'A hot mess': Denver columnist tears into Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett

Although the Broncos are only 1-1, Denver Post veteran columnist Mark Kiszla believes Hackett is off  to the worst start for a coach in team history.

“I’ve covered the Broncos since 1983, bearing witness to more than 500 games for The Denver Post, and thought I’d seen it all. But I’ve never witnessed a hot mess like this,” Kiszla writes.

That’s a hot take because the Broncos' previous head coaches, Vance Joseph and Vic Fangio, failed record-wise and as crowd-pleasers. Fangio finished his Denver tenure with a 19-30 record. Joseph went 11-21.

Added Kiszla: "With Grade A trolling of rookie head coach Nathaniel Hackett’s utter lack of organization, the home crowd at the stadium mocked their beloved Broncos’ inability to snap the football on time by loudly counting down the play clock. What is going on here? And how does Hackett fix it?"

After Joseph led the Broncos to a 3-1 start in 2017, they went on an eight-game losing streak. Denver wasn't much better the next season, finishing 6-10. They were one of the most-penalized teams in the NFL between 2017-18.

The team improved slightly with Fangio. Penalties decreased and Denver had a top-three defense in 2021. Fangio’s offense is what led to his downfall, as the Broncos never cracked the top 20 under him.  

The Broncos thought they had fixed the offense in the offseason, adding Hackett, a former Packers offensive coordinator, and nine-time Pro Bowl QB Russell Wilson. 

Although he's off to a slow start, Wilson should play well. He's 105-54-1 as an NFL starter. Hackett, however, is unproven as a head coach, and through two weeks, his offense is 24th in scoring.