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.
Paul Kelly will be the Broncos' Assistant to the Head Coach.
Several of the Broncos' new coaches have spent time working with Payton during his 15-year tenure with the Saints.
Lombardi, who most recently served as the Chargers' offensive coordinator from 2021-22, spent 12 seasons with the Saints as an offensive assistant (2007-08) and quarterbacks coach (2009-13; 2016-2020). In between stints as New Orleans' quarterbacks coach, he served as the offensive coordinator in Detroit for two seasons. An Air Force graduate, Lombardi helped the Chargers to top-10 offenses — and top-three passing offenses — in his two seasons in LA.
Joseph will rejoin the Broncos after serving as Denver's head coach from 2017-18. Since his stint in Denver, Joseph spent four years as the Cardinals' defensive coordinator and helped Arizona to a pair of top-15 scoring defenses and top-10 passing defenses. Joseph has 18 years of NFL experience and five seasons of experience as an NFL defensive coordinator.
Westhoff, a longtime NFL assistant, will return to coach in the NFL for the first time since serving on Payton's New Orleans staff from 2017-18. A 12-year special teams coordinator for the Jets (2001-12), Westhoff also spent 15 years as the Dolphins' special teams coach (1986-2000) and three seasons in the role for the Colts (1982-84). Westhoff previously worked with Kotwica with the Jets for four seasons, when Kotwica served as assistant special teams coach under Westhoff.
Kotwica, a 15-year NFL veteran, has eight years of experience as a special teams coordinator. He spent the 2022 season with the Vikings as their assistant special teams coach after serving as the director of player development for the United States Military Academy in 2021. A West Point graduate and former U.S. Army officer, Kotwica was previously the 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 joins the Broncos after spending 16 seasons with the New Orleans Saints as the head strength and conditioning coach. He joined New Orleans as part of Payton's initial staff and has been honored as the Cybex Professional Strength and Conditioning Coach of the Year by the Professional Football Strength and Conditioning Coaches Association during his career. Prior to his time in New Orleans, he spent nearly two decades as the University of Miami (Ohio)'s director of athletic conditioning.
Jones is entering his fourth season with the Broncos after joining the team's strength and conditioning staff in 2020. A certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and Certified Personal Trainer, Jones played in the Canadian Football League for several teams and also competed in NFL training camps.
Kelly has extensive NFL experience, as he most recently spent 11 years as the director of football operations for the Washington Commanders. He has also served as the assistant to the head coach for the Buccaneers (2004-08) and the Raiders (1998-03).
