Austin King

Broncos Fire Michael Wilhoite, Add Todd Davis To Staff

March 6th, 2025 at 9:09pm CST by Sam Robinson

Michael Wilhoite‘s recent arrest will lead to his dismissal. The Broncos fired their two-year outside linebackers coach, 9News’ Mike Klis reports. A former NFL linebacker, Wilhoite had also been on the Saints’ staff under Sean Payton.

The team announced the firing, which comes after an arrest for suspicion of second-degree assault in connection with an incident at the Denver International Airport. Wilhoite is alleged to have punched an airport officer during a dispute about a parking infraction.

“After thorough discussions as an organization, I met with Michael Wilhoite and informed him we have decided to part ways,” Payton said. “We recognize the serious nature of the allegations against him and believe this is the best course of action at this time. I appreciate Michael’s contributions to the Broncos and am confident he will move forward in a positive direction.”

A Denver police officer working on assignment told Wilhoite he could not leave his car unattended at a departure terminal. After allegedly cursing at the officer, Wilhoite bumped his chest into him. After the officer is alleged to have pushed Wilhoite, the former linebacker is accused of punching him in the face. The officer then used his taser, but Wilhoite still drove off before being apprehended soon after. He was released on bail, but his coaching future is now uncertain.

Becoming a six-year contributor out of Division II Washburn, Wilhoite played for the 49ers and Seahawks during his career. He started 45 games and saw action as a backup in six playoff contests — including Super Bowl XLVII with the 49ers — during the 2010s. Before resigning his Saints HC post in 2022, Payton interviewed Wilhoite for the team’s DC job. Wilhoite, 38, had been a Saints staffer for three seasons prior to that meeting; he rejoined Payton after staying on under Dennis Allen in 2022.

As the Broncos search for a new OLBs coach, they made some other changes on staff. They gave QBs coach Davis Webb a title bump, adding pass-game coordinator to his duties. Secondary coach Jim Leonhard is now the team’s defensive pass-game coordinator. Both figure to be coordinator candidates moving forward; for now, they will stay in their position coach roles. Addison Lynch is moving from the quality control level to cornerbacks coach, while Payton is elevating another QC assistant (Isaac Shewmaker) to linebackers coach. The latter will replace Greg Manusky.

Former Bears offensive line coach Chris Morgan is also joining the team as assistant O-line coach. Set to work under Zach Strief, Morgan returns to Colorado more than two decades after a career with the Buffaloes. Morgan has been in the NFL since 2009. After six seasons with the Falcons as their O-line coach (2015-20), he spent a year with the Steelers before joining the Bears’ staff. Ben Johnson moved in a different direction upon taking over. Previous assistant O-line coach Austin King is sliding over to tight ends coach to replace Declan Doyle, who made a leap at 28 to be Johnson’s OC in Chicago.

The Broncos are also adding one of their former linebackers, Todd Davis, to their staff. A former backup for Denver’s Super Bowl 50 team and then a starter later in the 2010s, Davis is joining Payton’s staff as a defensive quality control assistant.

Having made a transition to the media side, Davis has both a history with the Broncos and Payton. A 2014 Saints UDFA, Davis joined the Broncos later that year. Backing up Danny Trevathan and Brandon Marshall in 2015, Davis replaced the former (after a Bears free agency defection) and started four seasons for the Broncos. The 69-game Denver starter landed a three-year, $15MM re-up with the team in 2018.

NFC Coaching Updates: Bears, Falcons, Engram

March 4th, 2023 at 9:26am CST by Ely Allen

The offseason giveth and the offseason taketh away as the Bears learned this past week with the addition and subtraction of two coaching assistants earlier in the week.

After the departure of assistant offensive line coach Austin King to join Sean Payton‘s new staff in Denver under the same title, Chicago hired longtime Titans assistant Luke Steckel to fill the role. This will be Steckel’s first time working specifically with offensive linemen in the NFL. After four years in Cleveland as an assistant to the head coach, Steckel joined the Titans in 2013 as an offensive assistant/special assistant to the head coach. He cycled through other roles with the team over the years including assistant wide receivers coach and his most recent role of the past two seasons as tight ends coach.

Steckel is credited with having contributed to the success of wide receiver A.J. Brown during his rookie season in Tennessee and quarterback Ryan Tannehill in the year that he won Comeback Player of the Year. As a tight ends coach, Steckel worked with newcomer Austin Hooper and rookie Chigoziem Okonkwo. Both finished with similar statistics, combining for 894 yards and five touchdowns. According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Hooper had the 12th-best receiving grade of any tight end in the NFL while Okonkwo finished third behind only Travis Kelce and George Kittle. Steckel will now be assisting with coaching an offensive line that utilizes strong youth pieces like Teven Jenkins and Braxton Jones.

Here are a few more coaching updates from around the NFC:

The Falcons have made some updates to their staff from last year, according to Falcons features reporter Ashton Edmunds. Steve Jackson, who shockingly was hired in the position of senior offensive assistant last year despite his years of defensive coaching experience, has rightfully returned to the defensive side of the ball as the team’s secondary coach. Another assistant expected to switch sides of the ball, Nick Perry will move from assistant defensive backs coach to assistant wide receivers coach. Former defensive assistant Lanier Goethie has been promoted to defensive front specialist. The team has also added longtime college coaching assistant Dave Huxatable into his first NFL role of senior defensive assistant. Additionally, former John Carroll offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Matt Baker has been added to the staff as special teams assistant. Lastly, the team has hired Steven King and Patrick Kramer as offensive assistants, Mario Jeberaeel as the special projects: defense coach, Shawn Flaherty as the assistant offensive line coach, Michael Gray as a football analyst, and Mateo Kambui as the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellow assigned to work with the offensive line.
With Drew Terrell‘s departure to Arizona as passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach, the Commanders have a vacancy to fill at wide receivers coach. According to Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post, one candidate who has been interviewed for the role is former NFL wide receiver Bobby Engram. After his retirement as a player, the longtime Seahawk immediately went into coaching, signing with the rival 49ers as an offensive assistant. Since then, Engram has worked his way up, going from coaching wide receivers in the college ranks at Pitt to earning the same position in Baltimore. With the Ravens, Engram earned his paycheck putting together veteran receiver groups for quarterback Joe Flacco. In healthy years, Engram coached up impressive duos such as Steve Smith–Torrey Smith and Mike Wallace-Steve Smith. When injuries decimated the team he helped Kamar Aiken to a breakout season, pieced together what he could out of a group that included Wallace, Jeremy Maclin, and Chris Moore, and got a respectable output from a corps of John Brown, Willie Snead, and Michael Crabtree. Engram moved to tight ends coach for the Ravens in 2019 and helped in the emergence of star tight end Mark Andrews, who earned two Pro Bowl bids and a first-team All-Pro selection under Engram. Last year, Engram took the role of offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Wisconsin, but an interview with the Commanders could indicate his willingness to return to the NFL.

Coaching Notes: Colts, Rams, Patriots

January 24th, 2023 at 8:17pm CST by Ben Levine

The Colts are moving on to second interviews with some head coaching candidates, but they’re still hoping to get one individual in the building for a first interview. According to Rob Maaddi of the Associated Press, the Colts still want to speak with 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans.

The Colts have been trying to nail down an interview with Ryans for a few weeks. The organization was expected to finally speak with him on Sunday, but with the 49ers advancing to the NFC Championship Game, the coach once again put his interview on hold.

The coordinator already spoke with the Texans and Broncos about their HC jobs, and he also postponed an interview with the Cardinals. As Maaddi details, NFL rules allow Ryans to have second interviews with the Texans and Broncos next week, regardless of the outcome of this weekend’s game. However, the NFL’s “window for first interviews” has close, so he’ll have to wait until the end of the 49ers’ season to speak with the Colts and Cardinals.

We heard earlier today that Ejiro Evero will be getting a second interview with the Colts, and per Maaddi, the organization is expected to advance “six or seven other candidates” to the second round. Another name that should get a second meeting with the organization is interim head coach Jeff Saturday, according to Maaddi.

More coaching notes from around the NFL…

Sean McVay continues to shake up his coaching staff, and that’s led him to an assistant coach in Chicago. According to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo (on Twitter), the Rams have requested permission to interview Bears assistant offensive line coach Austin King. The former NFL player would presumably be eyeing a promotion in Los Angeles, and he could fill multiple roles considering his experience coaching tight ends with the Raiders.
Former Patriots lineman Adrian Klemm previously interviewed for New England’s offensive coordinator job, a position that ultimately went to Bill O’Brien. However, it sounds like the Patriots are still considering recruiting Klemm to their staff. According to TheMMQB’s Albert Breer (on Twitter), another meeting is anticipated between the coach and the Patriots. Klemm spent the 2022 season as Oregon’s associate head coach, run game coordinator, and offensive line coach. He previously spent time on the Steelers staff, serving as assistant OL coach before earning a promotion to OL coach in 2021.
With O’Brien back in New England, focus turns to the status of Matt Patricia and Joe Judge after the duo led the Patriots‘ offense in 2022. ESPN’s Mike Reiss writes that Patricia should be able to carve out a role on New England’s staff in 2023 considering his familiarity with the organization and his relationship with Bill Belichick. However, since the Lions are no longer picking up the tab, it remains to be seen if the Patriots will be willing to compensate the coach accordingly. Meanwhile, Reiss could see see Judge sticking around New England, but the writer is skeptical about the coach returning to his natural ST role. Judge officially spent last season as the Patriots quarterbacks coach, a designation that “surprised people both inside and outside the organization,” according to Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com.
There’s still no clarity on what Jerod Mayo‘s new role will be in New England, but he could be facing a significant promotion. Some pundits have suggested that Belichick could be preparing the former linebacker to eventually take over as head coach, and Breer tweets that Mayo was alongside his boss for all of the organization’s offensive coordinator interviews last week.