I know they are all fine coaches and they have done a great job here. I think it is a decision that will be made here over the next few days.”

On his impressions of Broncos QB Jay Cutler

“Jay is very talented. I have had an opportunity to watch him a number of times on film and in person once this year. He has a lot of ability. I know just from some of the information that I gathered on him coming out of college that he is a very intelligent person, a very intelligent player. He does a lot of things well. I think Jay is going to enjoy playing in this system, this offense. It is very quarterback friendly once you get to the point where you can use all the tools that it gives the quarterback. Obviously he is a very important part of our success going forward and I can’t wait to get started working with him.”

On the immediate challenge of being a head coach in the NFL

“I think it is a process that has to come in place. There are a lot of things that are going to come up that I have not necessarily dealt with before but I am looking forward to that. It starts with an evaluation process of where we are at, where we have been and where we want to go. I think once that process begins I think a lot of things start to fall into place starting with staffing, players, our schedule for the spring and the rest of it. There are a lot of things that need to be done and I look forward to doing them.”

On being the predecessor to Mike Shanahan

“Coach Shanahan is a legend in this game and a hall of famer. It’s a privilege to follow from his tenure here as the head coach of the Denver Broncos. I have had the good fortune to work with another one of those types of coaches (Belichick). I am very much looking forward to following what he has done. Again, there is a culture here and it is about winning and that is a big part of Mike Shanahan. That has been established, it is very obvious. The people here care about it most importantly. That is the thing that I think I am looking most forward to, is joining an organization that is very similar to the one I just came from. It is all about winning and that is what we are going to do on a daily basis, is whatever we think is the best way to go about improving our football team so we can win as many games as we possibly can.”

On whether his age helps him in coaching

“I wouldn’t say that my age (helps). The relating to players and all that stuff—I’ve coached older players, I’ve coached younger players—I don’t think age is a factor. What they care about is what I’m saying and whether or not it’s going to help them win. That’s the most important thing to me and that’s the most important thing to the players. That’s where all the preparation and hard work (come in). You want to come in and you want to give them an opportunity to be successful. That’s my focus and that’s where my focus will be.”

On his impressions of the Broncos through the years

“A hard team to beat. We’ve had some games out here (in Denver) that have been very competitive. We were fortunate to win one of them and unfortunately didn’t play very well (in others) and they did—and they deserved to win those games that we played against them otherwise. Every time you see their name on the schedule you know that it’s going to be a 60-minute game, they are going to be well prepared, they have good players and it’s going to be a dogfight. That’s really what comes to mind anytime you see this team on your schedule, and I’m happy that now I’m on the other side of that schedule.”

On playing the Patriots in 2009 (at home, date TBD)

“That will be great. I look forward to that. I don’t think any coach is afraid to go back and play a team that he was a part of for a long time. It will be exciting for me; hopefully it will be exciting for the players and this organization. (But) it’s not about that. It’s not about me going back to play against New England. I just think they are a competitive team that I’m sure will have a good team this year and we will look forward to the challenge.”

On how he will address the players

“Once we get kind of established here and get rolling we will set a date to meet with them here all collectively. (I will) have an opportunity to stand in front of them and talk to them about where we are going. I think that’s very important. I think we want to do that at the right time. We want to make sure we have some people in place, get the staff issues taken care of and start moving in that direction. The first time we can actually get together and be together and they can hear me and understand where we are coming from as a staff and where we want to go this year and in the future—I think that will be very important.”

On whether he will have a staff put together by the NFL Combine (Feb. 20-26, 2009)

“I would hope so. Like I said, it’s begun already—the process. As soon as we can put together a staff of the best coaches that we can to help this organization win, that’s when it will be done. If that’s January or February or whenever it needs to be—to be the best—that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

On whether he is bringing Dom Capers with him and whether he has hired Mike Nolan

“(I have not) talked to Dom Capers—not that I wouldn’t but I have not talked to Dom Capers—he is under contract with the New England Patriots. I have not done that. I have had discussions with Mike Nolan, but nothing has been official yet.”

On Denver’s offensive talent

“I think anytime you come into a position like this you are eager to see how they relate to some of the players you have had in your past. They have a lot of guys who do a lot of things well. (WR) Brandon Marshall and (WR Eddie) Royal and (WR Brandon) Stokley and (TE Daniel) Graham and (TE Tony) Scheffler—the list goes on and on. They have a lot of talent. I think the biggest thing is to get the players to understand the system that we are going to utilize this year and to move forward in that and progress every day and have a great spring. That’s the goal right now, to have a great spring and accomplish a lot be fore the break between spring caps and training camp. I think that’s the exciting part for me, not only offensively but, I think, for defense and into the kicking game as well. Any area that we can improve this team, any area where we have an opportunity to get better, that’s what we’re looking to do.”

On whether the offensive system will resemble the New England system

“Yes.”

On the coaches under Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick’s coaching tree

“Everybody is different. My experience in New England is unique. I had an opportunity to work in the personnel department under (Vice President of Player Personnel) Scott Pioli which was very valuable to me. Then I had an opportunity to work on defense with Bill (Belichick) and Romeo (Crennel) and Eric Mangini and Rob Ryan and Pepper Johnson—and had an opportunity to learn the way they saw the game defensively. Then I moved over from the defensive side to coach offense with Charlie Weis. I learned a tremendous amount in 2004, in that season. I had an opportunity to work with (Patriots QB) Tom Brady for the first time. Then I’ve moved on and grown from that process. I think the thing that I’m most excited about is that I can affect more than just the offense. The quality of the experience that I’ve had in New England is more important to me than the quantity of years that I’ve been there. For me, that’s the biggest thing. When I was on defense, they were quality years. When I had an opportunity to witness how the personnel department ran—and in continuing years have had an opportunity to do that—that’s been very valuable to me. And obviously my experience on offense has been very valuable in my growth as a coach. I don’t think that I’m an offensive guy or just a defensive guy or whatever it is. I’m hopefully a well-rounded football coach that’s had great experience and was taught by a lot of great men and great coaches. I’m going to try to take all the things that they taught me and use them to our advantage to try to win here.”

On taking a year off after being a graduate assistant coach at Michigan State in 1999

“It was a great experience (at Michigan State). Coaching for (former MSU Head Coach) Nick Saban was a great experience. I looked forward to that opportunity and thought I might have (had) a chance to do it for more than a few months there coming out of college, (but) I thought it was a great chance for me to go and learn from one of the very best. It was a great experience. He (Saban) went to LSU (Louisiana State University) after that season before our bowl game and I happened not to go with him. I made a choice—a personal choice—not to stay there at Michigan State. It had nothing to do with my experience and I stayed in touch with the people I met at Michigan State. I was fortunate enough that (Patriots Wide Receivers Coach) Brian Daboll and I were together at Michigan State. He was in New England in 2000 and then like I said, we stayed in touch and had contact with one another. That was where the opportunity was born—from our relationship. I’m sure that Coach Saban somewhere along the line put in a word too.”

On whether he saw any weaknesses in the Broncos when preparing to play them in 2008 (Oct. 20 in New England)

“I think every week you go into a game you are trying to find any and all weaknesses that you can to try to be successful. There are certain games that are going to be about the schemes. Certain games are going to be about—maybe we can pick on a player. I’m not going to stand up here and say exactly what we were trying to do in our game. We had some success. I’m glad we did then and I’m hoping to reverse that trend going forward.”

On whether he will wear a ‘hoodie’

“Will I wear a ‘hoodie’? Absolutely. I can’t wait to see my ‘hoodie.’”

On being able to coach Broncos DT Kenny Peterson

“He wasn’t on my high school team but he was on my brother’s and he played for my father. I’ve just had an opportunity to see Kenny and meet Kenny after games what have you throughout his brief NFL career. It’s a thrill to be able to stay in contact with guys and see how productive they have been and they have made a lot of themselves. My father has had the good fortune of coaching a lot of players that have had a chance to be successful at the college level, and some have had the opportunity to do that at the professional level. Kenny is one of them, he’s a great kid, he works extremely hard and I’m sure I’ll look forward to seeing Kenny here shortly.”