Phrases like "meteoric rise" have been uttered heavily over this past week to describe Brandon Staley's very quick ascension in this league from position coach to coordinator to head coach in a five-year span.
But to get insight on Staley, we went to someone who knows him best.
Denver Broncos head coach, Vic Fangio.
Fangio gave Staley his first shot in the league as an outside linebackers coach for the Chicago Bears in 2017 serving on Fangio's defensive staff as he was the Bears defensive coordinator at the time. The pair spent three seasons together under two teams before Staley became the Rams DC last season.
Here's more from Fangio on what the Bolts are getting in Staley:
"An Excellent Football Coach"
Despite his recent work with defenses, Fangio said Staley's well-rounded football acumen will greatly benefit him at this next level. Additionally, his insatiable appetite to always learn more keeps him at the forefront of trends in the game.
"They're getting an excellent football coach, first and foremost. The guy's very knowledgeable about the game; both sides of the ball. He spends a lot of time studying football besides just coaching his position like he did for us (in Denver) and in Chicago. He's always looking at the big picture of football and always looking at new things and trying to stay on top of anything that might be developing in the NFL or in the football world, for that matter."
On Staley's First Gig in the Pros
Check out some photos of Brandon Staley's previous coaching stops that led him to be named the 17th head coach in Chargers history.
From 2006-2016, Staley spent the time between different jobs at various colleges building his coaching resume. But it was in 2017 when Fangio brought him to the NFL. They spent two seasons together in Chicago before Fangio brought him to Denver.
"We were looking for a young guy to hire in that position that was gonna work with me for the first year or so. He did that. He impressed me in the interview and I think he's got really good knowledge and that knowledge was obvious when I interviewed him. He was hungry to learn more and get to the next level. I just felt like during the interview with him, he was what I was looking for and we hired him. He's progressed nicely and quickly as we've all seen."
On Staley's "Why" & Penchant for Innovation
According to Fangio, one of Staley's key skills is wanting to explain the "why" behind his plays and philosophies to his players.
Along with that, Fangio further explained the reasoning behind Staley's penchant for wanting to always be on the cutting edge.
"He's kind of a cerebral guy. He's up to date on relating to players. He's calm and patient, doesn't get flustered. In his relations with players, he always tries to show them the reasons why behind the things he's trying to do with them.
"(Being innovative is) something he's always done in his career even when he was coaching at the lower levels of college football. They have access to a lot of video from the NFL and you could tell he was studying that. You could tell he was studying our defenses when I was in San Francisco years ago … He tries to stay ahead of the curve and be on top of anything and everything that's new out there."
Oh, About that Meteoric Rise…
Get an inside look at the Staley's first day as part of the Bolt fam.
Knowing Staley as well as he does, Fangio wasn't surprised to see him ascend so quickly. In fact, he likened Staley's quick rise to his life, one that's been filled with perseverance.
"Brandon's beaten a lot of odds throughout his life and this is another one. I saw when he was getting three or four (head coaching) interviews that it was a strong possibility that he would land one of them. I knew the people doing the interviewing would be very, very impressed with him. Although it's a small body of work in the NFL, it's been an impressive body of work. I think he's gonna do a great job with the Chargers."
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