ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- 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 consecutive season. He had three years and $21 million left on his contract.
McDaniels guided an offense that had led New England to 18 victories in a row 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 and had fewer takeaways than any other team in the NFL last season.
"What I was trying to do was pick the best guy," Bowlen said. "It didn't matter really that much whether it was an offensive or defensive guy, he's going to be the head coach. I think Josh has the ability to go out and find a very good defensive coordinator."
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| Josh McDaniels, 32, worked with Tom Brady and Matt Cassel as New England's offensive coordinator. (AP) |
"I'd like to personally thank Bill Belichick for providing me my foundation in this league and for mentoring me for eight years," McDaniels said at his introductory news conference Monday night.
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.
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