Former Arizona Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt was fired on January 1st, 2013. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Tuesday, former Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy informed the Broncos that he would be accepting the head coaching position with the San Diego Chargers. This coming just days after he called Denver the greatest place in the world to coach, also solidifying the second time in two years a Broncos’ coordinator left to coach another team in the same division.

Fandom was wild yesterday with the possibilities of who could be next up as offensive coordinator in Denver, there are in-house candidates: Adam Gase (quarterbacks coach) and Eric Studesville (running backs coach) and then there are two candidates who were head coaches last month: Ken Whisenhunt (former Arizona Cardinals head coach) and Norv Turner (former San Diego Chargers head coach), as well as the old guard Tom Moore (former Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator).

So where does the team stand and who is the most likely to end up consulting with Peyton Manning for 2013: Click here to read the rest of this entry »

• The leading candidates to take Mike McCoy‘s spot as Denver Broncos QB coach Adam Gase and former Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt. Another candidate: longtime Colts OC Tom Moore. [Denver Post]
• The team signed DT Ben Garland and WR Gerrell Robinson to future contracts. [Denver Post]
• Did numbness in Peyton Manning‘s fingers contribute to the decision to kneel in the fourth quarter? [Sports Illustrated]
• Does Manning deserve criticism for his 9-11 playoff record, or are there other factors at play here? [Cold Hard Football Facts]
• Ryan Clady withdraws from Pro Bowl with shoulder injury. [Bleacher Report]
• Feeling charitable? Retired NFL running back Thomas Jones says he will donate his brain to science. [ESPN]
• John Fox went car shopping. Safely. [Kissing Suzy Kolber]

(Photo: Joshua Gunter/The Plain Dealer)

On Tuesday, ESPN‘s Adam Schefter reported that the Broncos had fired defensive backs coach Ron Milus, due in part to the secondary’s meltdown in Denver’s 38-35 double overtime loss to Baltimore in the divisional round of the playoffs.  After further digging, it turns out Milus “clashed” with members of the secondary and was not going to be brought back in 2013, regardless of Saturday’s outcome.

To replace Milus, the Broncos promoted defensive quality control coach Cory Undlin as the new secondary coach, the team announced on Tuesday evening.  At least one member of Denver’s secondary, second-year cornerback  Chris Harris, approved of the signing:

“@sports_glory: @chrisharrisjr what do you think of Cory Undlin as the defensive backs coach? he’s real cool , I’m on board with that .

— Chris Harris (@ChrisHarrisJr) January 16, 2013

“Cory Undlin is an experienced defensive backs coach who has great familiarity with that role as well as our players and concepts,” coach John Fox said in a press release sent out by the team. “He has coached the position with multiple NFL teams, including under Jack Del Rio with the Jaguars. I am confident he will be a great fit and get the most out of our secondary.

As for Milus, Fox added, “I appreciate all of Ron Milus’ hard work and wish him the best.”

In other news, the Broncos signed Ben Garland, Duke Ihenacho, Paul Cornick, Quentin Saulsberry, and Jeremiah Johnson to future contracts on Tuesday, guaranteeing that the one-time practice squad players will be invited to training camp this summer.

Ron Milus coached the secondary in Denver from 2000-03 and again from 2011-12. (photo: Associated Press)

ESPN’s Adam Schefter has just reported that the Denver Broncos have fired defensive backs coach Ron Milus. This release comes after an extraordinarily bad showing in last weekend’s divisional game at home against the Baltimore Ravens.

Milus was in the second season of his second time on the Broncos’ coaching staff, he originally coached Denver’s defensive backs from 2000-03 and came back to the Broncos under head coach John Fox.

Since he returned to Denver Milus’s defensive backfield has employed a healthy mixture of young and old, featuring future Hall of Famers Brian Dawkins and Champ Bailey, as well as the superb undrafted corner Chris Harris, Jr., undrafted Tony Carter and second year safeties Rahim Moore and Quinton Carter.

Milus was in his thirteenth season as a coach in the NFL he has previously coached for the Carolina Panthers, St. Louis Rams, New York Giants and Arizona Cardinals. Denver had a total of 16 interceptions for 347 yards and five touchdowns in 2012.

• On Tuesday, the Denver Broncos signed defensive tackle Ben Garland to a one-year deal, per Garland’s Twitter account.

• The team also announced today that left Ryan Clady will not attend the 2013 NFL Pro Bowl.  Clady will miss the game due to injury concerns.

• Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning was also named the 2012 AFC Offensive Player of the Year by NFL 101 Awards on Tuesday.  This marks Peyton’s seventh NFL 101 award.

• After missing out on the Manning sweepstakes last summer, Ken Whisenhunt may get to work with Pey-Pey after all.  Following Mike McCoy‘s departure to San Diego, Whisenhunt has become a top candidate to replace him in Denver.

• As a reminder, the Broncos will select 28th overall in the 2013 NFL Draft. Here’s a look at their 2013 opponents.

Jacoby Jones burns the Denver Broncos defense for the game tying touchdown. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

On Friday January 11th, 2013, a caller called into 104.3’s The Drive. During his call the man had a simple request, that the home crowd needed to be loud… He went on to say that he hadn’t heard noise coming out of Mile High in weeks. The Denver Broncos own home crowd had in this caller’s opinion been very quite over the past few weeks as Denver cruised through the last few weeks that capped off an eleven game winning streak.

The Drive host D-Mac immediately shut the caller down, nearly cutting him off completely as he disagreed, defending the deafening voice that makes up one of the greatest home field advantages in all of sport. It is likely that the fan had likely been watching the game from somewhere outside of the blue stands that coat the interior of Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

It is better to bite your tongue and be thought of as an idiot, than to open your mouth and remove all doubt. Trindon Holliday proved that saying true as the Baltimore Ravens punted him the ball after their first possession and nothing short of the voice of God boomed from inside to outside Mile High and catalyzed Holliday’s prolific day.

And the blame was everywhere…

Fans grumbled immediately as Joe Flacco answered right back targeting the Broncos’ shut down corner Champ Bailey on a 2nd and 2 for a 41-yard touchdown to Torrey Smith.

Fans were all over the place…

Bailey has lost a step, he’s too slow now, et cetera…

The reality is that at ten minutes and forty two seconds in the first quarter the ball was snapped, the ball landed at ten minutes and thirty two seconds (that’s ten seconds later). If you watch the highlight you will see not one, but two safeties trailing Bailey and Smith into the end zone. That is why they are called safeties, they have the corner’s back over the top. However, without having the luxury of knowing exactly what was called, it is impossible to point fingers. A little logic and a shallow knowledge of defense would point to the fact that Bailey likely should not have been all alone fifty plus yards from where the ball was snapped. Click here to read the rest of this entry »

In this archive photo, Denver Broncos Owner Pat Bowlen addresses the media in January 2009. (John Leyba/Denver Post)

Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen wrote an open letter to Broncos Country reflecting on the 2012 season, the bitter loss to the Baltimore Ravens, and where we go from here. An excerpt —

The energy and enthusiasm you provided us this past year were infectious and carries us to great accomplishments. Your passionate backing allowed us to ascend as the season progressed. To have it end so suddenly is certainly most painful to you.

As the owner of a football team that belongs to this region, city and the greatest fans in professional sports, I share and understand the deep disappointment you must feel today.

Bowlen ends the letter on a positive note, looking toward a successful 2013.

But Broncos fans, you and I know what a great season looks like.

That is why I’ll soon stop reflecting and start working on one thing in 2013 — bringing another Super Bowl victory back to Denver. As we move forward, I am extremely optimistic with the future of our team.

You can read the whole letter at the official site.

The Denver Post reports that the San Diego Chargers have indeed hired Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy as head coach, confirming rumors we reported earlier today.

The hiring marks the second Broncos coordinator to be hired as head coach within the AFC West in the past 12 months. Last year, the Oakland Raiders swiped then-Broncos defensive coordinator to be head coach.

McCoy, a “heck of a coach,” earned the interest by successfully adapting his offense to quarterbacks Tim Tebow and Peyton Manning in consecutive seasons. It’s that ability to adapt his scheme to his players — and not the other way around — that we believe will serve him well in the NFL moving forward. Congratulations to McCoy, and also, now we hate you.

Though he is scheduled to interview with Arizona a second time today, Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy appears likely to sign in San Diego:

Chargers are nearing a deal to make Mike McCoy their head coach. Looks like it will be finalized today. More ahead @cbssports

— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) January 15, 2013

Candidates to replace McCoy in Denver include Adam Gase (Broncos QB coach), Ken Whisenhunt (Cardinals former head coach), Clyde Christensen (Colts QB coach) and Tom Moore (Indianapolis’ former offensive coordinator).

• Owner Pat Bowlen says he was “ticked off” after the loss, and talks about how much of an impact John Elway has had on the team. [Denver Post]
• Despite Coach Fox and Elway’s insistence, or maybe because of it, Fox’s decision to kneel at the end of regulation is drawing criticism and fan angst. [Denver Post]
• Some football hubris may have led to Peyton Manning‘s ill-advised final throw. [USA Today]
• Or maybe it was a more primal emotion: fear. [Time]
• Tim Tebow‘s brother Peter was angrily happy following the loss, but has since apologized. [USA Today]
• Champ Bailey must wait for his ring another year. [DenverBroncos.com]
• The San Diego Chargers and Arizona Cardinals are each courting Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy. [BroncoTalk]
• Are the Baltimore Ravens a team of destiny? [USA Today]