Broncos set to appoint Packers OC as head coach adding intriguing link to Rodgers

The Denver Broncos are finalizing a deal to hire Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as their new head coach, a source has told the Associated Press.

Hackett’s hiring will bring immediate speculation about the Broncos trying to lure three-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to Denver, perhaps along with his star receiver Devante Adams, who is set to hit free agency in March.

Rodgers, who turned 38 last month in the midst of what’s expected to be his fourth MVP season, is contemplating his future, including retirement, after the Packers’ early exit from the playoffs last weekend when the top-seed was upset at home 13-10 by the San Francisco 49ers.

Hackett, 42, emerged as the front-runner on his own merits, however, which includes his work as Jacksonville’s offensive coordinator from 2016-18 before he went to Green Bay and helped Matt LaFleur win a record 39 games in his first three seasons as head coach.

Hackett, who is the the son of former college and NFL coach Paul Hackett, inherits a young, talented roster in Denver, where he flew in for a second interview on Monday. He was the only one of the finalists to get a second in-person interview in Denver.

General manager George Paton interviewed 10 candidates to replace Vic Fangio, whom he fired after a disappointing 7-10 season, Denver’s sixth consecutive without a playoff berth.

Fangio finished 19-30 in three seasons in Denver, his unremarkable tenure dotted with poor quarterback play and uncreative offenses, all of which negated a stout defense that was Fangio’s calling card.

The Broncos have had 10 starting quarterbacks and no playoff appearances since Peyton Manning’s retirement six years ago, and they are in the market for an upgrade at QB from