The Denver Summit have fired Brock Tullis as the club’s defensive coordinator, making him the latest coaching departure in a rapid stretch of staff turnover for the franchise.

The move centers on one of the Summit’s top assistant positions and stands out as part of a broader reset within the organization during this Gridiron Standard cycle. The reported buyout tied to Tullis’ departure was roughly $17 thousand, a modest but notable cost attached to the decision as Denver reshapes its coaching structure.

Tullis’ dismissal did not happen in isolation. Denver also moved on from Colton Rigsbee in a separate staff decision during the same window, signaling that the Summit’s changes extend beyond a single coordinator spot. Around the same time, the league also circulated notice that Cross is coming to the DFL, followed by a release identifying Cross as a new hire by Denver Summit.

Taken together, those developments point to a franchise moving quickly to rework key areas of its football operation. What remains publicly clear at this stage is the sequence of decisions rather than the deeper football reasoning behind them. Denver fired Tullis from his post as defensive coordinator, made at least one additional coaching change, and then added a new figure to the staff mix.

For the Summit, the timing puts the spotlight on organizational stability and on how smoothly the coaching transition can be handled from here. Defensive coordinator changes carry obvious weight in any football setting because they affect weekly preparation, scheme installation, and communication across multiple position groups. Even without additional public detail on the reasoning, a change at that level is one of the more consequential moves a team can make short of replacing its head coach or overhauling the roster.

In a league as young and fast-moving as the DFL, staff decisions can also carry outsized importance because teams are still defining their identities while the competition continues to expand. The DFL has grown quickly since its launch, and teams are operating in an environment where league visibility, market pressure, and on-field expectations can change in a hurry. That makes every significant coaching move part football decision, part franchise management story.

Denver’s activity in this cycle fits that pattern. Firing a coordinator is a direct football move, but making multiple changes in close succession also sends a broader message that the organization is willing to act decisively when it believes an adjustment is needed. The hiring of Cross gives the Summit an immediate next step to point to, even if the exact scope of that role was not detailed in the same basic reporting line.

For now, the key confirmed facts are straightforward. Tullis is out as Denver’s defensive coordinator. The Summit are absorbing roughly $17 thousand in buyout cost tied to that move. Another firing followed within the same stretch, and a new hire quickly entered the picture.

That combination makes Denver the clear focal point of this DFL news cycle. While teams across the league continue to manage rosters, coaching staffs, and business decisions in real time, the Summit’s sequence of firings and hiring stands as one of the sharper indicators of how quickly a franchise can pivot in this league.

The next meaningful measure will be whether this round of changes brings greater clarity to Denver’s sideline structure and football direction. What is already certain is that the Summit did not treat the defensive coordinator position as a spot for a gradual wait-and-see approach. They made a firm decision on Tullis, accepted the financial cost that came with it, and continued reshaping the staff almost immediately afterward.