Tag: Jason Elam

Full list of 30 former Broncos nominated for 2025 Hall of Fame class

The Broncos have 30 former players nominated for the 2025 Hall of Fame class, and Mike Shanahan is expected to be a top coach candidate.

Earlier this week, the NFL announced 19 former Denver Broncos players have been nominated for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame class as modern-era candidates.

Those 19 players join a previous list of 11 senior candidate nominees who were announced earlier this month, giving the Broncos 30 total players who have been nominated for next year’s Hall of Fame class. Here are the full lists.

Broncos modern-era HOF candidates

  1. WR Rod Smith
  2. C Tom Nalen
  3. K Jason Elam
  4. G Mark Schlereth
  5. LB Bill Romanowski
  6. DL Neil Smith
  7. WR Demaryius Thomas
  8. CB Aqib Talib
  9. WR Wes Welker
  10. RB Clinton Portis
  11. WR Brandon Marshall
  12. RB Glyn Milburn
  13. CB Dré Bly
  14. TE Vernon Davis
  15. DL Jamal Williams
  16. LB Keith Brooking
  17. RB Jamaal Charles
  18. DL Ted Washington
  19. DL Simeon Rice

Broncos senior HOF candidates

  1. LB/DL Karl Mecklenburg
  2. LB Tom Jackson
  3. DB Dennis Smith
  4. WR Lionel Taylor
  5. WR/R Rick Upchurch
  6. CB Louis Wright
  7. WR Bob Scarpitto
  8. DL Michael Dean Perry
  9. RB Sammy Winder
  10. DL Lyle Alzado
  11. DE Rich Jackson

Former Denver coach Mike Shanahan is also expected to be nominated for the 2025 Hall of Fame class in the coach category.

The Hall of Fame’s selection committee will trim the list of nominees in mid-October before announcing semifinalists and finalists later in the fall. The 2025 class will be announced before Super Bowl LVIX next year.

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Rod Smith among 19 former Broncos nominated for Hall of Fame

Rod Smith is one of eight Broncos Super Bowl champions who have been nominated for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame has announced 167 modern-era finalists for the 2025 class. The list includes 19 former Denver Broncos players, including eight Super Bowl champions.

Former Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith headlines the list of players who won Super Bowls with Denver in the late 1990s. He is joined by center Tom Nalen, kicker Jason Elam, guard Mark Schlereth, linebacker Bill Romanowski and defensive lineman Neil Smith.

The Broncos also had two members of their Super Bowl 50 squad — late wide receiver Demaryius Thomas and cornerback Aqib Talib — nominated for the Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility.

Other players nominated include running backs Clinton Portis and Glyn Milburn, receivers Wes Welker and Brandon Marshall and cornerback Dré Bly. View the full list below.

Broncos Hall of Fame nominees

  1. WR Rod Smith
  2. C Tom Nalen
  3. K Jason Elam
  4. G Mark Schlereth
  5. LB Bill Romanowski
  6. DL Neil Smith
  7. WR Demaryius Thomas
  8. CB Aqib Talib
  9. WR Wes Welker
  10. RB Clinton Portis
  11. WR Brandon Marshall
  12. RB Glyn Milburn
  13. CB Dré Bly
  14. TE Vernon Davis
  15. DL Jamal Williams
  16. LB Keith Brooking
  17. RB Jamaal Charles
  18. DL Ted Washington
  19. DL Simeon Rice

The Broncos also have 11 senior candidates for the 2025 class, and former coach Mike Shanahan is expected to be a top candidate in the coach category. Voters will trim the list down to 20 finalists with 15 modern-era candidates, three senior candidates, one coach and one contributor. The selection committee will meet before Super Bowl LVIX to elect the 2025 class.

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On this date: Broncos won Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999

The Denver Broncos won their second Super Bowl in franchise history on this date (Jan. 31) in 1999.

On this date — January 31 — in 1999, the Denver Broncos won Super Bowl XXXIII against the Atlanta Falcons, 34-19.

This game was the swan song for Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway, who rode off into the sunset after the game as the contest’s MVP. Elway went 18-of-29 passing for 336 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Elway also also ran for one touchdown, which has been immortalized in Super Bowl history.

In many ways, the 1998 team was the best in franchise history even until now. The Broncos went 14-2 in the regular season, which is still the franchise mark for wins in a season. Running back Terrell Davis became the fourth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in the regular season, not including the playoffs.

Kicker Jason Elam tied a then-NFL record with a 63-yard field goal during the regular season.

As a whole, Denver led in 52 of the 64 quarters in 1998. That continued into the Super Bowl, where the Broncos led from start to finish, dominating the Falcons and former head coach Dan Reeves en route to back-to-back championships.

The 25th anniversary of the 1998 team happened in 2023. Hopefully the memory of these Super Bowl teams resonates in the minds of these Denver players to look to future success.

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Making the case for 10 Broncos who should be in the Hall of Fame

Randy Gradishar appears to be on the verge of reaching the Hall of Fame, but these Broncos players continue to be overlooked by voters.

The Denver Broncos are represented by 10 former players and late former owner Pat Bowlen in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and another former player will likely join them in Canton next year.

Former Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar was named a senior finalist for the Hall of Fame last August, and he seems likely to be elected as a member of the 2024 class in January. Even with Gradishar seemingly on the verge of getting in, though, Denver remains underrepresented in Canton.

Two months ago, 16 former Broncos were named among 173 modern-era nominees for the 2024 Hall of Fame class. That list of nominees was narrowed down to a list of 25 semifinalists announced Tuesday and not a single Denver player made the cut.

Granted, many of the modern-era semifinalists this year are more than deserving — Antonio Gates, Julius Peppers, Dwight Freeney and Devin Hester among them — but the Broncos also have many deserving players who have been overlooked for years, and they are now one more year removed from possible enshrinement.

Here’s a quick look at ten Denver representatives who should already be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Monday was not the first time Broncos beat Bills with a last-second field goal scramble

Monday was not the first time the Broncos rushed a field goal unit onto the field to beat the Bills with a last-second kick in Buffalo.

With the game clock ticking down and no timeouts left, the Denver Broncos ran their field goal unit onto the field to convert a game-winning field goal against the Buffalo Bills on Monday Night Football in Week 10.

That seems to be Denver’s favorite way to win in Buffalo.

The Broncos last beat the Bills on the road in Week 1 in 2007. In that game, Denver rushed Jason Elam and Co. onto the field as the game clock was ticking down to kick a game-winning field goal in a 15-14 victory.

The Broncos had about 14 seconds to pull off the feat in 2007. Check out the play:

Denver had closer to 17 seconds in Buffalo this time around:

“One of the elements about that procedure is that eliminates a lot of thinking,” coach Sean Payton said Monday. “Just go execute. There was plenty of time for us during that final sequence to decide, ‘All right, this is what we’re going to do. We’re going to take a knee, move it over to this location, send the field goal unit out.’ Plenty of time without a lot of thinking and let them go execute.”

Denver initially did not execute as Lutz’s initial attempt missed, but the Broncos were bailed out when Buffalo was penalized for having 12 men on the field. Lutz nailed his next attempt and Denver escaped with a 24-22 victory. Just how they drew it up.

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Rod Smith among 16 former Broncos nominated for Hall of Fame

Five players who won Super Bowls with the Broncos have been nominated for the Hall of Fame, including wide receiver Rod Smith.

Rod Smith headlines the list of former Denver Broncos players who have been nominated for the 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame class.

The Hall of Fame announced 173 modern-era nominees on Tuesday, including 16 players who spent time with the Broncos.

Smith might have the strongest case. A two-time Super Bowl champion, Smith’s numbers (849 receptions for 11,389 yards and 68 touchdowns) are similar to those of Hall of Fame receiver Michael Irving (750/11,904/65). Smith is also the NFL’s all-time leading receiver among undrafted wide receivers.

Four other Broncos Super Bowl winners were also nominated — center Tom Nalen, guard Mark Schlereth, defensive lineman Neil Smith and kicker Jason Elam. Those four players and Smith helped the team win back-to-back championships in the late 1990s.

Two more recent wide receivers — Brandon Marshall and Wes Welker — were also nominated, as was hard-hitting inside linebacker Al Wilson.

Here’s a quick look at the 16 former Denver players who have been nominated for the Hall of Fame.

The best Broncos player to ever wear No. 1 was …

Jason Elam was the best player to ever wear jersey No. 1 with the Broncos.

Looking over the list of every player to ever wear No. 1 for the Denver Broncos, it’s not hard to pick the all-time best.

Former kicker Jason Elam was by far the best player in franchise history to ever wear No. 1 with the Broncos. The most accomplished player since Elam to wear No. 1 in Denver was punter Brett Kern, who only had a brief stint with the team. The most recent (and current) player to wear No. 1 with the Broncos is wide receiver KJ Hamler.

Elam, a three-time Pro Bowler and three-time second-team All-Pro, won back-to-back Super Bowls with Denver in the late 1990s. He is now a member of the team’s Ring of Fame and a member of the Broncos’ 50th Anniversary Team.

Elam tied a then-NFL record with a 63-yard field goal during the 1998 season and he ranks No. 1 on Denver’s all-time scoring list with 1,786 points. That record won’t be broken anytime soon. The next closest to Elam is former Broncos kicker Brandon McManus with 946 points.

Elam was the best player to ever wear No. 1 in Denver. There’s no questioning that.

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Denver Broncos’ top-12 all-time scoring leaders

Rich Karlis, who ranks fifth on the Broncos’ all-time scoring list, kicked barefoot — even in snow!

Today we’re taking a quick look at the top-12 leaders on the Denver Broncos’ all-time scoring list (excluding quarterbacks).

The top-six players on the list are all kickers, with two-time Super Bowl champion Jason Elam leading the way at No. 1 with 1,786 points. Following the departure of Brandon McManus (946 points) this offseason, nobody will come anywhere close to Elam’s record anytime soon.

The first non-kicker on the list is two-time Super Bowl champion wide receiver Rod Smith with 428 points. Below him are three running backs, a fellow receiver and a tight end to round out the top 12.

(And yes, Rich Karlis kicked barefoot, even in the cold.)

Where does Brandon McManus rank among Broncos’ all-time best kickers?

Where does Brandon McManus rank among the all-time best kickers in Denver Broncos history? Here’s our list.

The recent departure of kicker Brandon McManus has brought to mind other Denver Broncos kickers from the past, and where McManus ranks among them. Broncos Wire looks back at five of the best Broncos kickers of all time.

Brandon McManus ends up 2nd on Broncos’ all-time scoring list

Brandon McManus ranks 2nd on the Broncos’ all-time scoring list (946 points) and 2nd in field goal percentage (82%) behind Elam and Prater.

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The Brandon McManus era has come to an end in Denver.

After nine years with the team, McManus was released by the Broncos on Monday. The kicker had been the last remaining player on the roster from Denver’s win in Super Bowl 50 following the 2015 season.

With McManus’ time with the Broncos over, we now know that he will end up in second place on the team’s all-time scoring list with 946 points. Jason Elam ranks first with 1,786 points.

McManus went a perfect 10-of-10 on field goal attempts during the 2015 playoffs, marking a franchise high for converted field goals in a single postseason. He went 3-of-3 on field goal attempts in the team’s 24-10 win over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 that season.

His 82% field goal percentage ranks second in franchise history only behind Matt Prater (82.9%), and McManus converted the most 50-plus-yard field goals (40) in franchise history, including the postseason.

McManus, 31, will now seek his fourth NFL team. He had brief stints with the Indianapolis Colts (2013) and New York Giants (2014) before landing in Denver ten years ago.

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