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Gary Kubiak will not coach the Denver Broncos on Thursday night against the San Diego Chargers. In fact, as John Elway said in a news conference, Kubiak will take the rest of the week “to focus on Kubiak.” He will return as the head coach next Monday.
Denver’s special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis will serve as the interim head coach. Elway said this was the least disruptive move in terms of play calling. Offensive coordinator Rick Dennison and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips will control the play calling, respectively.
Elway added that any of the coaches could have stepped in as the interim coach for Thursday’s game. That’s how confident Denver is in the coaching staff.
As Patrick Smyth with the Broncos tweeted, Thursday's game marks the fourth different head coach the team has used when playing in San Diego: Jack Del Rio (2013), John Fox (‘14), Kubiak (‘15) and DeCamillis (‘16).
DeCamillis has worked closely with Kubiak in terms of game management and with Mitch Tanney on the analytics. DeCamillis is married to the daughter of Broncos Ring of Famer Dan Reeves.
Elway: making DeCamillis the interim coach was the "least disruptive." Elway says DeCamillis has worked closely in game management w/ Kubiak
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) October 10, 2016
Elway also announced that Kubiak was on his way home as the news conference began. Kubiak was sent to an area hospital with what the organization called “flu-like” symptoms after Denver’s 23-16 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Kubiak was kept overnight for further tests and observations.
Earlier Monday it was announced by the team that Kubiak was diagnosed with complex migraine syndrome. The good news is Kubiak is on his way home and will get the rest of the week to focus on himself. Elway said he would not get into the details of Kubiak’s health.
"Scary going in, but very excited coming out as far as the prognosis," Elway told the media. “"Sometimes these situations are bad, but something really good comes out of it."
Elway: "Sometimes these situations are bad, but something really good comes out of it."
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) October 10, 2016