The first casualty of the NFL season has fallen.
Broncos first-year head coach Nathaniel Hackett has been terminated by the team.
With only four wins, team ownership and the fan base were extremely disappointed, but was it really Hackett’s fault?
What About Wilson
Denver’s management paid a King’s ransom to get Russell Wilson on the team.
Denver gave up three players, two first-round picks, and two second-round picks to land Wilson, which is utterly ridiculous for a 33-year-old QB.
They literally mortgaged the entire future of the organization on him.
Then they turned around and gave him a contract extension worth $296 million.
Now, I like Wilson and I thought that he would make a big difference to the team, but that is too much to give up for anyone.
They gave up to four possible impact players through the draft for an aging QB.
Wilson has been an utter flop, unable to pick up the new system and struggling on the field.
Having said all that, one would think that the first-year coach would be given some leeway with a new QB and a new system being put in place, especially when you can trace most of the woes to the team’s QB that management was responsible for signing.
But, it was Hackett that Broncos CEO Greg Penner let go.
Penner stated, “On behalf of our ownership and organization, I want to thank Nathaniel Hackett for his dedication as head coach of the Denver Broncos.
“We sincerely appreciate Nathaniel’s efforts and wish him and his family all the best in the future.”
He continued, “We recognize and appreciate this organization’s championship history, and we understand we have not met that standard. Our fans deserve much better, and I can’t say enough about their loyalty during such a challenging stretch for our team.
“Moving forward, we will carefully evaluate every aspect of our football operations and make whatever changes are necessary to restore this franchise’s winning tradition.”
It will be awfully hard to lure in a new coach when he knows ownership has a short leash and he is tied to an aging QB with a monster contract, and no draft choices for the next two years.
Source: Washington Examiner
