Read the rest of the article here:
Link to Rocky Mountain News article
Link to Rocky Mountain News article
He no longer is the little boy who wandered off on his own when he was 31/2 and spent several hours lost in the bowels of Florida Field until a security officer finally found him and reunited him with his panicked father.
And he has come a long way from the gangly teen who used to run fly patterns alongside Broncos receivers Rod Smith and Ed McCaffrey during the summer.
At 28, Kyle Shanahan is all grown up, physically and professionally. And today, when the Houston Texans start minicamp, he'll step on the field as the youngest offensive coordinator in the NFL. Those who know him best say there's no question he was born to coach.
"I saw it in my son (David, an assistant with the Kansas City Chiefs) just like I saw it in Kyle," said new Texans offensive line coach Alex Gibbs, who held a similar position in Denver under Mike Shanahan. "Mike had no chance to even move him in another direction. There was no way."
That's not to say the family didn't try.
Peggy Shanahan, Mike's wife and Kyle's mother, said they hoped their only son might choose golf or a legal degree.
"He's a real good arguer, so when he was real young, we started saying, 'lawyer,' and pushing in that direction," Peggy Shanahan said. "It just didn't work out."
And when Dad took his young son to the golf course, Kyle would hit one or two balls and sit down.
Even though he cried when his father was fired by the Raiders and lived a vagabond life, with six moves by the time he was 15, Kyle insisted he wanted to be a coach and, more specifically, an NFL coach.
"We finally gave up and said, 'OK, do what you want. You've lived this life forever. You know how hard it is,' " Peggy said.
Thus, Kyle this season will oversee players such as Chris Brown, a former University of Colorado running back and only a year younger, and quarterback Matt Schaub, two years his junior.
The age factor hardly worries Kyle.
"People make a big deal about it, but personally, I feel my age is my No. 1 asset. If you don't know what you're doing and players realize that, it doesn't matter how old you are, it's going to be miserable for you," Kyle said. "The fact that I'm younger and do know what I'm doing gives me an advantage. I wouldn't trade my age for anything."