Larry Zimmer, longtime Broncos broadcaster, dies at 88

Larry Zimmer’s career spanned over 500 Broncos games, including more than 20 playoff games and four Super Bowls.

Former Denver Broncos broadcaster and Colorado Sports Hall of Fame panelist Larry Zimmer has died at age 88, the team announced Sunday.

Zimmer was on the Broncos KOA broadcast team for 25 years, where he made several iconic calls from the booth when he began in 1971, ending in 1996. Alongside the Broncos, Zimmer also did the broadcasts for the University of Colorado Buffaloes. His career spanned over 500 Broncos games, including more than 20 playoff games and four Super Bowls. He also called over 1,000 Buffs games.

During and after his time as both a color commentator and play-by-play voice, Zimmer was a part of the Broncos’ Ring of Fame committee, a part of the Denver organization for 52 years.

In 2004, Zimmer published his book, “Stadium Stories: Denver Broncos: Colorful tales of the Orange and Blue,” where he told stories of his days in the booth, stories that the average fan may not even be aware of.

Zimmer is a member of the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame, where he was inducted in 2010. Fittingly, the Colorado Sports Hall of Fame’s home resides within the home of the team he spent more than half a century calling games for, Empower Field at Mile High.

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WATCH: 49ers suspend broadcaster Tim Ryan for Lamar Jackson comments

The San Francisco 49ers have suspended broadcaster Tim Ryan for one game after saying on the radio Monday that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has an advantage in faking handoffs because of his skin color.

The San Francisco 49ers have suspended broadcaster Tim Ryan for one game after saying on the radio Monday that Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has an advantage in faking handoffs because of his skin color.

“He’s really good at that fake, Lamar Jackson, but when you consider his dark skin with a dark football with a dark uniform, you could not see that thing,” said Ryan.

The comments were made during Ryan’s weekly segment on local radio station KNBR’s “Murph and Mac” morning radio show when discussing Jackson’s exceptional performance last weekend against the Niners.

Jackson
rushed for more than 100 yards in the Ravens’ 20-17 win, many of which came after successfully faking handoffs and running the ball himself. Lamar has rushed for 970 yards and thrown for 25 touchdowns for his MVP campaign this season.

Ryan’s statement read, “I regret my choice of words in trying to describe the conditions of the game. Lamar Jackson is an MVP-caliber player and I respect him greatly. I want to sincerely apologize to him and anyone else I offended.”