Gary Kubiak the Right Coach for the Broncos, with or Without Peyton Manning

The Denver Broncos have undergone multiple changes over the last two weeks. After losing to the Indianapolis Colts in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs, they’ve changed their head coach and offensive coordinator (they’ll need a new defensive coordinator too).

Another change the Broncos may have to deal with this offseason is at the quarterback position.

Peyton Manning suffered through a thigh injury at the end of the 2014 season, and he’s undecided on his future. The Broncos have been in a Super Bowl window ever since Manning was signed in 2012, but they’ve fallen short of a championship each year.

With an uncertain quarterback situation, the Broncos hired Gary Kubiak as their head coach. He worked as the offensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens in 2014, but Denver’s opening was too tempting to pass up.

Kubiak is the right coach for the Broncos, whether or not Manning returns for 2015. Let’s take a look at why he’s the right man for the job.

WITH MANNING

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

Without question, Manning is the best option for the Broncos at quarterback. A healthy Manning is better than what the Broncos have behind him in Brock Osweiler. A healthy Manning is better than any option via free agency (Mark Sanchez, Jake Locker) or the 2015 NFL draft (Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota).

General manager John Elway is giving Manning some time to consider his options for the future.

“I’m not talking to Peyton about what his plans are because I don’t think he’s ready to talk about it. He may think he isn’t. I just think the more time he can get away, he’ll be able to come away from a decision with the best decision.”

Kubiak’s offense can feature multiple rollouts and bootleg plays. These require a quarterback who can move well outside of the pocket. That’s not exactly the type of quarterback that Manning is, but Kubiak is confident he can build an offense around Manning’s strengths.

“That’s easy to build a playbook for him. He’s been the master at it for many, many years," he said. "This is his time, his decision. I need to be there for him in any way that I can. That’s what I plan on doing.”

According to Woody Paige, from The Denver Post, Manning is likely to return for 2015. So long as he passes his physical in early March, we should see Manning under center once again for the Broncos.

WITHOUT MANNING

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If Manning decides that his playing days are over, the Broncos will go to their backup plan. That plan begins with fourth-year quarterback Brock Osweiler. The Broncos selected Osweiler in the second round of the 2012 NFL draft, and he’s been developing behind Manning ever since.

Elway believes in the young quarterback: "We’re excited about Brock’s progress. He’s been here for three years, and he’s done everything that’s been asked of him. He’s been a tremendous student, he’s worked his tail off—he’s worked his tail off over in the weight room. So if that would be the case [Manning retiring], I do have confidence that Brock can step in."

Elway continued, "You never know. This is a big game. It’s a tough game. And the one thing that Brock has been lacking in the last three years is the fact that he hasn’t gotten a lot of playing time. So I’m confident he can do it, but you know what? The bottom line is he’s going to answer that question when the light comes on."

Osweiler has a frame (6’7”, 240 lbs) similar to that of Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco (6’6”, 235 lbs). Both are tall quarterbacks with rocket arms and the athleticism to keep plays alive with their feet while keeping their eyes downfield.

It’s easy to make the argument that Osweiler’s skill set is a better fit for the bootleg-heavy Kubiak system than Manning's is. Osweiler lacks the experience of Flacco, but he could succeed under Kubiak if the Broncos are forced to roll with the former Arizona State star.

Behind Osweiler, the Broncos could add another quarterback via the NFL draft. This isn’t a strong quarterback class, but players like Bryce Petty (Baylor) or Garrett Grayson (Colorado State) could be options for the Broncos in the third or fourth round of the draft. Neither would be favorites for the starting job if added, but they would give the Broncos more depth at the position.

Zac Dysert will also be in the mix. The strong-armed third-year quarterback spent all of 2014 on the Broncos practice squad.

KUBIAK QUOTES

Jack Dempsey/Associated Press

When he was introduced at Dove Valley as the Broncos' new head coach, Kubiak gave a lot of insight into what this team would look like in 2015. Kubiak has overseen multiple rushing attacks that have amazing success in the NFL. Now that he’s with the Broncos, we could see more of the same.

“We teach gap schemes, we teach zones, we’re going to do what the team does best. We’re going to do what the players do best and this team does best. I think over the last five or six years I’ve been fortunate to have a leading rusher in the league, a leading thrower and a leading receiver.” Kubiak continued, “It’s about fitting your system to what [your players do best]. We’re going to run the Denver Broncos offense, not Gary Kubiak’s offense. We’re going to fit it to our players and what they do best.”

The Broncos have a Super Bowl-or-bust mentality, but Kubiak is not going to shy away from expectations.

“That’s what I want to be a part of; I want to be a part of expectations. I was a part of that the whole time I was here; I was a part of that this past year in Baltimore. That’s one of the reasons I went to Baltimore. I know how much they put into winning each and every year and the expectations that were there.”

Kubiak summarized, “I was a part of Houston establishing some expectations. ... If you’re working in this business, that’s the opportunity you want, to win a championship. You want to be around people where that’s the way they go about business, so I see that as a plus, and that’s something that I welcome and I look forward to.”

SUMMARY

The Broncos had to change if they wanted to get to the next level. The coaching staff has been turned over, and now they’ll look to make another run at the championship in 2015.

A new staff and a new offense means we could see a different type of player sought out by the Broncos in the draft and free agency. Kubiak’s zone-blocking system is reliant on tight ends who can block and offensive linemen who are lighter and quicker.

Elway confirmed that Kubiak is going to have plenty of input on personnel matters.

“We’re going to go through all those meetings. We’re going to have all those meetings, and I guarantee, Gary and I are going to come out of the room with the right decision for the Denver Broncos.”

Elway continued, “Gary’s going to have a great influence on this team and how we shape this team. So yeah, Gary’s going to have a huge influence on that. We’ll get through it. We haven’t had time, it’s been a whirlwind. But we’ll get into the meetings and look at the things, what he’s looking at as far as offensive linemen, defensively, and we’ll get into all those meetings with the coaches. So that’ll be coming up.”

If Manning returns, Kubiak will be able to craft a system that is best for his skill set. If Manning retires, Kubiak will be able to build an offense that helps maintain Osweiler’s confidence.

To step into the future, the Broncos had to look to their past. Elway and Kubiak have been a championship combination before, and they’re looking to share that same type of success again.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via NFL.com or ESPN.com unless otherwise noted. Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac.com. Transaction history provided by ProSportsTransactions.com.