Broncos Name Brian Xanders GM, Dismiss Two Other Execs

Brian Xanders Joined Broncos In '08, Previously Worked For 14 Years With Falcons

The Broncos Thursday promoted Assistant GM Brian Xanders to GM, effective immediately. Xanders has been with the team since May '08, after working with the Falcons for 14 years in player personnel, coaching and football operations. The Broncos dismissed VP/Football Operations Jim Goodman and Assistant GM Jeff Goodman as part of the move (Broncos). In Denver, Jeff Legwold writes the moves continue Broncos Owner Pat Bowlen's "quest to clearly define roles in the team's front office as he moves away from [Mike] Shanahan's 14-year tenure as coach and the team's top football executive." The moves put Bowlen "clearly at the top of the team's corporate flowchart" (ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS, 2/13). Broncos Owner Pat Bowlen: "What I was interested in doing was resetting the way we do business around here. Brian Xanders was what I considered a true general manager." Also in Denver, Jones & Klis notes the moves were a "surprise considering comments Bowlen and McDaniels made after" McDaniels was hired last month. Bowlen last month reiterated statements he made after firing Shanahan that he "didn't anticipate any changes in the personnel department," while McDaniels said that Jim Goodman "would have the final say in personnel decisions." This is the "second overhaul of the Broncos' front office in less than a year after Shanahan fired" former GM Ted Sundquist last March (DENVER POST, 2/13).

POCKET PRESSURE: In Denver, Mark Kiszla writes the Broncos "now go headlong into an uncertain future, riding on training wheels." McDaniels is 32 years old while Xanders is 37, and "by all accounts, they are bright, young football minds." But both are "rookies in high-pressure, high-profile positions" (DENVER POST, 2/13).