Shocker! Mike Shanahan fired by Denver Broncos

Shock waves reverberated throughout professional football as Denver Bronco owner Pat Bowlen fired head coach Mike Shanahan.

He was known as a genius, a mastermind and, yes, a Super Bowl champion. Shockingly, though, Mike Shanahan has a new title: Unemployed coach.



Shanahan became the latest and most stunning victim of the NFL coaching purge, fired Tuesday by the Denver Broncos after a late-season collapse knocked the team out of the playoffs for the third straight year.

Denver has had only one postseason victory since John Elway retired in 1999 following back-to-back championships.

Shanahan finishes with an enviable 146-91 over 14 seasons in Denver, including playoffs. However, his final game was an uncharacteristic 52-21 loss to San Diego with the division title on the line.

The Broncos' defense gave up 448 points, third worst in the NFL, including 112 during the three-game collapse at the end.

It was ranked 29th in yards allowed and tied for last in the NFL with a minus-17 turnover margin.

Maybe the final straw was the historic collapse at the end of this season that saw Denver becoming the first team since divisional play started in 1967 to blow a three-game lead with three games left.

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