Franklin: No scenario with Vance Joseph as Broncos coach in 2019
Dec 15, 2018, 11:37 PM | Updated: Dec 16, 2018, 7:04 pm
With a loss to the Cleveland Browns on Saturday, the Denver Broncos hopes for a playoff berth went from slim to negligible.
And along with the team’s postseason’s life circling the drain, so could Vance Joseph’s hopes of retaining his position as Broncos head coach.
“I don’t see any scenario where Vance Joseph is here next year,” said 104.3 The Fan host Orlando Franklin after the game.
Now at 6-8, Denver would need to win out the rest of its remaining two games in order to not have a losing season, which would be Joseph’s second in as many years after going 5-11 in 2017.
And while now mathematically eliminated after a Tennessee Titans win on Sunday, the Broncos will miss the postseason for a third consecutive year following a victory in Super Bowl 50 in 2015.
“I don’t know when the change will come down from the top floor of Dove Valley, but I do fully expect it to come,” said “Stokley and Zach” co-host Zach Bye on the dismissal of Joseph.
In the coming days and weeks, much attention will likely be paid to Joseph’s late-game decision making, specifically when he opted to kick a field goal instead of going for it on fourth-and-1 with 4:39 left in the game down 17-13.
After the game, Joseph said he “wanted points there” and that he trusted the defense to get a stop on the following drive, which they did not.
“(We were) hoping to get a stop there, get the ball back, and have a field goal to win. That was the thinking,” Joseph said after the game.
Franklin said that he disagreed with the call on fourth down, saying, “Last week you go for it seven times but this week you won’t go for it when it’s fourth-and-1.”
In the end, the Broncos defense did get a stop on the ensuing Browns offensive drive, but the Denver offense wasn’t capable of mounting a late comeback.
And while many factors may have played into the Broncos struggles not only Saturday but during Joseph’s tenure as head coach — injuries, a lack of a franchise quarterback, etc. — Bye said it’s a “bottom-line business” in the NFL “defined only by wins and losses.”
“… The resume that Joseph has put together is less impressive than the one that got him the job in the first place,” Bye said.
At best, after two seasons as Denver’s head coach, Joseph will own a 13-19 record.
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
