Once upon a time John Fox was the leader of the Panthers den, but he’s officially traded in his cat claws for hooves as he steps up to a challenge in Denver as head coach of the Broncos. The Panthers fired Fox after the regular season thanks to his part in the team’s disastrous 2-14 season record, and now Fox will have his work cut out for him for at least one more year as he replaces Josh McDaniels as the new head coach of the Broncos.

Fox had his up and downs in Carolina, still standing as a prolific coach even despite the Panthers’ many slip-ups over the last year. John Elway is willing to take a chance on the coach, and he’s counting on Fox to turn around the Broncos just like he turned around the Panthers in 2002, when he led the team from a 1-15 season to Super Bowl competitors.

Elway quickly hired Fox upon interviewing him earlier this week. He told NFL.com, “The one thing I saw in John [is] he had great football wisdom. And I think that comes with the experience that he has. But not only does he have it on the defensive side, but overall his football wisdom is what won us over.”

With the Broncos coming off a franchise-worst 4-12 record, John Fox has a lot of work to do in Denver.

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