John Fox: What Moves Could The New Denver Coach Make Next?

The Denver Broncos have named John Fox as their next head coach.

Fox, who led the Carolina Panthers to one Super Bowl, and three playoff appearances, in nine seasons, has been rumored as the Bronco's choice for a while, but John Elway made the hire official today with this tweet,

Said Elway, "He is a dynamic and proven leader who will energize our entire organization".

Fox returns to coaching in the AFC for the first time in 16-years. His last stint was as the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Raiders—now in Oakland.

He is expected to be an upgrade in both experience and leadership over the fired Josh McDaniels—whose personality and personnel decisions often left much to be desired—but is still a curious pick given his perceived lack of passion his last two seasons in Charlotte.

Will the support system in Denver be enough to get his competitive juices flowing again?

Whatever his mindset coming in, his next major task is filling out the offensive and defensive staff. No names have been seriously mentioned yet, but speculation has already begun on what type of offensive scheme Fox will bring (west coast) and whether or not Tim Tebow will be the guy executing it.

It's no secret that as nimble afoot as Tebow is, he still has a ways to go to become the type of quarterback who can confidently take snaps from under-center. That said, if he can continue to develop and make the proper tweaks to his game, he could become a decent candidate to run a west coast type offense—which centers around short passes, a strong rushing element, and the occasional big downfield play.

As for the defense, some are hoping that Fox can call upon his friend and former college teammate, Herman Edwards. Edwards is currently an analyst for ESPN, but has a reputation in the league as a good defensive coordinator.

One thing that is almost certain is the Bronco's 2011 draft pick will go towards upgrading their defense.

Assuming Nick Fairley declares himself draft eligible—which he almost certainly will—he could be the guy. If not him, Patrick Peterson (DB) of the LSU Tigers could be a possibility.

The Broncos stand to lose some talent at the secondary position in the near future as Champ Bailey enters the latter part of his career, and Perrish Cox's situation remains up in the air in light of his sexual assault charge.

Peterson could fit the bill as both a defender and special teams player as he is a very skilled return man as well.

Fox will have his hands full over the next few months as he evaluates exactly what he has in Denver, and what direction the team will go from this point forward.

With Josh McDaniels Out, Who Might Be The Next Head Coach In Denver?

For many, the timing of Josh McDaniels firing was curious. After all, it was just a week ago that he was getting a 'vote of confidence' from Broncos owner, Pat Bowlen—well,  he seemed secure through the end of the season at least.

So when the Broncos did an about-face and fired Josh McDaniels today, it came as a surprise to a great many. But, given the trail of idiocy and incompetence that McDaniels has left in his wake, you'd wonder not why they fired him at this point, but why they didn't fire him a lot sooner.

The ink on McDaniels contract had barely dried before he was alienating both his starting quarterback (Jay Cutler) and his star wide receiver (Brandon Marshall).  It was clear he arrived with a plan in hand and that plan didn't include his leading receiver or his Pro Bowl quarterback.

By the time the smoke cleared, neither Marshall, nor Cutler would be a part of the team and Kyle Orton was hailed as the future of Bronco's football—at least until McDaniels could find someone better to take over the job.

The moves seemed comical at the time and it was tough not to laugh and wonder if Pat Bowlen (the Broncos' owner) didn't need to be relieved of his duties as well because, obviously, he had signed off on a guy who wasn't ready to run a mile, much less a team.

While the team got off to a hot start in 2009, posting a 6-0 record, the wheels began to come off shortly after and things have continued to go badly ever since.

The NFL draft saw McDaniels gambling the future of the franchise on Tim Tebow. A player whom many felt was a project, at best and who, to this point, hasn't made a real impact.

Then there was the video-taping incident. After that matter, it seemed the writing was on the wall for McDaniels and his future prospects in Denver—he had none.

So, with McDaniels out, what direction do the Broncos go in now?

Eric Studesville will take over the job in the interim, but you have to figure that Bowlen will be looking to fill out the job with an experienced winner this time. Both Jon Gruden and Bill Cowher's name are already being mentioned, but neither seem to be in a hurry to leave their cushy booth jobs. Which means that Bowlen will likely have to filter his way through the NFL's qualified ranks of assistant coaches.

Ron Rivera, the Chargers current and Chicago's former, defensive coordinator is a possibility. He's a smart guy with intimate knowledge of both the 3-4 and the 4-3 defensive scheme so his acumen would come in handy when considering the best personnel for running a defense. Even more, he's been around some great minds—both in Chicago and Philadelphia (he coached under the great Buddy Ryan)—and should be considered as a possibility. 

Perry Fewell is another name that could gain some play. He's the Giants current defensive coordinator and is well-respected amongst players and coaches in the league for his ability to build solid defenses.

Sean McDermott is another long-shot. He's currently serving as the defensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles and, while he's done a fine job, he may lack the overall experience that Denver needs at this point—despite having coached under both Brad Childress and Steve Spagnuolo. He may need another season or two before he is proven.

Either way, the Bronco's are back to square one. 

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• Broncos fire Josh McDaniels (profootballtalk.nbcsports.com)

Laurence Maroney Traded To The Denver Broncos—Should Knowshon Moreno Be Worried?

The New England Patriots finally gave up on Laurence Maroney. The 25-year old back who, once was thought to be full of untapped potential, was traded to the Denver Broncos—reuniting with former Patriots offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels.

Maroney was drafted in the first-round of the 2006 NFL Draft out of the University of Minnesota. Although he was never a full-time starter for the Gophers, he still managed to collect three consecutive 1,000 yard seasons—sharing time with Marion Barber.

When New England selected him No. 21st overall, it was clear that he was going to be there back of the future. Corey Dillon was getting older and they needed a guy who had both the size and the skill-set to make the transition into their offense. Maroney fit the bill as he was not only an explosive runner with above-average field vision, but a strong back who was capable of moving the pile and churning out the hard yards.

That said, he also came into the league with a red flag attached because he was routinely beset by injuries in college—despite receiving minimal carries. The Pats felt the reward outweighed the risk, however, and rolled the dice.

Today, that risk became expendable as the Patriots seem more than willing to ride the veteran legs of Fred Taylor this season—using Green-Ellis and Faulk to spell him when needed.

So, what's next for Maroney? The Denver Broncos already have a feature back in second year man,
Knowshon Moreno. Does this mean that his job is suddenly in jeopardy? After all, Moreno did struggle towards the end of last season—both with ball protection and injuries—and he's yet to be pushed by any other backs on the roster.

Could the the acquisition of Maroney light a fire under the talented young running back?

Some might say that Maroney isn't good enough to be anything more than a reliable second option to Moreno—his injury history makes him a question mark at best. However, Maroney is nothing if not a team player and, he has the veteran attitude that McDaniels wants to foster in his young locker room.

For Maroney, his departure from New England was met with surprise and a bit of sadness because he was truly hoping to get back to his 2007 form again soon. Now he will have to prove himself worthy someplace else.

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It Seems Like Everyone, Except The Denver Broncos, Has Signed Tim Tebow

I'm perplexed. No, really, I am.

The Denver Broncos, their fans, and players have done nothing but glow about Tim Tebow. As a matter of fact, the team has been absolutely over-the-moon about their 2010 NFL Draft selection—the guy they traded away three draft picks to be able to move up and snag him at No. 25.

Coach Josh McDaniels has been overwhelmingly optimistic about what Tebow will add to the Bronco's offense and, quite frankly, despite the fact that Tebow has never played a down of pro football, you have to get the sense that as a first-round selection, he will not be warming the bench in Denver for long.

He'll play this season. Bet on it. He will find his way onto the field in 2010 and, if he performs well, say goodbye to Kyle Orton in 2011. They love Tebow that much in Denver—even former quarterback, John Elway, has spoken of how impressed  he is with the demeanor of the ex-Florida quarterback.

Nike gave him his own shoe—decked in the orange and blue he so adored as a Gator. EA Sports made him the cover athlete for their 2011 NCAA Football game. Even the underwear giant, Jockey, signed him to a lucrative sponsorship deal to model their signature undergarments.

I say all of that, to say this, why haven't the Denver Broncos signed their prized player yet? Everyone else has, what on earth could be their hold up?

Could it be that the Broncos don't want to end up overpaying him based on his obvious popularity?

I mean, Tebow may become one of the NFL's most recognizable faces but, the truth of the matter is, he likely never should have been selected in the first-round. His selection at 25 was surprising to the many analysts and experts who thought he was better served as a late-second or early-third round player.
Their critique of him was not based on his personality but on his overall potential as a quarterback in the league.

He may prove many wrong by the time it's all said and done, but, what he's entitled to is a contract that guarantees him $8 million—nothing more. Will his handlers try and angle for more?

Tebow has already made it clear that he does not wish to hold out and the Denver Broncos are set to start camp tomorrow—you do the math. By all accounts, this should be a done deal by Wednesday. If it's not, I would be greatly surprised.

However, if for some reason he isn't able to get there by then, he could always kill some time by doing another autograph session. I hear those have been pretty popular for him.