In the end, there was too much controversy and not enough wins. The combination led to the end of the brief but stormy head coaching stint of Josh McDaniels, who was fired Monday afternoon.

The Broncos named running backs coach Eric Studesville the interim coach, the team said. Studesville's promotion will affect the team's game-day play calling, as McDaniels had been in charge of play calls.

Although the Broncos must conduct a thorough search process to conform with the NFL's Rooney Rule that states a team must interview a minority candidate for head coaching opening, Air Force's Troy Calhoun figures to be among the candidates.

Calhoun would help restore integrity to a Broncos franchise whose image has been damaged by their recent videogate scandal.

While McDaniels' losing record — the Broncos have dropped 17 of their past 22 games since a 6-0 start to the 2009 season — questionable personnel moves and emotional swings didn't help, it's the integrity assaults the organization has taken in the aftermath of their recent videotape violation that has owner Pat Bowlen and chief operating officer Joe Ellis searching for new leadership in their football operations department.

Although Bowlen and Ellis, along with an NFL investigative team, determined McDaniels was unaware that Broncos video coordinator Steve Scarnecchia broke a coveted "integrity-of-the-game" policy by taping a portion of the San Francisco 49ers' walkthrough practice on Oct. 30 in London, the coach's failure to report the incident has been deemed unforgivable.

McDaniels admitted Scarnecchia had told him about taping the 49ers' practice later on Oct. 30 at the team hotel but said he refused to watch the tape. McDaniels then said he moved on to preparations for the next day's game against the 49ers and didn't give the video infraction a second thought.

The league did slap McDaniels with a $50,000 fine for not reporting the incident. The team was also docked $50,000 but the punishment could have been much worse had Bowlen and Ellis not first come forward to the league.

In 2007, the New England Patriots were fined a combined $750,000 and forfeited a first-round draft pick for what the league determined had been multiple videotaping violations over a number of years.

Scarnecchia was part of the Patriots' video department from 2001-05. He was a close friend of McDaniels, who also joined the Patriots in 2001 in an entry level coaching position.

Although McDaniels was essentially absolved by the league of participating in the video violation, his past connections with the Patriots, and his failure to report the incident has raised widespread suspicions to the point Bowlen and Ellis fear the integrity damage to the Broncos' franchise has been indelible.

On Nov. 29, Bowlen released a statement that said: "This has been a very trying and disappointing season for all of us. We haven't had the success we had hoped to achieve. Josh McDaniels is the head coach of the Broncos, and you always strive for stability at that position. However, with five games left in the 2010 season, we will continue to monitor the progress of the team and evaluate what's in the best interest of this franchise."

Bowlen had reconsidered his stance earlier that day during an interview with FanHouse.com when he was quoted as saying: "I am not interest in making a coaching change."

"The statement Pat Bowlen released on Monday (Nov. 29) is indicative of his position," Ellis told The Denver Post last week.

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