The Denver Broncos’ ownership group will be “ultra aggressive” and do whatever it takes to hire the head coach it wants, ESPN reported Sunday.
The Broncos fired first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett this week after a 4-11 start. Denver has not been back to the playoffs since winning Super Bowl 50 after the 2015 season.
The Walton-Penner group paid a record $4.65 billion for the franchise last summer and will use that same “energy and determination” to land a new coach, per the report.
As ESPN noted, there is no salary cap for what owners can spend on a head coach or his staff. The Walton-Penner group “is not expected to spare any expense to upgrade the franchise,” the report said.
Former New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton is the highest-profile candidate available and will likely command a lucrative deal. The Saints will also receive draft-pick compensation from any team that hires Payton.
NFL Network said Denver is one of several teams “doing their homework” on Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh. Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is a part of the Broncos’ ownership group and a member of the search committee and has deep ties to Stanford, where Harbaugh coached from 2007-10 before coaching the San Francisco 49ers (2011-14) and the Wolverines.
Meanwhile, interim coach Jerry Rosburg debuts in his new role Sunday on the road against the Kansas City Chiefs (12-3). The Broncos are 0-14 against the Chiefs since November 2015.
–Field Level Media
