Colin Cowherd: Broncos' Nathaniel Hackett 'is not a head coach'
Fox Sports' Colin Cowherd blames the Broncos' underwhelming start on head coach Nathaniel Hackett, whose early season gaffes have drawn criticism.
"Hackett is not a head coach," Cowherd said on his podcast following Denver's 32-23 loss to the Raiders.
The Broncos (2-2) are the NFL's most penalized team, averaging 9.3 per game -- an issue that could be traced to their first-year head coach. Denver has been penalized 37 times -- an average of 71 yards per game.
"We hurt ourselves," said quarterback Russell Wilson when discussing the seven penalties committed by the Broncos against the Raiders. Wilson, who threw for two touchdowns, couldn't overcome the Broncos' sloppy execution, but he tried to remain positive.
"I really loved how the guys battled," he said in the postgame news conference.
Others have a harsher assessment.
"Mike Shanahan was mastermind; Nathaniel Hackett has been scatterbrain," longtime Denver columnist Woody Paige wrote in contrasting the former Denver head coach to the current one.
Shanahan won two Super Bowls in Denver and beat the Raiders 21 times. Hackett's team lost to the previously winless Raiders. Rarely has a .500 team received such harsh criticism.
"This team is a disaster," Cowherd said.
More must-reads: