"Anything else?"

For years, Mike Shanahan closed each of his news briefings with those two simple words.

He did again Wednesday, in his farewell address to media, Broncos assistant coaches, staffers and front-office personnel who had gathered to hear his final thoughts about the end of his 21-year tenure in Denver.

But, no, there was nothing more to say, for now or the near future, until Shanahan finds another landing spot in his NFL journey, even while questions remain about the exact reasoning behind his exit from the Broncos.

Owner Pat Bowlen framed it as a "historic change" in the Broncos franchise but was less precise on the reason he opted to sever ties with his good friend with "Hall of Fame credentials."

"I think it was time for the organization to move on and for Mike to move on," Bowlen repeated in different ways various times, stressing the need for a "different direction."

"I have no regrets in making that decision," he added, saying 21 years with the Broncos, including 14 as coach, "is about enough."

The meeting in which the two parted ways Tuesday lasted mere minutes.

It was far removed from the subject matter Shanahan expected when he was summoned to Bowlen's office for the umpteenth time.

"I wasn't really sure," Shanahan said of the anticipated topic du jour. "Maybe lunch."

Certainly, job security wasn't in the forefront of Shanahan's thoughts.

Bowlen's message apparently was straightforward: He wanted to go in a different direction and was letting his good friend of two-plus decades go.

"I think if you understand sports, you really don't know what is going to happen," Shanahan said when asked whether he had an inkling he might get this type of news this off-season. "I wasn't really sure. . . . But I think it did take me a bit by surprise. And I can understand the reasoning behind it."

The owner denied he requested any particular staffing moves from Shanahan, especially as it relates to the beleaguered defensive side of the ball, where the staff almost certainly will not be retained.

By contrast, the offensive staff likely will be kept intact, to some degree.

"I don't think there were conditions that would have kept Mike here. . . . It wasn't, 'If you do this, that or something else . . .' " Bowlen said.

With Shanahan having been on the other side of the desk countless times making similarly tough decisions, there was little discussion or seemingly rancor from either side when the decision was verbalized by the Broncos owner.

"It was harder on him to tell me than it was for me to accept it because I have been in those shoes before," Shanahan said. "It is tough, especially with the great relationship we have had over the years. It lasted about five minutes. And I think part of the reason why is because we both would have broke down."

That point was driven home when during their respective news conferences, Shanahan and Bowlen teared up at the first mention of their tightknit bond the past two decades.

Still, Shanahan maintained, "I have no problem because he's the best owner in sports."

The timing, though, isn't ideal.

"It is hard when you think that you are not too far off," the longtime coach said.

Shanahan confessed that while the team hit a lull after the 2005 season AFC Championship Game, the Broncos had been rebuilt to the point he felt as good about the current team as any he has had the past five or six years.

"It does hurt," Shanahan said. "But tough times don't last. Tough people do. That is life."

Bowlen said he'd been thinking about making a move "for a while."

"I don't think it's been a long time since I've been pondering it. At some point in time you reach a decision in your own mind. And I haven't been thinking about this throughout the season. 'Well, am I going to keep Mike or fire Mike?' That has not been the process," Bowlen said.

"As we got through the last game and I looked back on the season and I looked back at our relationship, a lot of things, it was time to move on."

The Broncos finished with a historic collapse, losing a three- game lead with three remaining to finish 8-8. But Bowlen refused to speculate as to whether making the playoffs would have spared Shanahan, who's 24-24 since 2005.

But Bowlen noted, "This isn't about one loss or one season."

Shanahan concurred.

"We didn't win for the last three years. . . . You get judged by your performance, and I didn't get the job done. That's the bottom line. Your job is to win and to win championships, and we have not won a championship in a while."

Bowlen nonetheless went out of his way to praise the job Shanahan had done, even recently.

And there was no indication the owner believed the coach was spread too thin with duties as executive vice president of football operations also on his agenda.

Bowlen at one point proclaimed, "I run the show." And in the end, it was his prerogative to program that show in any fashion he sees fit.

"I can't explain to you guys," Bowlen said, when pressed on his vague explanations behind the firing.

"I'm an owner. That's what I do. I'm here every day. That's my job. So I have to operate on my instincts. So it's hard for me to explain . . . why my instincts are like they are. I may end up regretting the decision. But right now, I'm very comfortable with (it)."

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