Broncos have a 'sleeper candidate' for head coach opening

When the Denver Broncos began their head coach search, Jim Harbaugh and Sean Payton instantly jumped to the top of the list as marquee candidates.

After Harbaugh announced that he will remain at the University of Michigan, that left Payton as the presumed top choice for Denver. Payton will have many options, though, with one of them being potentially remaining at Fox for a year.

If Payton joins a different team or decides to continue working as an analyst, Dan Quinn would be a logical fallback option. Quinn was a finalist for Denver’s opening last year, and he has worked with general manager George Paton in the past.

That was the presumed order for the team’s head coach options: Harbaugh first, then Payton, then Quinn.

Perhaps we were too presumptuous.

Former Stanford coach David Shaw has emerged as a “sleeper candidate” for the Broncos, according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis. That notion was echoed by Vic Lombardi of Altitude Sports on Wednesday evening:

“Condi,” of course, is Denver minority owner Condoleezza Rice, who is the director of Stanford’s Hoover Institution. She is very connected to the school, serving as Stanford’s provost from 1993-1999. Broncos co-owner/CEO Greg Penner, and his wife and fellow co-owner Carrie Walton Penner, also hold degrees from Stanford.

If he does not end up getting the head coach job, Shaw might also be a candidate for Denver’s offensive coordinator position. As things stand now, though, it sounds like Shaw is in serious consideration for the HC role.