by John OehserFiled under: Broncos, Jaguars, AFC South, AFC West
Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter may not the highest-profile candidate for the Denver Broncos' coaching position, but neither should he be overlooked.Koetter interviewed for the Broncos' position Tuesday.
"I'm somewhat of a unique candidate here, because I was a head college coach for nine years," Koetter, who coached nine seasons at Boise State and Arizona State before joining he Jaguars in 2007, told DenverBroncos.com. "I know what it's like to sit on that chair on a lesser level. There's no way you can ever get ready until you're in the seat. No coach who has not been a head coach is ready.
"You think you are. You sit in the chair across from the head coach and think, 'Man, I would have done it this way or I would have done it this way.' But when you're sitting in the chair, it's different. There's just no way you can completely get ready."
Koetter also said he believes having been a head coach has helped him as a Jaguars assistant, and would help him should he get the Denver job.
"After you've been a head coach, you're a much better assistant coach," he said. "I learned to be a much better assistant coach, because I learned, 'Hey, I don't know all the problems the head coach is going through. I think you learn to just go back and just do the best job you can in what your tiny role within the football team is. When the opportunity comes, I think you're much more prepared the next time.
"You've learned from past mistakes and past success and you get to learn how other people did it."
And while the Jaguars' absence from the postseason -- and the offense not exactly being one of the more high-profile units in the NFL -- has kept Koetter from being listed on the annual "Hot Coaching Candidate" lists, the former Arizona State head coach is well-respected in NFL circles.
In 2007, Koetter took over an offense that hadn't had a player named to the Pro Bowl in the last four seasons. In four seasons since, he has had four players named to five Pro Bowls, and this past season, Jaguars quarterback David Garrard set a franchise record with 23 touchdown passes.
Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew finished third in the AFC in rushing this season, running for more than 100 yards in six consecutive games and being named to his second consecutive Pro Bowl.
In Koetter's first season, 2007, the team set franchise single-season records for points, touchdowns and touchdown passes. The team also made the playoffs as a wild card entrant, winning its only playoff game since 1999.
In the three seasons since, the team has struggled at times, but with a quarterback in Garrard who isn't widely considered to be among the NFL's Top 10-to-15 players at the position and a wide receiving corps that lacks a legitimate Pro Bowl-level player, the feeling among those close to the team is that Koetter has done a solid job with the talent available.
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