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iknowftbll
Well-Known Member
...This team has:
- Posted a 58-22 record for a win percentage of .725. That's just a tick north of going 11-4-1 five straight seasons. By comparison the Broncos went 36-44 in the five years before Elway's return, including one winning season (9-7 in 2006), no playoff appearances, and a dismal 4-12 record in 2010.
- Reached the divisional round of the playoffs every season. In four of those years it was courtesy of a first round bye, and in 2011 came as a result of an inspired win over the defending conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers. To give you an idea of how good that is, in the AFC aside from the Broncos just the Patriots and Bengals have reached the playoffs in each of the last 5 years. In the NFC the Packers are the only team to have reached the playoffs in each of those years. That puts the Broncos as one of four years with such a streak (and the Pats and Packers go back prior to 2011). That's a pretty elite accomplishment.
- Posted a 6-4 record in the playoffs, including two wins over the consensus power brokers of this era of football, the New England Patriots, two wins over another of the more dominant teams of the last 10 years in the Pittsburg Steelers, and a win in the first-ever playoff showdown between the Broncos and Chargers. While 6-4 also includes ugly losses, it's a lot better than, say...0-5 in that same stretch. That would be the Bengals I'm talking about. Or how about the 1-2 record the Chiefs have posted? I'll take the 6-4.
- Reached the Super Bowl twice. While that first one was one of the most forgettable Super Bowls ever it has only served to make the second one that much sweeter. And even with the ugly game with the Seahawks, it's still a Super Bowl run, something that doesn't come along every season. Also, two other teams, the Patriots and Seahawks, have reached the Super Bowl twice in that same span and along with the Broncos both went 1-1 in the Super Bowl. It's hard to reach the Super Bowl twice in a short window, much less win it twice. These are three great teams for doing it.
- Become a top free agent destination. Peyton Manning. Demarcus Ware. TJ Ward. Aqib Talib. Emanuel Sanders. Wes Welker. Evan Mathis. Darian Stewart. Owen Daniels. These guys all made a huge impact in their time with the Broncos and Elway is a big part of why guys like these want to play for the Broncos. Elway is likely a big reason why top shelf FAs will continue to want to play for the Broncos even after Manning leaves the Broncos. Aside from the headline grabbing FAs that Elway has brought in, he's also brought in some serious talent that was overlooked elsewhere. Pot Roast and Brandon Marshal come to mind. Darian Stewart was an afterthought when he signed with Denver. Elway has an eye for players that can come in and contribute, even if other teams have overlooked them or outright given up on them.
Look, even before the Super Bowl win it was evident Elway had become one of the league's top executives. But winning Super Bowl 50 has sealed it. Had the Broncos not won that game or failed to reach it, a lot of sports media would question Elway's success with the Broncos. Now they have to acknowledge this is easily one of the most profoundly good organizations in the NFL and beyond that, all of professional sports.
We'll never forget how John Elway delivered the Broncos 2 Super Bowl wins when he suited up as the QB of the Denver Broncos. And now he has delivered us a third as he's suited up (see what I did there) as the team's top executive. And despite a challenging off season ahead, there is no doubt in my mind Elway is going to see to it the 2016 Broncos and those that will follow are going to be contenders as well.
This is a good time to be a Broncos fan.
- Posted a 58-22 record for a win percentage of .725. That's just a tick north of going 11-4-1 five straight seasons. By comparison the Broncos went 36-44 in the five years before Elway's return, including one winning season (9-7 in 2006), no playoff appearances, and a dismal 4-12 record in 2010.
- Reached the divisional round of the playoffs every season. In four of those years it was courtesy of a first round bye, and in 2011 came as a result of an inspired win over the defending conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers. To give you an idea of how good that is, in the AFC aside from the Broncos just the Patriots and Bengals have reached the playoffs in each of the last 5 years. In the NFC the Packers are the only team to have reached the playoffs in each of those years. That puts the Broncos as one of four years with such a streak (and the Pats and Packers go back prior to 2011). That's a pretty elite accomplishment.
- Posted a 6-4 record in the playoffs, including two wins over the consensus power brokers of this era of football, the New England Patriots, two wins over another of the more dominant teams of the last 10 years in the Pittsburg Steelers, and a win in the first-ever playoff showdown between the Broncos and Chargers. While 6-4 also includes ugly losses, it's a lot better than, say...0-5 in that same stretch. That would be the Bengals I'm talking about. Or how about the 1-2 record the Chiefs have posted? I'll take the 6-4.
- Reached the Super Bowl twice. While that first one was one of the most forgettable Super Bowls ever it has only served to make the second one that much sweeter. And even with the ugly game with the Seahawks, it's still a Super Bowl run, something that doesn't come along every season. Also, two other teams, the Patriots and Seahawks, have reached the Super Bowl twice in that same span and along with the Broncos both went 1-1 in the Super Bowl. It's hard to reach the Super Bowl twice in a short window, much less win it twice. These are three great teams for doing it.
- Become a top free agent destination. Peyton Manning. Demarcus Ware. TJ Ward. Aqib Talib. Emanuel Sanders. Wes Welker. Evan Mathis. Darian Stewart. Owen Daniels. These guys all made a huge impact in their time with the Broncos and Elway is a big part of why guys like these want to play for the Broncos. Elway is likely a big reason why top shelf FAs will continue to want to play for the Broncos even after Manning leaves the Broncos. Aside from the headline grabbing FAs that Elway has brought in, he's also brought in some serious talent that was overlooked elsewhere. Pot Roast and Brandon Marshal come to mind. Darian Stewart was an afterthought when he signed with Denver. Elway has an eye for players that can come in and contribute, even if other teams have overlooked them or outright given up on them.
Look, even before the Super Bowl win it was evident Elway had become one of the league's top executives. But winning Super Bowl 50 has sealed it. Had the Broncos not won that game or failed to reach it, a lot of sports media would question Elway's success with the Broncos. Now they have to acknowledge this is easily one of the most profoundly good organizations in the NFL and beyond that, all of professional sports.
We'll never forget how John Elway delivered the Broncos 2 Super Bowl wins when he suited up as the QB of the Denver Broncos. And now he has delivered us a third as he's suited up (see what I did there) as the team's top executive. And despite a challenging off season ahead, there is no doubt in my mind Elway is going to see to it the 2016 Broncos and those that will follow are going to be contenders as well.
This is a good time to be a Broncos fan.