ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Vance Joseph had options, all of them pleasant.
After two years as the Broncos’ head coach followed by four seasons as the Arizona Cardinals’ defensive coordinator, Joseph was in demand entering the offseason of 2023.
He could have stayed put in Arizona, although the Cards’ new head coach Jonathan Gannon was also the previous defensive coordinator for the NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles and would be bringing his defense with him. In turn, Joseph could have replaced Gannon as the Eagles’ defensive coordinator.
The Eagles were the NFL’s No. 2 defense last year to the Broncos’ No. 7. Moreover, Philadelphia by far led the NFL in Joseph’s specialty of pressuring the quarterback by recording a whopping 70 sacks while the Broncos were tied for 23rd with nearly half less at 36.
Yet, Joseph foremost wanted the Broncos’ vacant job as defensive coordinator. After it appeared new Broncos head coach Sean Payton might want a return of Rex Ryan for a minute, Joseph’s availability brought pause. And then after looking at things over – Ryan hadn’t been a coach of any kind the previous six years – Payton brought Joseph back to Denver.
“It’s home for me,’’ Joseph said this week in an interview with 9NEWS. “I’ve spent half my life here. Being up at CU for school and coaching here for two years and having a home here, still. So that was a big reason, and obviously the Broncos. The Broncos are a special organization. With new ownership and Sean Payton being hired, it’s exciting times here.
“So it’s right. When Sean called I was really excited.”
Another pause to go back to his days with the Colorado Buffaloes. Joseph didn’t play much as a backup quarterback first to Darian Hagan, then Kordell Stewart and Koy Detmer. Joseph did have back to back heroics game off the bench, though. The first was an impossibly gusty and warm early afternoon on November 9, 1991 in Stillwater, Okla. Hagan came up gimpy and the winless Oklahoma State Cowboys were shocking the 15th-ranked Buffs, 12-9, late in the fourth quarter.
Joseph drove the Buffs 80 yards in the final minutes – converting a fourth and 14 on a wild scramble and toss to running back James Hill for 17 yards and then picking up another fourth down and 10 with a 10-yard run – to set up a 20-yard faked field goal touchdown pass with 6 seconds remaining to give CU a 16-12 win. The next week, CU was down 24-10 to Kansas, but Joseph led a comeback for a 30-24 win.
“It was really a great memory of being a Buff,’’ Joseph said.
His quarterback play helped Joseph see how the game is played from the other side of the ball when he became a coach. He likes the defense he inherited in Denver, no matter that it faded down the stretch last year.
“It’s a good defense. Last year the numbers were great,’’ Joseph said. “You’ve got Justin Simmons on the back end with Kareem Jackson. You’ve got Pat Surtain, one of the best corners in football. You’ve got a pass rush. You’ve got four or five rushers once we added Frank (Clark).
“The D-line was a surprise to me when I watched the tape, how good and square they played with D.J. (Jones) and Mike (Purcell) and those guys, so it’s a good group.
“Watching those guys last year, what they accomplished, it was fun to say, “Boy, I want to watch that group.’ Last year getting pressure on the quarterback was one of the issues and that’s one of my specialties so I think it’s a good marriage between myself and these players who were here before. And keeping two guys who were on the staff (defensive line coach Marcus Dixon and defensive backs coach Christian Parker) from last year was huge for us to kind of blend both systems and make the install really easy.”
The Denver pass rushers appear to be filled with question marks but Joseph doesn’t see it that way. Randy Gregory, Frank Clark, Nik Bonitto, Jonathon Cooper and Christopher Allen can go get ‘em and Baron Browning is due to return from knee surgery a few weeks into the regular season.
“Absolutely, I think (pass rush is) part of the scheme, it’s a mindset thing,’’ Joseph said. “You can make those guys who are close to the ball daily jobs easy so they can be more aggressive. I thought those guys did have a good rush early on – they had some injuries and obviously that affected the pass rush but we’ve got six guys that can rush the passer and it’s my job to free them up to be pass rushers, first, and droppers, second.
“So I’m excited about the group. When I was here with the group, I think (Bradley) Chubb had 12 (sacks), I think Von (Miller) had about (14 ½) with me my last year here (in 2018) so getting pressure on the quarterback that’s one thing I’ve done in my career that’s been really good. I have no issues with this group getting pressure.”
Having said that, don’t expect the Broncos to bring an abundance of blitzes tonight against Arizona’s quarterbacks in the preseason opener.
“No it’s about evaluation,’’ Joseph said. “You want to see who can rush but not with tricks. Not with games, not with exotic schemes. But you want to see who can win one-on-ones, you want to see who can cover, who can tackle. Just play football.
“You want to see who can take calls and process them and get them right when it’s going fast out there. It’s strictly an evaluation game for us. Our kids have had a great camp and I’m excited to watch them play.”
One player to watch for 9NEWS viewers of the Broncos game tonight: Inside linebacker Drew Sanders. He’s a third-round rookie with freakish physical skills, although he’s playing a position where young players can think first, react second. At least until they gain some experience.
“When you see the kid, he’s 6-4 can really run, about 245,’’ Joseph said. “He’s got great instincts. His deal is time on task. Once he gets more time on the grass he’s going to be a great player for us.”
Eventually, the Broncos hope to get production from another third-round rookie, cornerback Riley Moss, who is sidelined following core muscle surgery last week.
“We’re not sure (when Moss will return), it won’t be long but the day he got nicked was his best day,’’ Joseph said. “He was really settling in and covering guys. He’s a super athlete, super mature guy who played a bunch of football in the Big Ten. He’s playing some nickel for us, he’s playing some dime. He’s a guy that will help us win midseason to late.”
Joseph still has a home here in the Phoenix but he didn’t plan on staying or even visiting there.
“I’m not. My family’s here (in Denver),’’ Joseph said. “We’ll be there what two days? It’s 115 degrees probably. But no it’s a business trip. We’re going to go there, play good football and come home.”
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