I think Russ is still salvageable. I think he’s not as good as he looked at times in Seattle, but not as bad as he has looked in Denver so far. Nathaniel Hackett was completely over his head. It shouldn’t be hard to find a coach that thinks the same way, and has the ego to think he can get Russ playing at a high level again. I think the best move for the Broncos would be to get a coach in there with a strong opinion on Russ being the guy and a strong enough personality to get the other guys to buy in. Hackett wasn’t the guy, and might have even joined in on the Russ hate to help take some of the heat off of his shitty coaching.
What some people might forget about Russ is how shitty he can play, and has played at times. Russ had no business being in the 2nd Super Bowl against the Patriots. His teamed carried him thru a 4 INT NFC Championship Game.
I don’t think so, personally. I bet Paton gets another chance to hire a head coach. I’m not saying I agree with it, but I’m saying it’s probably the easiest path forward. Get someone who can flip that defense around, and an OC that can craft a game plan that works with Wilson.
I am a strong believer that every GM should get a second HC hire, within reason. The exceptions being cases like Kyle Shanahan (where I would give him a 2nd chance at a GM hire) and a case like Bob Quinn where he clearly held on too long and tied himself to the ship. Had Quinn cut bait after 2019 I would have been willing to give him 1 more coaching hire (which I am happy didn’t happen).