Reunited

Written by John Edward Betancourt

It's been an interesting offseason for Denver Broncos fans. We learned just how serious John Elway is about winning Super Bowls when and he John Fox agreed to part ways because four division titles, and an appearance in Super Bowl XLVIII was simply not enough.  

Of course in order to maintain that high level of excellence, John's search for a new coaching staff in Denver has led to a long list of familiar faces, starting with former Broncos QB/Offense Coordinator Gary Kubiak being named the Head Coach and it hasn't ended there as Kubiak has finished rounding out his staff.

The first order of business after being hired was to bring in Rick Dennison as Offensive Coordinator which is a move I really like. Dennison, like Kubiak has a long history with this team. He played linebacker for this team from 1982-1990 then returned as a coach during the Mike Shanahan era in 1995.  He served as an Offensive Assistant, Special Teams Coach, Offensive Coordinator and Offensive Line Coach here in Denver before joining Coach Kubiak in Houston as the OC there as well. He is definitely a master of the zone blocking scheme, something we should expect to see deployed here in Denver a lot more now.

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But, the familiar faces continue to show up on this coaching squad as Denver announced last night that it had agreed to terms with Wade Phillips to become the team's new Defensive Coordinator.  Phillips of course also has a long legacy here in Denver.  Now Wade has been a coach in the NFL since 1976 when he served as the Defensive Line Coach for the Houston Oilers but when it comes to Denver, he was the team's Defensive Coordinator from 1989-1992 before taking over as a brief stint as Head Coach, a title he has held on several occasions and been quite successful at it.  Wade is regarded as one of the best Defensive Coordinators in the league and I think it's fantastic he's come back to Denver. 

If anything, what John Elway is doing is clear, by getting the band back together if you will, he is trying to take the best elements of the Broncos past and bring them all back to life before our very eyes. The offensive powerhouse that Kubiak used to run here has all of the components it needs while at the same time giving the defense one of the best minds on that side of the ball the game has ever seen. All these moves are for one reason, to bring home the Lombardi Trophy and I can't wait to see what Coach Kubiak and his new staff do with the team.

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