Report: Broncos Make Formal Request to Interview Bears' Champ Kelly for GM Opening
The Mile High City is still reeling from the seismic shift that occurred on Monday after John Elway relinquished general manager duties with the intent to hire someone new to fill the role. Elway's decision came on the heels of four consecutive losing seasons, the most recent of which saw the Broncos finish 5-11 and dead-last in the AFC West.
Elway will remain president of football operations and said that the move to hire a GM and find the right guy to succeed him will be done quickly. One of the top names garnering buzz for the Broncos GM vacancy — almost immediately — is Champ Kelly, currently the assistant director of player personnel for the Chicago Bears. ]
On Tuesday, 9NEWS' Mike Klis broke the news that the Broncos have formally requested an interview with Kelly.
"Broncos have formally requested interview for their GM opening with Bears assistant director of player personnel Champ Kelly, per source. Champ spent 8 years in Broncos personnel and 4 years working with Fangio in Chicago. More permission slips to come," Klis tweeted.
Indeed, Kelly spent 2008-09 with the Broncos as the assistant coordinator of pro and college scouting. He was promoted to assistant director of pro personnel in 2010 and worked under Elway from 2011-14.
Kelly left the Broncos in 2015 to accept a promotion in Chicago to serve as the team's director of pro scouting. He was instrumental in the acquisition that landed Khalil Mack with the Bears in 2018 and several other well-regarded personnel moves.
Kelly would certainly understand the standard of excellence the Denver Broncos strive for and has experience working with Elway. In years past, though, Kelly worked 'under' Elway and while one could argue that landing the Broncos GM job would follow a similar chain of command, both Elway and president Joe Ellis were vociferous in saying that the successor will have full control of the roster and be able to fulfill his vision, working more, it would seem, hand-in-hand with head coach Vic Fangio.
As a Black man, Kelly would also bring diversity to the Broncos front office, to go along with his expert acumen as an NFL personnel guy. Ellis reiterated on Tuesday the team's "very important" priority of fostering a more diverse front office and hiring Kelly would be a way to do that with gusto.
If hired, Kelly would be the first African American GM of the Broncos. He seems like the perfect fit but there will be other candidates as the team plans to cast a wide net.
The leaders in the clubhouse for the GM job? Kelly and San Francisco's vice president of player personnel Adam Peters, who also worked under Elway in the Broncos' front office. Don't completely discount the possibility of ex-Houston GM Rick Smith, whose ties to the Broncos run deep.
Ellis confirmed on Tuesday that the Bears had granted permission for the Broncos to interview Kelly. Kelly won't be the last interview, nor the last Black candidate to be considered in the Broncos' pursuit of the next GM.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.
