In 2015, came back to his NFL home. Broncos general manager hand-selected his former teammate and good friend to take over an underperforming team with championship talent.
Kubiak did just what Elway wanted, leading the Broncos out of the massive disappointment of a home divisional playoff loss to the jubilation of becoming 50 champion in his first season as head coach. The 2016 season? Kubiak and the Broncos couldn’t rekindle the magic.
As Kubiak’s short tenure as the Broncos’ head coach comes to an end, he will be remembered for the highest of highs, guiding the franchise to its third Super Bowl title, much more than the letdown this season. Thatap in part because of the respect he holds within the organization, dating back to his playing days.
“Kubes is like my pops,” said Broncos safety , whom Kubiak fought to sign in free agency after they spent 2014 together in Baltimore. “He didn’t have to do any of things he did. He brought me here. He gave me an opportunity. I’m forever indebted to him. This one hurts. Yeah, this one hurts bad. If you ask any of these guys in here, they’ll tell you Kubes is the best head coach they’ve played for without a doubt.”
“We’re a family forever,” center said. “We’re all going to miss him.”
History will always remember Kubiak as one of two Broncos Super Bowl-winning head coaches. He had a hand in all three championships. Itap almost impossible to look back on the team’s history without seeing Kubiak, who spent his playing career backing up Elway and was the team’s offensive coordinator for their previous two Super Bowl championship teams.
Upon his hiring, the Broncos quickly adopted Kubiak’s personality of toughness and fight, leading to improbable success as the defense kept making game-winning plays to bail out a shaky offense.
“He’s a player’s coach. I’ve always enjoyed him,” Broncos running back said. “He understands situations from our perspective — when we need to rest, when we need to work, when we need to calm down. Compared to (former coach John) Fox, there’s no sugarcoating. He’s going to be straight up with you the whole time.”
On Kubiak’s first day as Broncos head coach, he called players to learn about them personally and ask about their families. Players could tell Kubiak legitimately cared about them.
Relating well to his players and being upfront with them were two of Kubiak’s notable trademarks throughout his coaching career. It helped him navigate one of the more difficult quarterback situations a coach could face a season ago, shuffling from future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning for the first nine games to for seven games and back to Manning.
Former Steelers coach Bill Cowher called Kubiak’s work a year ago one of the best coaching jobs he’s ever seen.
“He let us be men and he runs our team perfectly,” cornerback said after the Broncos Super Bowl 50 victory.
Rarely were the Broncos considered Super Bowl favorites in 2015, but their “find a way” mantra became the backbone of their championship run. Eleven of the Broncos’ 15 wins a season ago were by a touchdown or less.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been more proud of a group of men,” Kubiak said. “We bonded and came together as a group.”
When Manning retired after the Super Bowl victory, Kubiak became the Broncos’ biggest leader on the offensive side of the ball. The transition without an on-field presence such as Manning was too much to overcome.
After a 4-0 start, the Broncos slowly unraveled and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2010, largely due to an inept offense.
Now, the Broncos will soon be looking for a new leader.
“He’s going to truly, truly, truly be missed,” said wide receiver .
