Broncos Talking to 'Mystery' HC Candidate: Here's Who it Could Be

Who are these "unknown candidates" the Denver Broncos are talking to?

Broncos Country is all abuzz with the report of “mystery candidates” for the Denver Broncos' open head-coaching position. 9NEWS' Mike Klis reports that there is more than one candidate that has not been announced and that the Broncos have been in contact with them in regard to the top job.

In an appearance on 104.3 The FAN's show The Drive, Klis hinted at the Broncos' maneuverings behind closed doors. 

“I don’t know their names," Klis told hosts Darren McKee and Derek Wolfe, "but I do know they’ve talked to a couple other unknown candidates that aren’t on their top-8 list.”

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There is significant speculation on who those candidates could be, but one thing is for sure, if they are in contact with them, those coaches cannot be currently employed by an NFL team. If the Broncos have not asked for permission to speak with them and are doing so, it could get them in hot water.

Therefore, Denver's mystery candidate(s) cannot be an assistant coach who is currently in the playoff race or under contract with another club. That leaves coaches who are currently outside the NFL. It also excludes current coaches in college since the Broncos would also need to ask permission for an interview. 

It's hard to say what Klis means by “talked to a couple other unknown candidates” and whether that contact was just small talk. Regardless, it could still be construed as breaking the rules, depending on if these coaches are currently employed.

That leaves candidates who are not employed in an NFL or college capacity. It also means the pickings are slim. Here's a possible list:

• Jason Garrett
• Chuck Pagano
• Lovie Smith
• Kliff Kingsbury
• Mike Sherman
• Mike Smith
• Brad Childress
• Bill Cowher
• Herm Edwards
• Tom Coughlin
• Mike Shanahan
• Mike Holmgren

Shanahan has ties to the Broncos but would want full control. Holmgren has been out of the game for a long time and appears content in his retirement. Coughlin is a very unlikely candidate since he has not coached since 2015 and has been retired from the NFL since 2019.

The rest of the list could be possibilities, but none of them inspire confidence in the ability to create a winning franchise in the Mile High City. All of them had only moderate success or worse in their previous head-coaching stint(s), but the Broncos need more than that. 

It's possible that the Broncos could be looking at recent assistant coaches who have been let go. Why would Denver even consider that an option? The team needs a winner who can right the wrongs of the past three miserable coaches.

If this is the list of potential coaches that could become the next leader of the team, such a result would be a devastating failure by the ownership group. The Broncos would continue to be a laughing stock in the NFL and would be back in the head coach search again in short order.

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