Denver Broncos get natural talent evaluator in Vance Joseph

The Denver Broncos introduced its new head coach, Vance Joseph, at UCHealth Training Center on Thursday, the 16th to hold the position in team history. And Joseph’s hiring comes with the aim of getting the Broncos back into the playoffs and to the Super Bowl as soon as possible.

The former University of Colorado quarterback had worked his way up through the coaching ranks, and for 12 years he’s been learning the ropes in the NFL.

Starting as an assistant defensive backs coach with the San Francisco 49ers in 2005, Joseph learned and grew as a coach, studying under the likes of Mike Nolan, Mike Singletary, Gary Kubiak, Wade Phillips, Marvin Lewis and Adam Gase as he rose through the ranks.

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The first word most people use to describe Joseph is “leadership,” which is something that comes naturally to him.

“Obviously, having talent equals winning. The culture is set by the head coach, and it’s set by the staff. I think being a leader of men means you can get guys to follow you,” Joseph said during his introductory press conference.

“It’s a tough business, and it’s a tough, long season. It takes convincing to do hard things in life. I think having the ability to have guys follow you and follow you anywhere; that’s an ability I have with players. That’s a trait that most head coaches have that are winning.”

In addition to being described as a great leader, he’s also known as a coach who players love. After getting hired by the Broncos, several former players sent messages of support via social media, demonstrating Joseph knows how to establish strong relationships with his players.

“I’ll say this, the best teams win. Not the best offense, defense or special teams. The best teams combined on Sunday, win. You should win differently ever Sunday. Obviously, building a culture of ‘team,’ team-first, it doesn’t matter who gets the credit or who plays well that day. If the offense is playing well and the defense is not, then pick them up and that’s the way that we win that day, (even) if it’s blocking a punt to win a game,” Joseph said.

“That has to be our culture, and that has to be our brotherhood as a team. The best teams win. How we win in all three phases. When one phase is down, the other phase picks it up. That’s what we have to instill in our players going forward. That’s going to be the culture.”

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In texting with sources close to the Miami Dolphins, where Joseph was the defensive coordinator in 2016, it was also revealed to me that Joseph had an incredible eye for talent. One source said, “Joseph was perfect as far as his defensive personnel evaluations were concerned. The input he gave turned out consistently correct.”

There was also some chatter about Joseph being given carte blanche when it came to defensive personnel in 2017.

I got a chance to talk to team president and CEO Joe Ellis after Joseph’s press conference. I asked him if Joseph’s eye for talent was a factor in the team’s decision to hire him as head coach.

“Yes. His skill set is deep. It’s very wide. There’s a lot of depth to who he is as a person and as a coach, and so all of those things played in. Certainly, he’s an evaluator of talent, and I think he’ll work well with John (Elway) and John’s staff in that area,” Ellis said.

“His coaches will too. (He’s) very honest, very forthright and very composed in how he presents himself, and I think that catches players’ eyes. It certainly caught our eyes.”

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General manager John Elway admitted the team’s new head coach would have input in the draft process.

“Just like everyone else has. As (Bears head coach] John Fox was when he was here as well as Gary (Kubiak). He’s going to have a lot to say. We include the coaching staff, so it’s a collaborative effort. Everybody is involved, and we’ll get everybody’s opinion on it,” Elway said.

“From that trip, we’ll try to be able to pull out the best decision of everybody’s different opinion. We’ll continue the same method that we’ve had the past six years since I’ve been here.”

Having a natural leader like Joseph is a great benefit for the Broncos, but having another strong talent evaluator could put the Broncos in an even better position moving forward.

Follow @CecilLammey