Projected Timeline for Broncos' Head-Coaching Hire
The Denver Broncos are in a familiar situation as the team again is on the hunt for a new head coach. There are plenty of names being floated about for the job, but the belief is the Broncos will interview 8-10 candidates and go from there.
According to Denver beat writer James Palmer, there are two key attributes Broncos GM George Paton is looking for: leadership and a clear vision for the offense.
Indeed, Paton said during his Sunday presser, in the immediate aftermath of firing Vic Fangio, that the Broncos would start putting in requests for interviews on Monday (January 10). That is the start of the timeline for the hiring process.
From there, Paton will likely conduct his first series of interviews over the next week. This process will take a few days to organize and execute as the Broncos have to work around the schedule of multiple coaches in the playoffs.
After the first wave of interviews, there will be a day or two to review the results and determine which coaches Paton wants to bring in for a second sit-down. Then, the Broncos will have to work around the schedule for any remaining candidates in the playoffs.
In the second wave of interviews, there is often a more in-depth discussion about the coaching staff the candidate wants to put together. If the coaching candidate the Broncos want to hire is still in the playoffs, we could see Paton begin hiring coordinators if candidates in question are out of the playoffs.
After the two-phase interview process, especially if the Broncos hit the 8-10 interview mark that some insiders have purported, that would be a two-week process. Throw in a few days for review, and as long as the top choice is out of the playoffs, you're looking at the new head coach for the Broncos arriving for his hello presser.
All in, that would be about 18 or so days. From his press conference, it was clear Paton doesn't want to rush the process, as we have seen from previous hiring cycles under ex-GM John Elway.
Paton's thoroughness and patience suggest a two to three-week process at least. Of course, if the candidate the Broncos land on makes a Super Bowl run, it could be longer.
Whatever the case is, the Broncos want to have their choice made internally to move forward with hiring staff around them and working to examine and identify players for free agency and the NFL draft that can fit the schemes Denver will be running under the new head man.
The key date here is the Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine Game, both of which come the first week of February. It'll be imperative for Paton to have a clear grasp of what schemes the Broncos will be running when he and the Broncos' scouts enter the first significant stretch of the pre-draft cycle.
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