The Broncos were adamant they had a plan to fix their offensive problems. On Friday, Denver signed two veteran play-callers to lead their offensive staff.
Denver announced Mike McCoy as its offensive coordinator and Bill Musgrave as its quarterbacks coach.
Both men were initially considered for the Broncos offensive coordinator position, but Denver as their choice for that spot. The Broncos kept their interview with Musgrave Friday morning in an attempt to convince him to join the staff and work under McCoy, though other teams had interest in him as an offensive coordinator.
McCoy is expected to be the offensive play-caller although Musgrave would still have a significant voice in meeting rooms.
“Mike is an experienced play-caller who can build a system around our players,” new Broncos coach Vance Joseph said in a statement Friday. “It was our goal to find an offensive coordinator who has flexibility with his scheme, and Mike has done that as both a head coach and coordinator. He’s had a lot of success in this league with many different styles of offense, including here with the Broncos. Mike will bring energy and creativity to our offense, and we’re excited to welcome him back to Denver.”
and before that . Musgrave spent the past two seasons as the Raiders offensive coordinator. His contract expired at season’s end. He was Broncos general manager John Elway’s backup quarterback in 1995-96.
The Raiders (seventh) and Chargers (ninth) both ranked in the top-10 in scoring offenses this past season under Musgrave and McCoy, respectively. The Broncos had the 22nd ranked scoring offense this past season.
In his former stint as the Broncos’ offensive coordinator, McCoy showed he was adept at working well with different styles of quarterbacks, . That strength falls directly in line with what Joseph was seeking in an offensive coordinator.
“I want coordinators who put players first and scheme second,” Joseph said Thursday. “If itap not for our players, letap not do it.”
The Broncos had the NFL’s second-highest scoring offense in 2012, McCoy’s last season as offensive coordinator. McCoy’s offenses have finished in the NFL’s top-10 in total yards in three of the past five seasons,
Musgrave, a in 1985 for his quarterback play at Grand Junction High School, has been a quarterbacks coach and/or offensive coordinator every season since 1997 except 1998 when he was an Eagles offensive assistant.
‘s emergence as a star.
Two veteran offensive coaching minds in McCoy and Musgrave will benefit Joseph in his first head coach job.
Former Broncos quarterback coach Greg Knapp was Friday morning, paving the way for Musgrave’s hiring. The Broncos parted ways with their previous offensive coordinator Rick Dennison, Thursday. Five offensive coaches have been dismissed at this time.
Only two offensive coaches, Tyke Tolbert (wide receivers) and Eric Studesville (running backs) have been retained at this time.
Studesville interviewed for the Jets’ offensive coordinator job Thursday. He return for his eighth season with the Broncos working under his fourth head coach in Denver.
Broncos running back C.J. Anderson has been one of Studesville’s biggest supporters and was excited about his return although he noted the veteran running backs coach deserves to be an offensive coordinator.
Tolbert, who is entering his 15th NFL coaching season, has coached two 1,000-yard receivers for five consecutive seasons (Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas in 2012-13, Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas from 2014-16).
Sanders and Thomas became the seventh duo in NFL history to eclipse 1,000 yards in three consecutive seasons. Thomas has the longest active streak of 1,000-yard receiving seasons with five.
Tolbert, who has been the Broncos’ receivers coach since 2011, turned down an offer for a similar job with the Titans.
The Broncos expect their entire staff to be filled by the end of next week.
Mike McCoy, offensive coordinator
Age: 44
Played QB at Long Beach State (1990-91) before transferring to Utah for final two seasons of college.
Signed with Broncos as a college free agent in 1995.
Seventeen seasons of NFL coaching experience.
Broncos’ offensive coordinator 2009-12.
San Diego Chargers’ head coach (2013-16).
Spent nine seasons on Carolina’s offensive staff (2000-08).
McCoy’s offenses have finished in NFL’s top 10 three of last five seasons (373.3 yards per game).
Coached eight offensive players to 10 total Pro Bowl selections.
Helped Peyton Manning earn 2012 comeback player of the year in 2012.
Helped revamp Denver’s offense in 2011, with QB Tim Tebow.
Broncos finished 2011 season ranked No. 1 with 2,632 rushing yards.
Return of McCoy
Mike McCoy was the Broncos’ offensive coordinator from 2009-12 and worked with four different starting quarterbacks. Here’s a snapshot of the Broncos’ offensive performance those four seasons compared to the last two, including playoffs. (Stats via STATS, LLC)
| 2009-12 | 2015-16 | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting QBs | Chris Simms, Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow, Peyton Manning | Peyton Manning, Brock Osweiler, Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch |
| Record | 34-33 | 24-11 |
| Points | 22.9 | 21.6 |
| Passing yards | 242.6 (7.24 avg.) | 247.7 (6.84 avg) |
| Rushing yards | 123.0 (4.16 avg.) | 100.0 (3.84 avg.) |
| TDs per game | 2.63 | 2.23 |
| Interception % | 2.3 | 2.8 |
| Third down % | 36.3 | 33.5 |
By Nicki Jhabvala, The Denver Post
