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Two months after blocked field goal, Broncos fire special teams coach Ben Kotwica
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- Two months after blocked field goal, Broncos fire special teams coach Ben Kotwica
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The Denver Broncos have fired special teams coordinator Ben Kotwica, according to a report from NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo.
This is a somewhat surprising move given that the Broncos ' special teams units ranked high in several categories this season and head coach Sean Payton has repeated noted the club's turnaround on ST over the last two seasons.
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The team's most notable special teams blunder came in Week 10 against the Kansas City Chiefs when Denver lost 16-14 after a blocked field goal . Kansas City had identified Alex Forsyth as a weakness on the field goal unit and the Chiefs exploited that weakness to block the kick.
Payton defended Forsyth after the incident and instead pointed to the coaching staff.
"This isn't on the player," Payton said in November . "This is on all of us. This is on us as coaches."
Broncos returner Marvin Mims was named a Pro Bowler and All-Pro this season after leading the NFL with 15.7 yards per punt return, and kicker Wil Lutz tied a franchise record with 31 successful field goals. Riley Dixon ranked 10th with 42.0 net yards per punt and sixth with 33 punts downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line this season.
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Two days after the blocked field goal in Kansas City, assistant head coach Mike Westhoff -- who helped oversee the special teams units -- stepped down from his position due to health concerns . Kotwica won't return in 2025, either.
Chris Banjo , Denver's assistant special teams coach, has interviewed for the San Francisco 49ers ' special teams coordinator role . Banjo could be an in-house candidate for the Broncos, but the name to watch is Darren Rizzi.
Rizzi served as the New Orleans Saints ' special teams coordinator under Payton from 2019.2021. After Payton left the Saints, Rizzi was promoted to assistant head coach and special teams coordinator. He served as interim head coach and went 3-5 after New Orleans fired Dennis Allen in 2024.
The Saints are now seeking a full-time head coach, seemingly making Rizzi available. If hired, Rizzi certainly wouldn't be the first ex-Saint to follow Payton to Denver.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Two months after blocked field goal, Broncos fire special teams coach Ben Kotwica
