Atlanta Falcons

Kyle Shanahan will meet with Denver Broncos Friday or Saturday

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 6:21 p.m. ET

Fansided, Sayre Bedinger/FanSided via Predominantly Orange

The Denver Broncos head coach watch is officially underway, as Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan will visit Denver this weekend…

The Denver Broncos’ search for a new head coach is officially underway, as Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan will reportedly visit the Mile High City on Friday or Saturday to interview for the open position…

Between Friday and Saturday, #Falcons OC Kyle Shanahan will do HC interviews with #Rams, #Jaguars, #Broncos & #49ers, sources say.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 2, 2017

This is somewhat of a big piece of news because there were questions about whether Shanahan would have some bad blood with the Denver organization because of the way his father, Mike Shanahan, was let go back at the start of 2009.

The Falcons are on a bye this week thanks to their NFC South Division Championship and 11-5 record this season. Shanahan has been a phenomenal offensive coach in this league for a number of years now, and has ascended through the years, blossoming into one of the most coveted head coaching candidates in the NFL.

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At the age of 27, Shanahan was the youngest position coach in the NFL when he was working for Gary Kubiak and the Houston Texans as a wide receivers coach. In 2007, he changed to the team’s quarterback’s coach. In 2008, Shanahan was promoted to offensive coordinator and has held that position with the Texans (08-09), Washington Redskins (2010-2013), Cleveland Browns (2014), and Atlanta Falcons (15-16).

This year with Shanahan and a number of very talented players, the Falcons led the NFL in scoring and were second in total yards. He has called a very balanced offense all year, ranking third in the NFL in passing and fifth overall in rushing.

There are some interesting factors with Shanahan and the Broncos. Will rumors of his dad wanting to come with him in some capacity prevent a marriage with the Broncos? Is he going to require more control than the Broncos will allow?

One thing about Shanahan is, he’s never been one to keep his feelings close to the vest. He was fined while with the Redskins for harping on a replacement official (though if we’re honest, every coach in the league could have been fined for that…), and he reportedly left the Cleveland Browns due to his disagreeing that Johnny Manziel had to be the starting quarterback.

Also not wrong, but something to note…

This guy is just a talented young coach who has been around football his whole life. That is clearly reflected in his work. He appears, at least right now, to be a step or two ahead of the game in the NFL. One of his most impressive efforts this season was a game against the Denver Broncos in which he didn’t even really need star receiver Julio Jones to produce a big game. The Broncos had no answer for Shanahan’s schemes defensively.

Hiring Shanahan would certainly be an exciting move for Broncos Country, but nothing is set in stone at this point. The Broncos will spend the next week or so getting this process going, interviewing candidates, and putting together a plan for the future.