Report: Cowboys Interviewed Broncos' Chris Banjo for Coordinator Job

The Denver Broncos have some very hot coaching commodities around the NFL, it would seem.
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton watches the players on the field during the second half of the Buffalo Bills wild card game against the Denver Broncos at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Jan. 12, 2025.
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton watches the players on the field during the second half of the Buffalo Bills wild card game against the Denver Broncos at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Jan. 12, 2025. / Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

NFL has taken notice of the Denver Broncos coaching staff. With multiple assistants being interviewed for head-coaching and coordinator openings around the NFL, Sean Payton's staff has been on the verge of being pillaged.

Not all of these candidates will get hired, and while all are deserving, Broncos special teams assistant Chris Banjo has garnered arguably the most interest around the NFL, outside of defensive coordinator Vance Joseph. Banjo has reportedly been interviewed for the San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets special teams coordinator vacancies, and NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reports the Dallas Cowboys are next.

"The Cowboys are interviewing Chris Banjo today for their special-teams job, sources say. Banjo getting multiple looks around the NFL," Garafolo posted on X on Saturday.

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Banjo spent a decade playing in the NFL as a defensive back and third-phase ace. He retired following the 2022 season and was immediately hired as an assistant in Denver under Payton, who purportedly convinced him to get into coaching. Banjo's star is definitely rising.

The Broncos have a special teams coordinator vacancy of their own after Payton fired Ben Kotwica earlier this month in a surprise move. Kotwica's dismissal came on the heels of assistant head coach and third-phase czar Mike Westhoff's mid-season resignation, which, at the time, was reported as a decision made due to health concerns.

Conspicuously, Westhoff stepping away also came on the immediate heels of the shocking blocked field-goal attempt at Arrowhead Stadium, which saw the Kansas City Chiefs successfully stave off a Broncos road win as time expired. Some media members around Denver have theorized that the blocked kick at Arrowhead cost Kotwica his job, but for those inclined to believe that, the timing of Westhoff stepping down (literally two days after the Chiefs away loss) shouldn't be lost on them.

Whatever Payton's motivations for firing Kotwica, the vacancy at special teams coordinator remains. And with Darren Rizzi's next NFL destination still up in the air, it might behoove the Broncos to quickly cut a deal with Banjo and promote him to the coordinator job.

Rizzi was a long-time Payton assistant, but now so is Banjo. So far, Payton has been able to keep his coaching staff intact. There are still a few plates spinning in the air, though, including tight ends coach Declan Doyle, who's reportedly interviewing for the offensive coordinator vacancy in Chicago.


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Chad Jensen
CHAD JENSEN

Chad Jensen is the Founder of Mile High Huddle and creator of the wildly popular Mile High Huddle Podcast. Chad has been on the Denver Broncos beat since 2012 and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.