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DENVER BRONCOS
Head Coach: John Fox
Exec. VP for
Football Ops. John Elway
GM Brian Xanders
Home Field: INVESCO Field at Mile High
2010 Record: 4-12
2011-12 NFL Season
After posting the worst win/loss record in franchise history last season, the Broncos are looking to get back into the game of winning and have hired on two legit winners to help get them there. New Head Coach John Fox (who took his former team the Carolina Panthers to Super Bowl XXXVIII and the 2005 NFC Championship) was one of five possible choices. Fox was chosen because of his 20+ years experience in the NFL and signed a 4 year contract. Also coming on board this season is Hall of Fame QB John Elway who takes over as Executive Vice President for Football Operations and while Brian Xanders is still the GM, all football related decisions will run through Elway.
The draft will also help to change the Broncos fortunes as they selected Texas A&M monster Von Miller, a 6-2 OLB with 4.42 speed with a 37 inch vertical. "His athleticism at 248 pounds matched up with average starting corners and receivers in the league,” GM Xanders said. But his production, graded off the tape, was so rare. And his mismatch ability; there were tackles he'd run by and they wouldn't touch him."
Other notable draft selections that could make an immediate impact on the roster are FS Rahim Moore who could usurp the free safety position from Renaldo Hill; S Quinton Carter could take over for the injury riddled Darcel McBath. Look for Carter to bring his hard hitting to the NFL and Oklahoma DE Jeremy Beal who was a 3-year starter that collected 28 sacks to help pace the defense.
Outlook: Denver has shored up a bunch of soft positions in the draft and has anywhere from 4 to 6 rookies that will make an immediate impact. The team is also very deep at the QB position and could trade Orton or Quinn for another impact player leaving Tim Tebow to run the team. With a defensive minded head coach, look for the team defense to move from last in 2010 to top 10 this season, John Fox has done it before.
Denver Archives
The Denver Broncos
are a franchise that can be epitomized in two words… John Elway. The Hall of Fame quarterback
was one of the guys that was in the same class as Dan
Marino and Charles Barkley where they were incredible
players but never got the ring that would’ve made
their careers complete. Elway was one of the guys mentioned
with them until the 1997 season. In 1997 the team finished
the regular season with a 12-4 record that got them second
in the division and a playoff berth, their 12 th in franchise
history. In the first round of the playoffs the Broncos
matched up with the Jacksonville Jaguars who had beaten
the Broncos in the playoff a year earlier. The Broncos
blasted the Jags out of the playoffs with a score of
42-17. In the second round the Kansas City Chiefs who
had split the two games with the Broncos during the regular
season but still won the AFC West. The Broncos barely
got by the Chiefs in front of the hostile Kansas City
crowd by a score of 14-10. The only thing that was standing
between a Super Bowl appearance and the Denver Broncos
were the Pittsburgh Steelers who were the other Wild
Card team to make it into the playoffs from the AFC that
year. The Broncos pulled off another barnburner where
they just slipped past the Steelers by a score of 24-21.
In the Super Bowl the Broncos had to face the defending
Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers who were led by
a Hall of Fame quarterback of their own, Brett Favre.
The game was back and fourth all night and then the quarterback
that could, John Elway sparked his team to victory. In
the third quarter, with the score tied at 17-17, on a
3 rd and six play Elway couldn’t find a receiver
so he scrambled to his right and saw some running room.
Elway then flung his body in the air and is hit by LeRoy
Butler and then hit from the other side by Mark Prior
and helicopters his way past the first down marker. Elway
then got up and started pumping his fist where a lesser
man would’ve taken a play or two off. After that
play the Broncos scored and never looked back winning
the game 31-24. The Broncos won their first Super Bowl
ever and would win the next years Super Bowl where Elway
would be named the MVP and retire on top the way every
great athlete should retire.
Last season the Broncos reached the playoffs for only
the second time since Elway had retired. They did that
by accumulating 10 wins and only six losses. In the first
round of the playoffs the Broncos faced off against the
Indianapolis Colts who were led by NFL co-MVP Peyton
Manning. Manning proceeded to carve the Broncos defense
apart like a Thanksgiving turkey passing for 377 yards
and 5 touchdowns to seal the Broncos fate for the 2003
season.
In the off-season the Broncos changed the face of their
team through just one trade. The Broncos traded away
All-Pro running back Clinton Portis for Redskins cornerback
Champ Bailey. The Broncos let go of key players like
linebacker Ian Gold, The team also lost wide receiver
Ed McCaffrey and tight end Shannon Sharpe who both decided
to retire. Sharpe is regarded as one of, if not the,
greatest tight end of all time. The team did make some
big moves in what seems an all or bust year for the Broncos.
They picked up strong safety John Lynch, who had won
a Super Bowl with Tampa Bay, and defensive tackle Luther
Elliss.
In the draft the Broncos filled some holes that needed
to be filled due to off-season moves are retirements.
With their first round pick the Broncos drafted Miami
linebacker D.J. Williams and with their second round
pick that they got from Washington the Broncos picked
up Oklahoma State tailback Tatum Bell.
On the offensive side of the ball the Broncos are going
to need a running back, quarterback Jake Plummer and
wide receiver Ashley Lelie to step up and have a big
year. The Broncos will also need Plummer and number one
receiver Rod Smith to stay healthy all year to keep their
playoff hopes afloat.
On the defensive side of the ball the Broncos made
a number of upgrades. Champ Bailey gives them a shut
down cornerback that every Super Bowl winning team has
had in the past decade and John Lynch is a future Hall
of Famer that will bring some veteran leadership to the
defense and whatever else he still has left in the tank.
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