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The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the 2024 semifinalists for the Senior candidates and Coach/Contributor categories on Wednesday. Among the semifinalists are former Denver Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar, ex-head coaches Mike Shanahan and Dan Reeves, and former assistant Alex Gibbs.
Each of them has a very strong case for the Hall of Fame.
Randy Gradishar: Gradishar was the soul of the 1970s “Orange Crush,” in a time when defense was the main event in the NFL. Gradishar won the AP Defensive Player of the Year in 1978, was voted to seven Pro Bowls, was a first-team All-Pro in 1977 and 1978, and was a five-time All-Pro during his ten-year career. Players from his era with similar statistics (Robert Brazile 10 seasons/7 Pro Bowls, Jack Ham 12 seasons/8 Pro Bowls, Ted Hendricks 15 seasons/8 Pro Bowls, Jack Lambert 11 seasons/9 Pro Bowls) all reached the Hall of Fame. Gradishar may be helped by the Hall of Fame’s new Senior Committee policy, which will allow the committee to select a maximum of three players to the Hall of Fame for the next two years. Gradishar’s anxiously-awaited selection would right a serious wrong for all of Broncos Country.
Dan Reeves: Reeves was the head coach for three Broncos teams that went to the Super Bowl (the 1986, 1987 and 1989 seasons). Reeves is second all-time for the franchise in games coached and games won. He is fifth all-time in winning percentage in Denver history (.601). As a coach and player (he played as a halfback, the equivalent of today’s fullback/tight end), he appeared in nine Super Bowls. He is also in the Broncos’ Ring of Fame. Reeves died in 2022.
Mike Shanahan: Shanahan’s Hall of Fame resume writes itself. He is the winningest coach in franchise history and helped Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway over the hump to win back-to-back Super Bowls in the 1997 and ’98 seasons. He developed multiple 1,000-yard rushers with the Broncos. He also has a third Super Bowl ring from his time as San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator (1992-94). Shanahan is a Broncos Ring of Fame member.
Alex Gibbs: Gibbs coached the Broncos’ offensive line three different times, as offensive line coach (1984-1987, 1995-2003) and as an offensive line consultant (2013). Behind Gibbs’ lines, Denver had multiple 1,000-yard rushers in a season, and a historic 2,000-yard season from Hall of Fame running back Terrell Davis in 1998. Gibbs was instrumental in helping protect an aging Elway in the twilight of his career and was a visionary in the world of zone-blocking schemes. Gibbs died in 2021.
The latest member of the Hall of Fame from the Broncos is former linebacker DeMarcus Ware, who is part of the Hall’s 2023 class.
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