Vance Joseph played two seasons in the NFL before going into coaching. At this point, it looks like his NFL head coaching career will have the same (short) span. After enduring the second losing seasons in a row, the Denver Broncos and Vance Joseph have parted ways.
First back-to-back losing seasons in 46 years….contributed to costing Vance Joseph his job. https://t.co/qscPuEcLQk
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 31, 2018
The Broncos did improve slightly in 2018. Which suggests they may be getting some things back on track since their Super Bowl championship to cap off the 2015 season. Since then, the team won nine games in Gary Kubiak’s last season, then five and six games in the two seasons coached by Joseph.
Aside from issues with coaching regarding things they did or did not do, the Broncos’ struggles could be boiled down to the struggles they’ve had at the quarterback position. Since the retirement of Peyton Manning – who was a shell of himself in a Denver uniform – the Broncos have tried the likes of Brock Osweiler, Paxton Lynch, Trevor Siemian, and Case Keenum.
A statement from Vance Joseph: pic.twitter.com/qloKBbdFoy
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) December 31, 2018
However, Joseph was hired to keep the defense at an elite level. Even though last season ended with a losing record, the defense still performed well. But despite a one-win improvement, this year’s defense really struggled for much of the season compared to Bronco defenses of the recent past.
It remains to be seen where Joseph will land. One would think he should be able to take up a position as a defensive coach, whether as a coordinator or positional coach. If he never is an NFL head coach again, he’ll go down as having an 11-21 career record.
