Broncos announce series of coaching hires
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton has announced the addition of 16 coaches to the team’s staff, including Joe Lombardi as Offensive Coordinator, Vance Joseph as Defensive Coordinator, Mike Westhoff as Assistant Head Coach and Ben Kotwica as Special Teams Coordinator.
On offense, the Broncos named John Morton as Pass Game Coordinator, Keary Colbert as Wide Receivers Coach, Declan Doyle as Tight Ends Coach and Zach Strief as Offensive Line Coach.
Defensively, Denver named Greg Manusky as Inside Linebackers Coach and Michael Wilhoite as Outside Linebackers Coach. Marcus Dixon will remain Defensive Line Coach and Christian Parker will continue to serve as Defensive Backs Coach.
Chris Banjo has been named Assistant Special Teams Coach and will work with Westhoff and Kotwica on the Broncos’ special teams staff.
The Broncos also added Dan Dalrymple as Head Strength and Conditioning Coach. Korey Jones will remain as Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach.
The Broncos’ Assistant to the Head Coach will be Paul Kelly.
Several of the Broncos’ new coaches worked with Payton during his 15-year stint with the Saints.
Lombardi, who most recently served as the Chargers’ offensive coordinator from 2021-22, previously worked with the Saints for 12 seasons as an offensive assistant (2007-08) and quarterbacks coach (2009-13; 2016-2020). He was the offensive coordinator in Detroit for two seasons in between stints as the quarterbacks coach in New Orleans. Lombardi, an Air Force graduate, led the Chargers to top-10 offenses — and top-three passing offenses — in his two seasons in Los Angeles.
Joseph will return to the Broncos after serving as their head coach from 2017 to 2018. Since leaving Denver, Joseph has spent four years as the Cardinals’ defensive coordinator, where he has helped Arizona attain two top-15 scoring defenses and a top-10 passing defense. Joseph has 18 years of NFL experience, including five seasons as an NFL defensive coordinator.
Westhoff, a longtime NFL assistant, will coach in the NFL for the first time since joining Payton’s staff in New Orleans in 2017-18. Westhoff served 12 years as the Jets’ special teams coordinator (2001-12), as well as 15 years as the Dolphins’ special teams coach (1986-2000) and three seasons as the Colts’ special teams coach (1982-84). Westhoff previously worked with Kotwica for four seasons with the Jets, when he was the assistant special teams coach.
Kotwica, a 15-year NFL veteran, has spent the last eight years as a special teams coordinator. After serving as the director of player development for the United States Military Academy in 2021, he joined the Vikings as their assistant special teams coach in 2022. Kotwica, a West Point graduate and former United States Army officer, previously served as special teams coordinator for the Jets (2013), Washington Commanders (2014-18), and Atlanta Falcons (2019-2020).
Morton previously worked for Payton from 2015-16 as the Saints’ wide receivers coach and in 2006 as an offensive assistant. He most recently worked as a senior offensive assistant for the Lions (2022) and Raiders (2019-21) after serving as the Jets’ offensive coordinator in 2017. He also had NFL stops as the 49ers’ wide receivers coach (2011-14) and a Raiders offensive assistant (1998-2004).
Colbert, who spent time with the Broncos in 2008 during a six-year NFL career, will begin his first NFL coaching job as the Broncos’ wide receivers coach. The Panthers’ second-round pick in 2004, who caught 130 career passes, spent the 2022 season as Florida’s wide receivers coach. He previously spent three seasons as the wide receivers coach at USC, where he worked with players like Amon-Ra St. Brown, Drake London and Michael Pittman Jr. He spent six seasons at USC and previously worked as an offensive analyst at Alabama for two seasons.
Doyle will serve as the Broncos’ tight ends coach after four seasons as an offensive assistant for New Orleans. He previously served as an offensive student assistant at the University of Iowa. Doyle recently served as the tight ends coach for the American team at the 2023 Senior Bowl.
Strief is a former seventh-round draft pick who spent 12 seasons with the Saints and played the third-most games by a New Orleans offensive lineman in franchise history. He has two seasons of coaching experience, as he returned to New Orleans as the team’s assistant offensive line coach in 2021.
Manusky has 12 years of NFL experience as a defensive coordinator, most recently during a three-year stint with Washington from 2017-19. The veteran coach, who will lead the Broncos’ inside linebackers, spent the 2022 season as the Vikings’ inside linebackers coach and also led defenses for the Colts (2012-15), Chargers (2011) and 49ers (2007-10).
Wilhoite has four years of NFL coaching experience, most recently as the Chargers’ linebackers coach from 2021-22. Prior to his time in LA, he worked as a Saints defensive assistant (2020) and special teams assistant (2019) during Payton’s final years in New Orleans. A six-year NFL veteran, Wilhoite played 65 career games for the 49ers from 2012-16 before spending his last season in Seattle in 2017.
Dixon will return to the Broncos for his second season as Defensive Line Coach. He previously served as the assistant defensive line coach for the Rams in 2021 after three years of experience at Hampton University.
Parker will return for his third season as the Broncos’ defensive backs coach after joining the team in 2021. He previously spent a pair of seasons as a defensive quality control coach for the Packers (2019-2020) and has six years of collegiate experience. Under Parker’s guidance, cornerback Pat Surtain II earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2022, while safety Justin Simmons was named a second-team All-Pro.
Banjo will accept his first coaching role, as he played 13 games for the Cardinals in 2022. The SMU alum carved out a 10-year career, appearing in 131 career games. He began his career in Green Bay before joining the Saints in 2016. He played 39 games for New Orleans across three seasons.
Dalrymple comes to the Broncos after serving as the head strength and conditioning coach for the New Orleans Saints for 16 years. During his tenure, he was named the Cybex Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year by the Professional Football Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association after joining Payton’s inaugural staff in New Orleans. Prior to moving to New Orleans, he was the director of athletic conditioning at the University of Miami (Ohio).
Jones, who joined the Broncos’ strength and conditioning department in 2020, is in his fourth season with the team. Jones, a trained Strength and Conditioning Specialist and trained Personal Trainer, played for multiple clubs in the Canadian Football League and also competed in NFL training camps.
Kelly has substantial NFL experience, having most recently served as the Washington Commanders’ director of football operations for 11 years. He previously worked as an assistant coach for the Buccaneers (2004-08) and the Raiders (1998-03).
