With John Elway exiting, there are plenty of candidates to replace him

The Denver Broncos wasted no time in making a big change for the 2021 season and beyond. In fact, this is one of the biggest changes we’ve seen for the Broncos in years with the biggest Bronco of all-time.

On Monday, John Elway announced his decision to make changes to the Broncos’ football operations. He will remain as president of football operations in 2021 and hire a general manager with full authority to oversee the personnel and football departments. The general manager will join head coach Vic Fangio in reporting to Elway as part of a new football leadership structure.

Speaking on Monday, Elway explained why he’s decided to hire a new GM.

“I thought it was the right time. I think that with the opportunity that Joe (Ellis) gave me to move up and looking at the last 10 years, I knew that there was going to be a time at some point in time that this is the position I was hoping to move to. He gave me the opportunity to move up, and I think it’s the right time for me with everything that’s gone on this year and being 60 years old. There are some other things in life that I’d like to do, but I’d still like to be involved in football. It’s a great opportunity for me to be able to move up still, talk with Vic (Fangio), as well as the new GM, be a part of the big decisions and be able to give my thoughts and my experience and hopefully come out with the best decision there,” Elway said.

So, who do the Broncos turn to as the GM? With Elway’s right-hand man Matt Russell also retiring, are the Broncos in the market for two new executives? Around the league, there are seven GM spots open – a historic number that works against the Broncos.

The team needs to be careful and diligent when going through candidates, and on Monday my phone was buzzing with activity. I was texting and talking with a lot of my friends in the scouting community about this Broncos situation. I found out some great information about who could be available, and there were recommendations made to me that are quite interesting.

Here is a list of potential candidates for the open general manager position for the Broncos.

***

Who I Want

This section is easy. These are the guys I want as the next GM of the Broncos. My reasons are listed below, and if you listen to “Nick and Cecil,” you’ve heard me talk about these guys in the past.

Adam Peters – The former Broncos director of college scouting, now with the 49ers as their vice president of player personnel. Peters knows football and it would be great to see him rejoin the staff. Since he knows most of the scouts on staff, there’s a good chance he would retain most of the guys already in place – something that’s important to me as I believe in the collection of scouts the Broncos have.

Chris Shea – The Chiefs football operations counsel and personnel executive. He works with numbers and runs the Chiefs salary cap, plus Shea is a lawyer. However, he has plenty of football experience dating back to working with Bill Parcells with the New York Jets (and other teams) as a scout at various levels. Shea knows how to negotiate with players and with staff, and he’s considered the right-hand man of Chiefs GM Brett Veach. It would be a way for the Broncos to get a quality football executive while simultaneously hurting your greatest division rival.

Champ Kelly – The former Broncos assistant director of pro personnel. Currently, Kelly is with the Bears in the same capacity. He has strong ties to the Broncos and has spent most of his scouting career with Denver. Kelly also has ties to Vic Fangio, as they worked together on the Bears staff. He might be the favorite to land this job.

Scot McCloughan – He grew up in Loveland, Colorado and knows the weight the Broncos carry in this region. He was last in the league as the GM with Washington back in 2017. Over the last few years, McCloughan has worked as a consultant for the Browns and the Eagles. He understands what it takes to find quarterback talent, and important part of the job and one Elway could not get down.

***

Who Was Recommended To Me

In talking to or texting with multiple NFL sources, these are some of the men recommended to me for the Broncos GM position. Some guys I know (the first two listed) while there is one on the list I was not as familiar with.

Dave Razzano – A long-time scout/executive in the NFL, dating back to the 49ers with Joe Montana and Steve Young. Razzano is now the right-hand man for Jon Gruden with the Raiders, with the official title of director of football research. He’s got tons of experience and is not afraid to “stand on the table” for talent he believes in like Razzano did years ago when he wanted the 49ers to draft QB Aaron Rodgers with the No. 1 overall pick instead of Alex Smith.

Kevin Kelly – One of the primary architects of the Los Angeles Chargers. He’s the director of college scouting and has one of the best eyes for talent in the league. Well respected in the scouting community, Kelly was a big reason why the Chargers selected Justin Herbert in the 2020 NFL Draft. In addition, Kelly has uncovered gems like Keenan Allen (third round) and Austin Ekeler (undrafted) over the last several years. Fun fact; he was Walter Payton’s best friend.

Mike Derice – He was hired by Ryan Grigson with the Colts and has been an area scout for several years. A younger scout, Derice is considered a rising star by multiple sources I talk to around the league. People who work in the league, in the scouting community, really appreciate his work ethic and eye for talent.

***

Mike Mayock 2.0

Some people has assumed the Broncos will look to the media for former scouts and executives that can come back into the league. This is what the Raiders did when they hired former scout and former NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock. There are a few guys in the media who would make great GMs, so let’s go over some of the names although I do believe any of these guys being hired would be a long shot.

Daniel Jeremiah – A dear friend of mine, whom I’ve known for years. In fact, Jeremiah’s first foray into the media was as a guest on my podcast “The Audible” for two years back in 2007 and 2008. Jeremiah was a former scout who wanted to get into the media, and he’s worked his way up to being the top draft analyst for NFL Network. A great family man with incredible work ethic, any team would be lucky to get a guy like Jeremiah as their GM.

Louis Riddick – A former executive with the Eagles, Riddick is one of the brightest minds in the “media scouting” community. A former NFL player, Riddick is dialed into how the league has changed over the years. He would embrace the cutting edge of personnel study and bring great insight to running the team.

Charlie Casserly – I’ll be honest, I’m not a big fan of Casserly. I’ve interacted with him a few times and he’s always come off as aloof. I know people I trust who love the guy, and he certainly has a ton of experience in the NFL. Now an analyst, sometimes a very fiery one when he thinks the cameras aren’t rolling, for NFL Network he used to work for Washington as their GM.

***

Dream On?

There are some scenarios Broncos fans are hoping for that have little chance of happening. It’s interesting going over some of those names, so that’s what I’ll do here.

Peyton Manning – Many fans would love this. He’s not going for the GM ranks in my opinion. Instead, I think Manning is angling to be the lead of an ownership group to buy an NFL team. Perhaps he will be back with the Broncos, but as the owner when the team is sold.

Gary Kubiak – He’s retiring from his job as the Vikings offensive coordinator. He had great success with the Vikings, and we’ve seen Kubiak “retire” before. He never stays that way too long. Football is in his blood and running the Broncos as the GM would be fitting. Elway trusts him and fans could believe in the type of players Kubiak would be looking for.

***

Other Options

I’m not going to list every possible option for the Broncos, but there are several names I’ll include under “other.” The next GM of the Broncos could come from this list, so it’s good to be exhaustive in the list as the Broncos should be exhaustive in their search.

Rick Smith – I love the idea of Smith as the Broncos GM, but people I talk to around the league are not as high on him as I am. No connection to Fangio, but plenty with Elway and the Broncos before heading to Houston as their GM.

Dave Ziegler – He started with the Broncos under former head coach Josh McDaniels. He’s now in New England as assistant director of pro personnel.

Thomas Dimitroff – He worked with Russell previously and used to live in Boulder as a scout. A long-time executive with the Falcons who has worked mostly with defensive-minded coaches.

John Dorsey – One of the most accomplished name on the list, helping build Chiefs Super Bowl team.

Mike Borgonzi – The Chiefs director of football operations. He’s already getting interest from other teams as a GM, mainly the Bears seem to be the team most interested in him.

Ed Dodds – The Colts assistant GM with scouting experience dating back to his days with the Seahawks. He helped lead the team to two Super Bowls with one win. Of course that was Super Bowl 48 against the Broncos.

Terry Fontenot – The Saints assistant GM with years of experience (over a decade) with New Orleans. I like that he has done advanced scouting of upcoming opponents, plus Fontenot has spent plenty of time looking for NFL talent in other leagues and on other team’s practice squads. That eye for talent is evident in the Saints recent draft history.

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah – The Browns VP of football operations. He has a crazy story, going from a stock market guy to an NFL front office guy.

Ryan Cowden – The Titans VP of Player Personnel who has years of scouting experience. Even though he’s only been with the Titans for five years or so, Cowden would have been around and know stories about legendary scout C.O. Brocato (perhaps the greatest NFL scout of all-time).

Scott Pioli – Out of the league right now. A name that many recognize, although not sure it’s an exciting one. I don’t want Pioli because he would clean house just like he did when he took over the Chiefs years ago.

Tim Terry – The Chiefs director of pro personnel. He has two Super Bowl rings, one with the Packers where he was an executive and of course one with the Chiefs from last year. A rising star in the scouting community and future GM for somebody out there.

Related

Dover and Cecil project a monster year for Bo Nix in 2026Rockies drawing trade interest on multiple players ahead of deadlineBroncos No. 31 in the NFL in ESPN’s under-25 Power RankingsThere’s one thing standing between the Broncos and a Super BowlBroncos Country should be careful when wishing for more downfield passesBroncos’ Robinson ‘looks like a future starter,’ so, can they get him more reps?