John Elway’s time in Denver coming to an end
After being involved with the team in some capacity for more than two decades, it appears that John Elway’s time with the Denver Broncos will finally come to an end. A report from Chris Tomasson in the Denver Gazette revealed that Elway will no longer have a contractual role with the team.
The Broncos then confirmed that Elway’s contract was set to end at the start of the new league year, which began in March.
While the news may not come as a big surprise to some of us — as it seemed like Elway’s role diminished as the years went on — it will certainly be a shakeup for the entire Broncos organization and fanbase.
Elway is essentially a god up in Denver. As a player, he led the Broncos to back-to-back Super Bowl wins and turned the team into a dynasty during the late 1990s. During his 16-year career in Denver, he amassed 51,475 passing yards with 300 touchdowns and a 56.9 career completion percentage. It cemented him as a Hall of Famer, but his contributions to the city of Denver were just beginning.
In 2011, he was brought on as the person in charge of football operations alongside two others. The move was a puzzling one at the time, as Elway had no experience in the world of management, but he quickly got to work and won fans over with the picks of Von Miller and Julius Thomas in his first draft. His signing of UFA Chris Harris Jr. also paid huge dividends and helped prove his ability to run a team.
But Elway’s biggest move came when he was able to bring in Peyton Manning during the 2012 season. These moves all helped establish the Broncos as a powerhouse in the AFC, making the Super Bowl in back-to-back seasons (2014 and 2015) and securing their first Lombardi Trophy since Elway retired.
But unfortunately for Elway and the Broncos, it’s been a bumpy road since the Super Bowl LV triumph over the Carolina Panthers. Manning retired and the team has just never been able to repeat that success. They haven’t made the playoffs since that Super Bowl run, which serves as the longest drought for any Super Bowl champion.
The lack of success is, in large part, due to Elway’s inability to draft a franchise quarterback.
He first took his shot when drafting Paxton Lynch in the first round of the 2016 draft — we all know that whole thing turned out. He also notably drafted Drew Lock to serve as the future man under center, which anyone with a brain knew would never happen. Oh, and don’t forget when they thought Brock Osweiler was the future for a minute there. But to their credit, they did at least move away from him and let him become Houston’s problem.
It was Elway’s Achilles’ heel, which may be ironic seeing as he himself was a Hall of Fame quarterback, but for whatever reason, he was unable to properly scout and draft one. It never made sense to me and a lot of other people.
After six straight seasons of not getting more than seven wins, the writing started to form on the wall. John Elway essentially stepped down from operating football operations in 2020 but still carried the title throughout the season. After new ownership took over last year, it’s no surprise that they want to clean house.
Despite the nonideal ending, Elway’s legacy within Bronco nation will live on forever. He was a big part of all their rings and has single handedly turned the team into a respected franchise. It may not have been all great, but you cannot take away what this man has done for the city of Denver.
It’s a very storied legacy with arguably two different legendary careers. I’m sure the Broncos and their fans will miss his presence within the team, but everyone’s time comes and I think this is the right decision for Elway and his legacy.
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