Report: Broncos could make a head coaching decision soon with DeMeco Ryans and David Shaw as the perceived finalist

The Broncos could make a decision on their Head Coach as soon as today

According to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, the Denver Broncos could be on the verge of making a head-coaching decision as soon as today. He also notes that San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans and former Stanford head coach David Shaw as the perceived finalist for the job.

Florio notes that the Broncos came away “very impressed” with DeMeco Ryans during their interview with him last week and that David Shaw has emerged as a “very viable candidate”. He also notes that “some” expect the Broncos to make the first move for a coach and could do it as soon as today.

Some believe that the Broncos could go first, as soon as Wednesday. They were very impressed by 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans, who can’t be hired by anyone until his team’s current season ends. Former Stanford coach David Shaw also has emerged as a very viable candidate.

Ryans cannot be officially hired until the 49ers are officially eliminated from the postseason or until after the Super Bowl while Shaw could be hired at any time. However, it appears the Broncos came away from their interview process with two favorites, at least from this report.

Now, Florio does not fully rule out Sean Payton, who was the perceived favorite up until recently, but notes that people are beginning to believe that he is heading back to TV. As for Dan Quinn, who is interviewing with the Arizona Cardinals for a second time, Florio notes that Quinn would bring former Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell with him as his offensive coordinator if hired. The 53-year-old coach is currently the Miami Dolphins pass game coordinator and quarterbacks coach under Mike McDaniel. However, the report states that Ryans and Shaw have emerged as the favorites above these two candidates.

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on Tuesday that DeMeco Ryans is a name to watch for the Broncos job and that you should not rule him out despite his lack of experience. He is a former player, 2x Pro Bowler, and mastermind behind the 49ers’ defense that looks poised for a Super Bowl run. He is known to be an impressive person, leader, and football guy who has a business background in management as well. So, that potentially could have helped his case with the new Broncos owners who come from that side of the world. I personally think he is the favorite for the job right now, but we shall see.

As for David Shaw, the Stanford connection was always on his side. He had a successful career at Stanford as their Head Coach despite the recruiting limitations. Sure, the final few years with that program were not good but the changes in the college landscape played a big factor in that. He is an intelligent person, a Stanford grad, and was a highly chased-after coach by the NFL during his time at Stanford. He turned down all those chances, but the NFL was interested in him.

As Florio notes, having Condoleezza Rice helping with the coaching search always gave Shaw a leg up on his competition. The two have a close working relationship dating back to their time at Stanford. She would help recruit for him and likely was the reason he even interviewed for the job in the first place. 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis noted that Shaw was a “sleeper” for the job last week and it appears that ended up being true in the end.

If the Walton-Penner group has seen fit to include Rice as an owner and to involve her in the process, her voice could resonate when its time to make a choice, since the rest of the ownership group won’t even begin to be able to fashion arguments against Shaw or in favor of someone else. Thus, if Shaw is good enough for Rice, Shaw may end up being good enough for majority owners Greg Penner, Rob Walton, and Carrie Walton Penner and limited partners Mellody Hobson and Sir Lewis Hamilton.

Connections always matter in the NFL and Shaw could greatly benefit from these connections. I am not sure if he is the favorite for the job right now(I would lean toward DeMeco Ryans) but I think there is a good possibility that Shaw is part of this coaching staff in some fashion. Whether it be as head coach or offensive coordinator or something else, I think he will be on the Denver Broncos coaching staff in 2023.

So, we could have a coaching decision as soon as today. Will it be a surprise like DeMeco Ryans or David Shaw, or will expected favorites Sean Payton or Dan Quinn get the job?

What do you think Broncos Country?