ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — To have watched Davis Webb play as a true freshman for Texas Tech is to be surprised that just ten years later he has exchanged his helmet for a whistle.
Fresh out of Prosper, Texas, where he was a tall, gangly, dual-threat, 4-star quarterback, Webb in the second half of his 2013 freshman season for the Red Raiders had six games of at least 300 yards, including 415 against Iowa State, 462 against West Virginia, 425 on 45 of 71 passing against Oklahoma State, and 4 touchdowns with zero interceptions and 403 yards in a win against Arizona State to be named the Holiday Bowl MVP.
Ten years later, after a six-season, one-start NFL career, Webb is the quarterbacks’ coach for the Denver Broncos.
“It was pretty surreal to have it go that fast but I’ve been preparing for this for a very long time so hopefully it’s been pretty smooth,’’ Webb said Wednesday afternoon following the Broncos’ minicamp practice at Centura Health Training Center. “This was going to be a one-and-done deal. I really wanted this job bad and if I got it, I was going to roll with it. If I didn’t, I was going to start playing and be a free agent (quarterback.)”
At 28 years old, Webb is six years younger than the primary quarterback he coaches, Russell Wilson. At 6-foot-5, Webb is also six inches taller than Wilson. Can a tall coach teach a not-so-tall quarterback?
“The one thing about Russell he’s been able to do it for so long,’’ Webb said. “And he’s found so many areas of the spots of the pocket to throw the football or different arm angles that communicating with him has been pretty smooth. My freshman year watching Baker Mayfield do it, as a shorter guy was pretty impressive and he’s continued to do it on throughout his career.
“The rest of the guys I’ve been with have been pretty tall. I think Russell’s ability to get in and out of the pocket, take shots down the field, operationally underneath, is pretty impressive.”
Webb is getting Wilson at a time when the latter could use some coaching reassurance. Wilson was first an ascending player in the NFL, then a Super Bowl champion, then a perennial Pro Bowler and top 10-rated quarterback in his first ten seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. Friction with Seattle management and coach Pete Carroll preempted Wilson’s trade last year to the Broncos.
Wilson then suddenly struggled. He went 4-11 as a starter, finishing 27th in passer rating.
“I think every great player learns from their mistakes and the great ones don’t make them again,’’ Webb said. “And they continue to get better and I think Russell each and every day has approached it like it’s the most important day and it shows. He’s really attacked this offense. It’s a new language for him. He’s technically had to learn three offenses in three years. That’s not easy, I get that. He’s done an unbelievable job, just like the rest of the room.”
Also in the room is Jarrett Stidham, a four-year backup quarterback to the likes of Tom Brady, Cam Newton and Mac Jones in New England and last year, Derek Carr in Las Vegas. Stidham finally got his first two NFL starts in the final two games of last season and played well enough for the Broncos to give him a two-year, $10 million contract.
“I think Jarrett is a very smooth operator,’’ Webb said. “I’ve been a fan of his really since high school at Stephenville (Texas). He had a great career at Baylor and Auburn and when he got an opportunity in New England and Vegas, I thought he took advantage of it. It’s unfair to him that he had to sit behind the greatest quarterback to ever play (Brady) and Derek Carr last year. But when he got his opportunities, he did some really good things and I think he’s continued to grow with the amount of reps he’s gotten.”
Webb is a first-time NFL coach after he passed on the same QB coach opportunity last year with Buffalo.
After that sensational freshman year at Texas Tech, Webb threw for another 452 yards and four touchdowns in his 2014 sophomore opener against Central Arkansas but midway through he suffered a season-ending ankle injury.
His junior season brought Patrick Mahomes II to Texas Tech and Webb spent his senior season as a graduate transfer to California. A third-round draft pick of the Giants in 2017, Webb never got much of a chance in the NFL. He sat behind Eli Manning and Geno Smith as a rookie, then got cut just prior to his second season. That set off a run of practice squad stints with the Jets and Bills.
After the 2021 season, Bills head coach Sean McDermott offered Webb the same quarterbacks coach job he accepted a year later from Broncos’ head coach Sean Payton.
“That would have been with one of my best friends in Josh Allen (and tight ends) Tommy Sweeney, Dawson Knox,’’ Webb said. “All my former teammates and I really wanted to play another year and go with coach (Brian) Daboll to New York and help him build that foundation and once we did that, decided to open back up and this opportunity was presented and I am not looking back.”
It may have helped Webb to move on to his new career after he got his first NFL start for the Giants in the final game of last season. The Giants already had their postseason spot secure, but the Eagles needed a win to secure the No. 1 seed. Webb acquitted himself well despite an understandably conservative game plan, completing 23 of 40 for 168 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions in a 22-16 defeat.
And then came the call from Sean Payton. Why accept the Broncos’ job?
“Get to work with a Gold Jacket quarterback, a Gold Jacket head coach and get to help Russell Wilson get back to where he wants to be,’’ Webb said. “And I think every great athlete has had some sort of great year, off year, above-average year, fantastic year, and I think his consistency throughout his career dating all the way back to college has been pretty phenomenal.”
It’s unusual for someone like Webb and Chris Banjo -- a defensive back and special teams player for the Arizona Cardinals last year and now the Broncos’ assistant special teams coach – to go from player one year and coach the next. Experienced NFL coaches are careful about hiring former players because players don’t understand the long hours and work ethic involved with coaching.
But Payton has complimented both Webb and Banjo on their work ethic.
“I got that from my parents,’’ Webb said. “I’m very thankful. My dad was 35 years Texas high school football coach. So that was instilled in me Day 1. No matter what, you can control two things, your work ethic and your attitude. And I’m taking that to the next job and this has not been a hard transition so far.”
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