Denver Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett started coaching in the NFL in 2006 and aside from a three-year stint at Syracuse from 2010-2012, Hackett’s been in the NFL since then.
Hackett was an offensive coordinator for three NFL teams before he joined the Broncos. He’s been in the league for a while. Games aren’t new to him.
But he’s never been on an NFL sideline as a head coach before.
Hackett will make his head coach debut when Denver faces the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football on Sept. 12.
Will he be nervous?
“No, this isn’t my first game,” Hackett said. “You are still calling the plays and still going through the same process you go through throughout the week. There are just a couple other people you have to talk to without the week. But in the end, it’s a football game.
“In the end, it’s about your preparation. Once you prepare the whole week and you feel great about it, then you’re on autopilot and ready to make adjustments if you need to.”
Hackett does have three preseason games under his belt, but surely that doesn’t feel quite the same as a regular-season debut. The 42-year-old coach ran steps at the Broncos’ stadium before his first-ever preseason game last month.
Monday’s game will be nationally televised on ESPN and ABC.
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