ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — When Gary Kubiak announced he was stepping down from his role as the Broncos' head coach, he vowed he would find another outlet for his dedication.
"I'm getting out of coaching, but I have a lot to give," said Kubiak at his Jan. 2 retirement press conference. "I'm going to find something else to do and I'm going to wake up with that same passion and do that, just like I've coached for the last 20-something years. It's time for me to step away from the coaching field."
Just seven months later, Kubiak has found his next endeavor.
Kubiak, who led the Broncos to a Super Bowl 50 win in Feb. 2016, will rejoin the Broncos as a senior personnel advisor.
"It's an honor for me to continue to be part of this great organization," Kubiak said. "John [Elway] and I talked long ago about any opportunity like this, and I'm very happy to be able to contribute on the personnel side.
"I said when I left that I still wanted to be involved in football. This gives me an opportunity to be involved with the game, and I'm excited to get to work."
EVP/GM John Elway, who agreed to a new five-year contract Monday, said Kubiak will be based in Texas but will travel to Denver for "various personnel meetings."
"With as much experience as he has evaluating players, Gary's going to be a tremendous resource for our personnel department," Elway said. "He'll primarily help on the college side and assist us in free agency as well.
The former head coach is believed to be the first individual in Broncos' history to represent the team as a player, coach and personnel staff member. Kubiak dressed for 119 games in nine seasons as a Broncos quarterback -- including five starts -- and he served as the Broncos' offensive coordinator from 1995-2005.
Kubiak then returned as head coach ahead of the 2015 season.
At the time, he tried to hire current Head Coach Vance Joseph to serve as his defensive coordinator, but the Broncos' interview request was declined by the Cincinnati Bengals. Joseph served as Kubiak's defensive backs coach in Houston from 2011-2013, and the two remain in regular communication.
Kubiak helped the Broncos to the second-most wins in the NFL in his two seasons as head coach, and no coach in team history had more victories in his first two seasons than Kubiak.
In 2015, he became the fourth person in NFL history to lead his team to a Super Bowl win in his first season. He remains the only head coach to win a Super Bowl with the team for which he used to play.
After a health scare following the Broncos' Week 5 game against the Falcons, however, Kubiak missed Denver's ensuing game against the Chargers.
Kubiak later said he was unable to dedicate the necessary energy to his job as the season progressed.
"I've had my routine for a long time," Kubiak said in January. "I've always taken a lot of pride in coaching a football team, being there for the players, being there for the coaches, being there for the organization, doing a game plan and calling some plays on Sunday. I've always taken a lot of pride in the fact that I could do all of those things. This year I haven't been able to do that. It's been tough.
"For the first time, I've had to tell myself, 'Hey, you can't do that anymore.' I've looked at a lot of things. How to do this different or how to do that different. The bottom line is that is the way I'm wired. When I do something, that's the way I'm going to go about it. I have struggled big time this year."
Kubiak's new role will afford him the opportunity to remain in the NFL realm without the demands of a head-coaching role.
And with his expertise, the Broncos gain another valuable contributor in the scouting department.
After six Super Bowl appearances and three world championships with the Broncos as a player and coach, it should come as no surprise that Gary Kubiak will be doing his best to help the Broncos win another ring.
