Saints adding another former Gary Kubiak assistant to 2024 coaching staff

The Saints are adding another former Gary Kubiak assistant to their coaching staff, who has also worked with Klint Kubiak before:

The New Orleans Saints are putting an emphasis on getting their run game right in 2024, which means bringing in new coaches — and there’s going to be a lot of synergy between some of their most important new additions. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak has already picked John Benton as his offensive line coach, and Nola.com’s Matthew Paras reports that Rick Dennison is being added to the coaching staff in a yet-to-be-determined role.

Dennison, 65, has worked with Kubiak before on the Minnesota Vikings as a senior advisor, offensive line coach, and run game coordinator. But before that, he worked under Gary Kubiak on the Houston Texans as their offensive coordinator. At that same time, Benton was the Texans offensive line coach.

They both played a key part in developing a strong Houston offensive line and dominant rushing attack led by Arian Foster, who averaged 98.5 yards per game and scored 47 touchdown runs in 54 games when they were both on staff from 2010 to 2013 (including the playoffs). The Saints are hoping to get similar production out of Kendre Miller and Alvin Kamara by installing a similar one-cut rushing scheme.

So while Dennison’s exact role is yet unknown, we should expect him to be working with the offensive line and run game in some capacity given it’s his area of expertise. And the Saints could use the help. They haven’t gotten enough out of young draft picks in that phase like Miller and offensive linemen Trevor Penning, Cesar Ruiz, and Nick Saldiveri. Upgrading the rushing attack should help take pressure off of Derek Carr and buy more time for the defense to rest up until their numbers are called to go into the game. We can see from these moves that the Saints are taking a well thought-out approach by hiring coaches who have found success together before. Hopefully it pays off.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

List of Broncos coaches since their last Super Bowl win

The Broncos are on their fifth coach since Gary Kubiak’s Super Bowl win, and their ninth coach since Mike Shanahan’s back-to-back titles.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have had just three head coaches since 1969: Chuck Noll (’69-’91), Bill Cowher (’92-’06) and Mike Tomlin (’07-present). During that same period, the Denver Broncos have had 16 head coaches (including three interim coaches).

The Steelers are an anomaly — most NFL teams would love to have that kind of continuity at head coach, but finding the right man for the job is a difficult task at the highest level of football.

Denver found the perfect candidate in 2015 when they hired Gary Kubiak. He immediately won a Super Bowl in his first season with the team, but he stepped down just one season later for health reasons.

Since then, the Broncos have had five new coaches (including one interim coach). Sean Payton is the latest man to hold the job, and fans in Denver will hope he keeps the role longer than his predecessors.

Kubiak was the team’s fourth coach after Mike Shanahan won back-to-back Super Bowls. Payton will now aim to follow up in his footsteps and become the team’s third coach to win a title.

Longtime Gary Kubiak assistant emerges in Saints OL coach search

A longtime Gary Kubiak assistant has emerged as the frontrunner in the Saints’ search for a new offensive line coach. John Benton could be the right man for the job:

Klint Kubiak’s New Orleans Saints coaching staff is beginning to take shape. Kubiak can’t be formerly introduced as the team’s offensive coordinator until after his San Francisco 49ers compete in Super Bowl LVIII this Sunday, but the Saints are already on the search for key position coaches who know his system.

One name to watch: John Benton, who the Times-Picayune | Advocate’s Luke Johnson reports is a frontrunner to coach the offensive line under Kubiak, replacing the recently-dismissed Doug Marrone. Benton, 60, has a wealth of NFL experience — he came up as Gary Kubiak’s offensive line coach with the Houston Texans from 2006 to 2013, playing a big role in establishing one of the league’s best rushing offenses. Arian Foster, an undrafted rookie, twice led the league in touchdown runs and earned four Pro Bowl nods running behind Benton’s offensive line.

He also played for the Saints as a replacement during the 1987 strike. A graduate out of Colorado State (Klint Kubiak’s alma mater), he’s spent time with the St. Louis Rams early in his career (way back in 2003) and more recently on staff with the Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars. Notably, he was one of the first assistants that Kyle Shanahan hired with the San Francisco 49ers (having worked together in Houston) back in 2017. He helped install one of the league’s best rushing attacks before leaving for a promotion on Robert Saleh’s New York Jets staff in 2021, being named the run game coordinator. But he was let go after the 2022 season and wasn’t in the NFL in 2023.

He could be a good get. Balancing out a younger offensive coordinator (Kubiak turns 37 in February) with a position coach who has seen it all through a decades-long career and developed so many young players might be the best path forward. Coaching up embattled left tackle Trevor Penning is just one of the responsibilities that come with the job, but it’s a critical task, and Benton just might be the right guy to see it through. The Saints use many of the same zone-blocking concepts that Benton, Shanahan, and the Kubiaks pioneered, just not as effectively. Maybe he can clean up the mistakes and get them on track.

[lawrence-auto-related count=4]

Mike Shanahan’s impressive coaching tree continues to bear fruit

Mike Shanahan’s coaching staff in Washington included Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, Matt LaFleur, Mike McDaniel and Raheem Morris, now all HCs.

Mike Shanahan’s coaching tree continues to branch out, and each branch is bearing fruit.

As has been well documented, Shanahan built an impressive coaching staff in Washington in 2013 that included Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, Matt LaFleur, Mike McDaniel and Raheem Morris.

Kyle Shanahan, Mike’s son, was Washington’s offensive coordinator in 2013. The younger Shanahan is now the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers and he has reached his second Super Bowl since 2019. The 49ers have also made the NFC championship game in four of the last five seasons.

Matt Lafleur (Washington’s quarterbacks coach in 2013) has served as the Green Bay Packers’ head coach since 2019. He has reached the playoffs four times in his first five seasons, including two appearances in the NFC title game.

Sean McVay (Washington’s former tight ends coach) has been the Los Angeles Rams’ head coach since 2017. He has made the playoffs five times in seven seasons and won Super Bowl LVI in 2021.

Mike McDaniel (Washington’s wide receivers coach in 2013) has served as the Miami Dolphins’ head coach since 2022. Miami has qualified for the playoffs in each of McDaniel’s first two seasons.

Raheem Morris (Washington’s former defensive backs coach) was hired by the Atlanta Falcons as their head coach this offseason.

A sixth assistant coach from Shanahan’s tree, Bobby Slowik, was also a head coach candidate this offseason, but he will remain an offensive coordinator with the Houston Texans in 2024. Slowik was a defensive assistant with Washington in 2013.

And before Shanahan went to Washington, his coaching staff with the Denver Broncos included Gary Kubiak, who later won a Super Bowl as head coach with the Broncos in 2015.

Shanahan won three Super Bowls, including two titles as head coach in Denver. Shanahan’s final season as a head coach did not go well in Washington as his team went 3-13, but elements of his offense are still seen across the NFL today and his coaching tree continues to have success.

Shanahan has been repeatedly passed over by Hall of Fame voters in the coach/contributor category. He should already be in the Hall of Fame. Here’s a quick list of Shanahan’s assistants who went on to become head coaches.

Broncos lose to Raiders 27-14, finish 7th straight losing season

The Broncos have missed the playoffs eight years in a row and they’ve posted a losing record in seven straight seasons.

The Denver Broncos lost to the Las Vegas Raiders 27-14 on Sunday afternoon, marking the end of their seventh straight losing season (8-9) and their eighth straight season outside of the playoffs.

Denver last posted a winning record when Gary Kubiak led the team to a 9-7 finish in his final season with the club in 2016. Kubiak was also in charge the last time the Broncos won a playoff game, a 24-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 in 2015.

Since then, Denver has gone through three full-time head coaches — Vance Joseph, Vic Fangio and Nathaniel Hackett — plus an interim coach in Jerry Rosburg before landing on Sean Payton, who took over ahead of the 2023 campaign.

Peyton Manning retired following Super Bowl 50 and the Broncos have had 13 starting quarterbacks since then, with Jarrett Stidham being the most recent addition.

Payton will look to turn things around in 2024 by helping Denver reach the playoffs for the first time since 2015. In order to do that, Payton will have to address the QB situation, something his predecessors failed to get right. Time will tell if Payton can buck the trend.

Follow the Broncos Wire Podcast:
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=482983128]

The best player to ever wear No. 8 for the Broncos was …

Gary Kubiak only started 5 games as a QB, but he won 3 SBs as a coach. Brandon McManus won Super Bowl 50. Who is the Broncos’ best No. 8?

[anyclip pubname=”2123″ widgetname=”0016M00002U0B1kQAF_M8169″]

As our best Denver Broncos players to wear each number series continues, we’ve reached jersey No. 8.

The first candidate for consideration is former backup quarterback Gary Kubiak, who played in Denver from 1983-1991 and went 3-2 as a fill-in starter. Kubiak’s on-field contributions as a player were modest, but he later returned to the club as a QBs coach and offensive coordinator.

Kubiak helped the Broncos win back-to-back Super Bowls while serving as John Elway’s QB coach and offensive coordinator. Kubiak later served as head coach from 2015-2016, helping the team win Super Bowl 50. Although he served as a backup during his playing days, Kubiak had a hand in all three of Denver’s Super Bowl wins.

The other candidate to consider is kicker Brandon McManus, who had a much more accomplished career as a player. McManus kicked for the Broncos from 2014-2022, scoring 946 points (which ranks second on the team’s all-time scoring list). McManus also went 3-of-3 on field goal attempts in the team’s 24-10 win over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50.

So who was the best player to ever wear No. 8 for the Broncos? You decide! Share your take by voting in the poll below.

[polldaddy poll=12529402]

Bobby Slowik explains how Texans’ new offense relates to Gary Kubiak scheme

Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik clarified how the Houston Texans’ new offense relates to an older scheme deployed by former coach Gary Kubiak.

Bobby Slowik comes from the Kyle Shanahan coaching tree that was established with the San Francisco 49ers. Slowik is bringing that Shanahan scheme to the Houston Texans as its offensive coordinator under coach DeMeco Ryans.

Shanahan comes from the Gary Kubiak coaching tree. From 2006-09, Shanahan was an assistant under Kubiak with the Texans, working as offensive coordinator in his final two years.

What is old is new.

“I still remember watching when I first got the offense in San Francisco, all these Houston Texan cut-ups and Andre [Johnson] and [Matt] Schaub and David Anderson and all these guys just running the same stuff we’re running right now, and the principles and the foundation of what they did is all there, but like everything, it kind of evolves as it goes.”

Kubiak coached the Texans from 2006-13. The NFL still had a taste of commitment to the run that has faded over the past decade. Defenses across the league have adapted as well.

Said Slowik: “There’s some different defenses you see. There’s some different issues you get. So, you find different ways to adjust to that.”

The Texans are still using some of the same material from the Kubiak days to explain the objectives in the 2023 offense. However, it is more in a football genealogy sense.

“You just point to something else that they did back then and be like, hey, this is the same as that was, but now we’re doing it this way,” said Slowik. “That was really neat when I first got to throw on some Houston Texan film and see all of them play.”

The Texans were able to win two AFC South titles and a couple wild-card playoff games with Kubiak’s system. Houston sports fans would not mind that type of stroll down memory lane after three seasons of double-digit losing campaigns.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=1416]

DeMeco Ryans reveals what he learned from former Texans coach Gary Kubiak

DeMeco Ryans explains what he learned playing for former Houston Texans coach Gary Kubiak.

Gary Kubiak was the only coach DeMeco Ryans knew when he began his career with the Houston Texans.

The Texans hired Kubiak, and he coached with the team from 2006-13. 2006 was also the first year for Ryans as the organization selected him in Round 2 from Alabama.

Ryans was part of the movement to slowly elevate the Texans into an AFC South contender, a process that the two-time Pro Bowl linebacker only experienced in his final season in 2011.

The Texans went from 6-10 to posting just one losing season after Ryans’ rookie year. Although Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts had a hold of the division, the Texans were still in the mix.

Ryans told reporters March 27 at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix what Kubiak showed him during their six seasons together.

“The main thing I learned about Kubiak is how to create that first class environment from the top down,” said Ryans. “That’s one thing that we’ve been focusing on a lot for myself is just making sure everything we do throughout the building, throughout the organization is done in a first class manner. I thought Kubiak did an excellent job of that, of changing that culture there in Houston. I thought Kubiak did an excellent job of that, and I just want to create the same.”

By the time Kubiak left, the Texans had three winning seasons, two AFC South titles, and two playoff wins. The success setup Houston nicely for a competitive decade.

Now that Ryans is coaching his old team, his old coach has made himself available to offer any advice.

“He’s been outstanding when it comes to anything I need, any questions I have,” Ryans said. “He’s there as a shoulder for me to lean on. It’s great to have a former head coach who’s in a position — he’s done it, won Super Bowls. He’s done it at a high level, so to have him as a guy I can lean on has been very beneficial.”

Kubiak coached the Denver Broncos from 2015-16 and led the AFC West club to a Super Bowl win at the end of the 2015 campaign.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1]

5 best coaches in Denver Broncos history

Do you agree with our list of the best coaches in Broncos history?

With the recent hiring of Sean Payton, now’s a good time to look back at the best coaches in Denver Broncos’ history. In our book, wins and losses are important, but not the only factor when determining the ranking. Do you agree with this list?

Gary Kubiak believes DeMeco Ryans will do ‘tremendous job’ with the Texans

Former Houston Texans coach Gary Kubiak believes new coach DeMeco Ryans will do a “tremendous job” with the Texans.

Gary Kubiak remembers when DeMeco Ryans showed up to the Houston Texans.

The AFC South franchise was struggling to come out of its expansion phase. Inaugural coach Dom Capers had four seasons with the team, but a 2-14 finish in 2005 cost him his job and kept Houston mired at the bottom of the league.

The Texans hired Kubiak, former Denver Broncos offensive coordinator, and drafted Ryans as their second-round linebacker from Alabama. Kubiak could tell immediately that there was something different about Ryans.

“He walks in the building as a high draft choice and, because we were a startup franchise, we put him on the field and he became the quarterback of our defense the minute he stepped on Kirby Drive,” Kubiak said via Aaron Wilson of KPRC-TV. “We were asking a Hell of a lot of him and everyone knew by the way he handled himself, the way he was with teammates, understanding what everybody does, you could see the effect it hand on the other people around him at a young age.”

Kubiak is not surprised that Ryans, who was hired as a defensive quality control coach in 2017, has parlayed his experience with the San Francisco 49ers under Kyle Shanahan into a coaching gig with the Texans.

“The ground DeMeco has made up in six years tells you what kind of a special person he is,” said Kubiak. “I think DeMeco is going to do a tremendous job. It’s the chance of a lifetime and now is when the work starts. The fun part is the press conference, all of that, and now there’s all these things to get done. He’ll figure all of that out. I think there’s a lot of keys to a head coaching becoming successful. The most important part is having successful people around you.”

Ryans continues to assemble his coaching staff. No decision yet has been made as to who will call defensive plays in 2023.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=1416]