The Denver Broncos are reportedly likely to fire head coach Vance Joseph after a miserable season that has the franchise missing the playoffs.
Denver has long been one of the more stable franchises in the league. Since trading for John Elway in the immediate aftermath of the 1983 NFL Draft, the Broncos have reached seven Super Bowls and won three championships.
However, the Broncos have fallen on tough times over the past two years. After going 9-7 last year in their title defense and missing the playoffs, head coach Gary Kubiak retired. Now, it appears first-year head coach Vance Joseph is squarely on the hot seat, with Adam Schefter reporting that Joseph likely going to be fired.
Broncos’ HC Vance Joseph faces increasingly longer odds at being retained and returning for his second season in Denver, league sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 31, 2017
While Denver is 5-10 and in last place of the AFC West, this seems unfair to Joseph. Elway, now general manager, has provided Joseph with little-to-no talent at the quarterback position, forcing his coaching staff to start either Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch or Brock Osweiler.
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If the Broncos decide to move on from Joseph, it would mean they are in the process of looking for their fourth head coach in five seasons. At some juncture, the onus falls on Elway to provide a better culture to win within, something that hasn’t been there since the retirement of Peyton Manning. Elway certainly deserves more time considering his job led Denver to a championship in 2015, but Joseph is getting a raw deal.
Denver finishes up its season on Sunday afternoon against the Kansas City Chiefs, with Lynch going against fellow first-round pick Patrick Mahomes.