ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) -Josh McDaniels, the man behind the New England Patriots' scoring machine, inherits an offense in Denver that needs only an oil change.
The defense? That needs an overhaul.
The 32-year-old McDaniels signed a four-year deal with the Broncos to replace Mike Shanahan, the only NFL head coach to get fired by a team he led to consecutive Super Bowl wins.
Of course, that was in the 1990s. Shanahan won just a single playoff game in the decade since John Elway retired and team owner Pat Bowlen fired him Dec. 30 after the Broncos missed out on the playoffs for a third straight season. He had three years and $21 million left on his contract.
McDaniels guided an offense that had led New England to 18 straight victories before a stunning loss to the New York Giants in last season's Super Bowl. That team scored an NFL-record 75 touchdowns and 589 points.
Bowlen thought enough of McDaniels to bypass defensive sages Steve Spagnuolo of the Giants, Raheem Morris of the Buccaneers and Leslie Frazier of the Vikings even though Denver's defense allowed more points (448) and had fewer takeaways (13) than any other team in the NFL last season.
McDaniels helped the defensive staff in New England for three seasons before serving as quarterbacks coach in 2004. Bill Belichick promoted him to offensive coordinator in 2006, and his career took off.
Under his guidance, Tom Brady threw for a record 50 touchdowns in '07 and came within a whisker of the first 19-0 season in NFL history. McDaniels' star grew even brighter in '08 when Brady was lost with a knee injury in the opener and Matt Cassel, who hadn't started a game since high school, led the Patriots to an 11-5 record.
"Josh McDaniels is one of the finest people and brightest, most talented coaches I have ever worked with," Belichick said in a statement. "Since joining us eight years ago, Josh performed a variety of roles and excelled in every one of them."
McDaniels agreed to a four-year deal believed to be worth about $8 million to replace Shanahan, who was fired 48 hours after the Broncos became the first team in league history to blow a three-game divisional lead with three weeks left.
Shanahan was 146-91 in 14 years in Denver, leading the Broncos to Super Bowl titles following the 1997 and '98 seasons. The Broncos have gone 24-24 since losing to Pittsburgh in the 2005 AFC title game.
That was unacceptable to Bowlen, who reached out to a man half his age to resurrect a once-proud franchise that is still looking for a general manager.
McDaniels is a baby-faced 32-year-old whiz kid who looks like he might have a hard time buying a beer in downtown Denver without getting carded. Several of his new players are older than he is, including center Casey Wiegmann, 35, whom he'll want to talk out of retiring to keep the NFL's best pocket of protection intact.
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