ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — For a head coach to return as an assistant to a franchise that fired him remains a rare occurrence.
It goes against human nature. He requires humility, and an open mind.
Ego can prevent it. In the case of Vance Joseph, he harbored no trepidation about coming back to the Denver Broncos as coach Sean Payton's defensive coordinator.
"It was a fair process. It's a league of winning, and if you don't win, there will be changes. It was never personal for me. I came here and worked my butt off, and it didn't work. My focus now is to help Sean win games," said Joseph, who posted an 11-21 record in 2017-18 with the Broncos.
"Sean's been great. Having a chance to work with him was a good thing. I had some choices after leaving Arizona, but Denver being home — and this is a great place, a great fanbase — and for me, this was home. It was a perfect spot for me."
Payton faced Joseph seven times as either a position coach or a defensive coordinator. There was mutual respect, and Payton explained Thursday why Joseph was the right choice, while allowing the previous head coaching tenure did not factor into his decision.
"Well, there's a calmness to him and professionalism to him that I appreciate. We always found a way to shake hands after games or talk to each other. I think there is a poise and credibility when he presents that is impressive," Payton said. "I think he's an extremely good communicator and leader."
Joseph inherits a strong defense that ranked 12th in points allowed, and starred on third down, but struggled to generate consistent takeaways and sacks. Known for generating creative pressure, Joseph aims to build on the unit's strengths — they have played good defense here for a long time — while adding nuances.
Linebacker Josey Jewell and Justin Simmons played for Joseph in Denver. They embraced his return. Simmons believes the new role has provided a fresh outlook for Joseph.
"I love VJ. Love him. Obviously, it was unfortunate the way the stint turned out when he was here as the head coach. I’ve always loved him, especially as a person. He’s player driven. He’ll do anything for the guys on the team," said Justin, a member of the All-Pro team in 2019, 2021 and 2022.
"Right now, it’s been cool for me seeing, I feel like, a different version of him. When you’re the head coach, you’ve got so much more on your plate and you can’t be around as much," he said. "For the past few weeks, to be around him as the defensive coordinator, you can tell how much it means to him and how much he loves the players. It’s been cool to reconnect.”
Footnotes
The Broncos will hold a short practice Thursday, their final of veteran minicamp, before breaking for the summer.
Running back Samaje Perine received treatment for a thumb injury that required him to leave practice, but Payton said, "He should be fine."
The Broncos had multiple skirmishes breakout on Wednesday, with the tight ends and outside linebackers at the center of the dust-ups. At one point, Nik Bonitto got into it with Adam Trautman. Ben Powers, Randy Gregory, and Jonah Griffith also were heated during the incident, but emotions cooled. Payton brought the team together and reminded them that they must be willing to go to the line, but not cross it, resulting in penalties.
