If we’ve learned anything about Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton, it’s that when it comes to making changes he thinks will improve his team he’s not going to hesitate.
The first of those big moves came on January 17, just 5 days after the Broncos were blown out by the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card Round in Denver’s first playoff appearance since the 2015.
ESPN’s Jeff Legwold broke the news that Payton had fired Broncos special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica after a season filled with high profile mistakes on special teams.
“Sources confirmed Friday morning Payton has fired special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica,” Legwold wrote. “Kotwica had been hired by Payton, along with Mike Westhoff, to oversee special teams play when Payton was hired last year. Westhoff, who had worked with Kotwica previously with the New York Jets, retired earlier this year due to health concerns.”
The Broncos went 10-7 in 2024 — their first winning season since 2016 — but lost a pair of games due in large part to glaring special teams miscues.
Against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 10, the Broncos had what should have been a game-winning 35-yard field goal by Will Lutz blocked as time expired in a 16-14 loss at Arrowhead Stadium.
“This is on us as coaches,” Payton told reporters after the game.
Then, in Week 16 on the road against the Los Angeles Chargers and with an opportunity to clinch a playoff berth, Broncos cornerback Tremon Smith was called for interference on a fair catch as time was running down in the first half with the Broncos leading 21-10.
The Chargers elected to take a free kick after the penalty and Cameron Dicker kicked a 57-yard field goal to end the half on the way to a 34-27 win. It was the first free kick field goal in the NFL since 1976.
From Army Team Captain to NFL Coaching Career
Kotwica was a linebacker and team captain for Army in the early 1990s before going into service as a helicopter pilot, where he flew helicopter missions in the Iraq War, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Korea before starting his coaching career.
Kotwica broke into the NFL with the Jets, where he spent 7 season and worked his way up to special teams coordinator in 2013 before spending 5 seasons as the special teams coordinator for the Washington Commanders. He was also special teams coordinator for the Atlanta Falcons, returned to Army for a 1-year stint as director of player development in 2021 and spent 1 season with the Minnesota Vikings before he was hired by the Broncos in 2023.
Broncos Were NFL’s Best in Punt Returns
Kotwica did oversee the NFL’s best punt return unit in 2024 at 15.7 yards per return and coached a 2-time NFL All-Pro and 2-time Pro Bowl return specialist in Marvin Mims Jr.
Mims was a second round pick (No. 63 overall) out of Oklahoma in the 2023 NFL draft and blossomed into not just a special teams star but a burgeoning threat at wide receiver in 2024 with 30 receptions for 503 yards and 6 touchdowns. Mims finished the season with 1,105 all-purpose yards.
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