John Elway

30 Years Ago, Broncos' John Elway Led A Drive That Became The Drive

... Broncos. Elway found Sewell for a 22-yard gain. He hit Mark Jackson for 20 with a laser-like throw on third and 18. He ran for 20 yards on two scrambles. The Broncos moved to the Browns' 5-yard line with 42 seconds left. On a third and 1, Jackson went in motion, sprinted toward the sideline before making a sudden burst toward the middle of the field. He was open. Elway saw Jackson and released one of his trademark fastballs. These fastballs left marks on receiver's chests. These fastballs mangled fingers. This fastball was moving rapidly toward Jackson's hands. "We needed every bit of concentration that Mark possessed in his body," Fletcher said. "It was a do-or-die. It was for all those guys on the field and on the sidelines. It was for millions of Broncos fans.". Elway is forever the lead actor in The Drive. His starring role always will overshadow Jackson's. This is how history works. The supporting players fade from view. But always remember this: Jackson made a supremely difficult catch look easy. Jackson engulfed the Elway rocket with his body, tumbled on the patchy Ohio grass and ended the 98-yard march. The Broncos ruled overtime, and Elway was on his way to ...

Hiring Of Vance Joseph Reveals The Mindset Of John Elway

... Pittsburgh Steelers (1 st) have all leaned heavily on their defense to win titles in the past decade. And don’t forget that 2013 Seattle Seahawks defense that pounded the Broncos high scoring offense into submission in Super Bowl XLVIII. John Elway sure hasn’t forgotten them. The Broncos rolled into that Super Bowl with Peyton Manning, and the highest scoring offense in the history of the league. They limped home after a 43-8 beating, and Elway set about changing the Broncos makeup completely. He transformed a finesse, offensive scoring machine, into a physical, defensive juggernaut. In 2015, the Broncos offense averaged just 22 points per game, but the defense allowed only 199 yards per game. It really shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, especially when we think back to Elway’s playing career. He had played on teams without much of a supporting cast, and despite being one of the best quarterbacks to ever play the game, he came up short in the biggest game three different times. ...

John Elway Plans To Make Changes To The Coaching Staff, Personnel Department

... better so we’ll look at them and evaluate them and go from there.’. And according to Klis, Broncos Country should expect to see some changes, not just to the “players on the roster, but within the coaching staff and personal department as well.”. Elway expects the best, and that means a Super Bowl championship. When that doesn’t happen, he makes moves. Despite one of the most exciting playoff victories in franchise history, Elway was quick to swap out for Tim Tebow for Peyton Manning. After Denver fell to Seattle in Super Bowl XLVIII, he overhauled the defensive side of the ball and rebuilt it as one of the greatest units in NFL history. When the Broncos bowed out of the playoffs against the Indianapolis Colts at home the next year, Elway cleaned house, moving on from his head coach and his coordinators. What will he do after Gary Kubiak , Trevor Siemian and Co. failed to make the playoffs? Only time will tell, but it’s clear that he’s not happy with the performance of his team. “Didn’t make enough plays late in the season,” Elway said. “Turned the ball over and you just can’t do that. Didn’t play well. That’s the hard part: We just didn’t play well.”. The ...

John Elway Rules Out Assistants For Head-coaching Job; Wade Phillips Talks About His Future

... as a guest of Gil Whiteley and said: “There are no guarantees here, but that’s a coach’s life. We won 24 games in two years and a Super Bowl, and (I) might not have a job.”. A 46-year coaching veteran, Phillips has been a part of nine NFL franchises, including the Broncos in separate stints. When Kubiak arrived in January 2015, the team’s first choice for defensive coordinator was Vance Joseph, then the defensive backs coach for the Bengals. When Cincinnati refused to release him from his contract, however, the Broncos turned to Phillips, who had been out of a job for a year after being fired by the Texans in 2014. Joseph is now the defensive coordinator for the Dolphins and on the Broncos’ list of head coaching candidates. And Phillips is now looking for work. “Hopefully my resume is good enough that I can get another (job),” Phillips told Whiteley. “If not here, somewhere.”. Elway said none of the Broncos’ assistants will be considered for the head coaching vacancy. But some could be promoted. Outside linebacker Von Miller and many of his ...

We're Always Working To Get Better

... especially in the last game and loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, Siemian has shown at times he’s a mediocre starting quarterback at best. For Lynch, the rookie was lost when he had to come in as a reliever for Siemian. An offseason working together should help both improve. Still, don’t be surprised if Elway either trades for a QB, finds one in free agency or even drafts one late. 5 New Year's resolutions for Broncos in 2017. On the offensive line, it seems likely Russell Okung will be gone as his salary increases and a large, $19.5 million guarantee is coming in March. He’s been decent but has also been penalty prone. Donald Stephenson, too, should be gone. Could Elway trade for Joe Thomas? It seems like a bit of a long shot, but you never know. If those two veterans are indeed gone, it could open the door ...

Broncos Can't Flunk Another Offseason

... a pass. Paxton Lynch is a WIP (Work In Progress), and the jury won't have enough evidence to settle on a verdict for years (Hello, Brock.). He certainly wasn't as productive or remarkable as Dak Prescott, who the Broncos had considered, but rejected, as their choice. (He was mine.) In fact, the Cowboys wanted Lynch instead of Prescott, but wouldn't trade now. Lynch is Elway's Guy, and you know what that means for the future. Second selection Adam Gotsis, a defensive lineman, looked more like an Australian Rules player, which he had been, than an NFL player. He was a participant in 16 games with 14 tackles, one fumble recovery, no sacks and no crowd chants of "Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi.' He is as raw as a quandong. Safeties Justin Simmons (3) and Will Parks (6 B) combined for a block-return victory play for the Broncos in New Orleans, were solid backups, and should be starters someday, but not this day. Fullback Andy "Land Shark' Janovich, grabbed at 6 A, was quality until getting hurt twice and going on IR. And Devontae Booker, taken in the fourth round, ran for ...

What Dentists Can Learn From John Elway About Investing

... 1999. As ESPN reports, the owner of the Broncos, Pat Bowlen, offered Elway a 20% stake in his franchise. Elway could buy 10% of the team for $15 million, and another 10% by foregoing a deferred salary of $21 million and becoming a special assistant to Bowlen. [Native Advertisement]. What made the deal even sweeter for Elway was that if he wasn’t happy with the investment, he could sell back his stake two to five years later for $5 million more than his original purchase price plus 8% interest a year. On top of that, he would have first right of refusal to buy any other stake in the team if the Bowlen family wanted to sell to an outside party. But Elway let the offer expire in June of 1999, and instead he pursued a series of private investment opportunities—mostly tech startups, with a Ponzi scheme thrown in—that didn’t pan out. Before last year’s Super Bowl, ESPN published an article titled “How John Elway Missed Out on a Fortune” and used a recent Broncos valuation of nearly $2 billion to calculate a would-be return of ...

Expect Elway To Make Changes

... Trevor came in and did some good things. Really feel pretty good about that position. We think we have two young guys who will continue to get better.’. Siemian struggled while trying to perform beneath a driving rain here Sunday, completing just 17 of 43 passes for 183 yards. His 43.1 passer rating was easily his worst mark of the season. The Broncos’ only touchdown Sunday – their only touchdown in the past two games – came after rookie safety Justin Simmons returned an interception to the Kansas City 6-yard line. There were just two touchdowns scored by the Broncos in their last three games. Those two touchdown drives were of 26 and 6 yards. It doesn't get more pitiful than that. As for the vaunted Broncos defense that was chiefly responsible for bringing the third Lombardi Trophy to Denver last season, it could also use some fresh manpower. The Broncos in particular were no match for Chiefs’ tight end Travis Kelce or flanker/tailback/returner ...

A Familiar To-do List For John Elway This Offseason

... never really clicked since he replaced John Fox and a dazzling defense that couldn't carry the Broncos (9-7) back to the playoffs. Denver is once again the most desirable opening in NFL coaching circles, at least for candidates who can handle the pressure cooker of a win-now roster, win-or-else expectations and a win-from-now-on general manager with a gold jacket from Canton. "It's a great place to come to work and play, but there's always pressure," said team president Joe Ellis, who is in talks to extend Elway's contract beyond this year. After finding his next coach, Elway will embark upon fortifying the trenches where deficiencies led to Denver's first non-playoff season since 2010. The Broncos were built to play from ahead so they could unleash superstar Von Miller and force quarterbacks to throw into the teeth of their "No Fly Zone" secondary featuring Chris Harris Jr. and Aqib Talib. By playing from behind so often, failing to run or stop the run, the Broncos neutralized those strengths. They led the league in pass ...

John Elway, Tony Romo Photographed Together, Only Adding To Qb Rumors

... on John Elway. In John Elway I trust. If he does bring him over, I think Tony Romo will fit good in (offensive coordinator Mike) Mc Coy’s system. It’s a no-huddle, up-tempo offense. I think that it’s gonna be similar to the Cowboys. I think he has Demaryius Thomas and some receiver No. 10 on the other side. I feel like we will win ballgames with Tony Romo or potentially a championship. “At the same time, Paxton Lynch played in a spread offense at Memphis and he can be successful. I think Trevor can be successful. We’ll see what we do. I can’t sit up here and say ‘Bring Tony Romo!’ because I also have two other quarterbacks that are playing really well, too.”. Ware, an impending free agent, urged caution when assessing Romo’s potential with the Broncos. “I just think he (would) be a great fit for the Denver Broncos , but also, we already got two vested guys in Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch,” Ware said. “So you got to think about what type of message you want to send to the team? … Is it a right now thing or do you want to use your vested guys and say, ‘We’re going to build this team or what are we going to do?’ You ...