One coaching vacancy is filled.
The Broncos on Wednesday hired former University of Texas-El Paso head coach Sean Kugler to coach their offensive line, an NFL source confirmed.
Kugler, a New York native, has coached at the college and professional level for 24 years and served as the offensive line coach at Boise State in 2006 when former Bronco Ryan Clady starred at tackle. Boise State, coached by Chris Petersen that year, went 13-0 and defeated Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl.
Kugler was preceded at Boise State by Chris Strausser, who was part of the staff that recruited Clady. Strausser, hired last year as Denver’s assistant offensive line coach, was previously the associate head coach/offensive line at the University of Washington under Petersen.
A former offensive lineman himself, Kugler signed with the Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 1989 and had a brief stint in the now-defunct World League of American Football in 1991.
Kugler began his coaching career in 1990 at the high school level in Florida, before spending eight seasons as a position coach at UTEP. In 2001 he joined the NFL, coaching the tight ends and later the offensive line for the Detroit Lions for five seasons.
One year at Boise State (assistant head coach/offensive line) was followed by three (2007-09) with the Buffalo Bills, where he worked with nine-time Pro Bowl tackle Jason Peters, and three more as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive line coach (2010-12), helping them to Super Bowl XLV.
Kugler stepped down as UTEP’s head coach after an 0-5 start this season.
Former Broncos offensive line coach Jeff Davidson was one of six assistant coaches fired Monday after the Broncos’ closed out their first losing season since 2010 and quickly sought a “culture change.” The longtime offensive line coach was hired in 2017 was part of Mike McCoy’s offensive staff and it seemed inevitable that the team would move on from Davidson when it fired McCoy after Week 11.
