And the first major coaching hire of 2010 has gone down.

The Washington Redskins have reached an agreement in principle with Mike Shanahan to become the next head coach of the organization, according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post.

The parties have come to terms on a five-year deal that will pay Shanahan “approximately the same salary he had during his final contract with the Broncos,” according to Klis. Shanahan had been making roughly $7 million per year while he was in Denver.

The report that Shanahan and the Redskins have reached an agreement comes as no surprise as the two parties have been rumored to be in talks for the past several weeks. Former Redskins head coach Jim Zorn was fired early Monday morning after going 4-12 in his second season with the team.

The Redskins are expected to announce the agreement sometime on Wednesday.

Prior to taking the last year off, Shanahan had spent the previous 14 seasons with the Denver Broncos, where he won two Super Bowls-in 1997 and 1998-and posted a 138-86 record.