It starts this off-season. Though I would say Denver has been trying "rebuilds" since Super Bowl 50.

We are what Washington was 25 years ago.

2023 offseason -> get experienced coach like Reich/Payton and try to see if this team can be fixed.
If not, get a QB in 2024 and hope he plays well.

Do not go next offseason with Hackett. that will be disastrous. Fire Paton along with Hackett after this season.

I wish it would. But I can’t see a true rebuild if Paton is still involved. Otherwise it’s just more Gregory signings and Bonnito picks.

Paton is going to get flushed with Hackett in a month and a half. Then you hire an experienced veteran coach with the goal of making Russ a functional game manager while simultaneously drafting his replacement in 24.

Our team name isn’t racist, and there hasn’t been a scandal involving our cheerleaders being sexually harassed, so at least we’ve got that going for us. Which is nice. 👍🏻

Paton and Hack should be fired at year’s end. PF Wilson will become the most expensive backup quarterback in NFL history because his cap hit is too expensive to let him go. New GM and new head coach should find a quarterback they like via draft or free agency and start building around him. New OL is essential.

Yep.

We got to hope Wilson either turns it around in 2023 or tanks. As Zero said, worst thing would be Wilson getting us to 10-7 with questions on his performance but still shining enough to make a case for himself...and missing the playoffs and ****ing our draft pick being high. Middle way screws us and might hook Wilson to us for another 2 seasons because of guaranteed money kicking in.... But either Wilson being very good or very bad in 2023 works well for us.

The bonito pick will be fine. We could also end up some more PS2, J Will, Belly, Dulcich, Browning, Sterns type of picks or some DJ Jones Kwaun Williams type of free agents.

Like I said I n the other thread though clearing up cap space to bring free agents is the 1st step.

Cutting players like Glasgow, Darby, McManus, Edmonds, Martin gets you to around 62 million in cap space. Spend that money on the O Line and continue to build through the draft. Gotta stop bringing in these 2 mill a year RTs.

I'm also not opposed to trading Simmons and tagging and trading Dremont if the price is right.

I’m trying hard to find an example of a 33 year old consensus Pro Bowler QB that has fallen so fast so hard.

I can’t find one not 10 years in.

why is Denver the first one in history?
seriously did Elway sell his soul to the devil for 2015.

The optimist in me says this is an outlier
Russ looks like a shell of himself game 1 to now. something is going on here that i believe they have a good grasp of inside the building.

obviously could be the first time in history. even Matt Ryan was playing well at 33 vs 37 who is a shell of his former self.

we’ll find out more right after the season and can go from there.

With a poor o line carousel, inconsistent to non existent running game and WRs that drop too many passes and play callers that don't call plays to the strengths of their players this is to be expected. Fix the o line and running back situation in the off season and bring in Darrell Bevell to call plays and the offense will improve. No QB is going to thrive when they are pressured immediately after the snap on the majority of plays

Denver's OL is a hodgepodge unit due to injuries [and certainly needs long-term investments at every position], but they have been above-average at minimum in pass protection. Russ holds on to the ball too long and takes way more sacks than he should. That's been an issue of his forever.

He is the worst MOF passer in the NFL and one of the worst short game passers in the NFL. The NFL QBs worth a hoot in the NFL do much better. He has done a horrendous job seeing the field, watching plays develop, and the accuracy has been poor. There is no fixing this guy. He won't ever be in the chase for Top 5-7 QB seasonal performance and I highly doubt Top 10.

Average and middle of the road isn't good enough.

I agree that Russ holds onto the ball for longer than he should, but you hit the nail right on the head. The O-Line is terrible. They couldn't block to save their lives at this point. Back ups, injuries, everything has happened and they are decimated. But not reading the field, yes, he is guilty of that some times. But can you actually place that blame on him? No. At least not all of it.

Let's really look at this. Javonte goes down. He was a reliable pass catcher in the MOF or in the flats. Perfect spot for Russ to dump the ball. Gordon. Well, we know how well he did everything. Now we're talking about a running backs room that, aside from Latavius, doesn't know the playbook all that well. Edmonds and Mack. For real? They are rentals. I was at the game in Carolina to watch them get beat. Mack missed blocks like no one's business. A good running back, at least the threat of a good running back, will take pressure off a QB. Russ hasn't had the reliability of a RB to step up and block when blitzed, so how the hell is he supposed to see the middle of the field when the turnstyles of O Lineman are letting D Lineman blow by them, nearly untouched, and RBs are missing blocks?

Also, let's talk about the play calling. Hackett being humble enough to admit that hes as smart as the special kids who play in their own doodie was a start to better play calling, or at least I thought. I was encouraged by the loss to the Raiders. I thought the play calling had a better flow to it. More consistent. More thought through. Carolina left me scratching my head. No consistency. No flow. It felt like a panicked child playing Madden for the first time and just firing off the first play they come to. It was awful. Klint is definitely not the answer to getting this flaming turd of a season back on track. But what's he really left with? A playbook built around a player with a different skill set than Russ? Hackett's playbook/calling, has felt a lot like what Shurmur was trying to do. Put a square peg into a round hole.

Do I blame Russ for some of the things, yes. Not all. I won't say he's doing his best. No one on the team is. In Charlotte, for the Panthers game, I made the comment to my wife, there is absolutely zero energy on the team. And this BS about Russ getting yelled at by the defense, is exactly that. BS. 95% of the running plays that Carolina ran, they showed a heavy front. Things you see and hear in person, the head ref consistently calling #75 an eligible receiver means they are putting 6 linemen out there, and most of those designed runs, they also fielded 2 tight ends. Our d line laid a big turd. None of them fought the blocks any harder nor did we stack the box a little more. No. We just let them run the ball up the gut play after play. Accountability. Hackett preaches it, but no one utilizes it.

Oline can be rebuilt in one offseason assuming GB is LT. draft a first round RT/LT and a couple interior and sign 2 Olineman in FA. however, those FA lineman aren’t normally the best of breed.

this was my #1 priority in the offseason

followed by a true playmaker WR if available.

Paton need to become best buds with Pittsburgh scouts and get them to pick the WR for us. lol

I want to buy a RT in FA and draft the interior o lineman. This draft is strong in that area and could potentially get 2 day 1 starters in the 3rd round.

You honestly believe this is how the offense was developed this offseason? Russ forced his way out of Seattle only to sit idly by in his personal office at the facility counting his guaranteed dollars and deferring to a first-time head coach? Totally believable.

I find it hard to believe this late in a career that saw him win more games than any other QB in their first 10 years, that he'd just decide to up and change the model of success he had.

I think Russ trying to be a pocket passer is 100% his call and this is the offense he wanted because he believed it would extend his career.

If he’s going to be back next year, the offense needs to be built around his strengths, not his ego. And no more Jake Heaps. No more office. And any other perks thrown his way need to be taken off the table. Bad QBs don’t get to dictate shit.

Blame the denver FO for providing all the facilities.. I understand Seattle doing it. Why Denver has to do it even before he played a down?

New GM should take all those privileges.

Cut Wilson next June 2 , take the 2 year cap hit, hire a new HC, play a bunch of scrubs/ rookies contracts because that’s all you can afford under the cap

get #1 draft pick and draft Caleb Williams in 2024