Tag: Randy Gradishar

Broncos great Randy Gradishar elected to Pro Football Hall of Fame

Randy Gradishar, the leader of the Broncos’ famous ‘Orange Crush’ defense, has finally been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame!

It’s long overdue but now finally official: Randy Gradishar is a Hall of Famer.

Gradishar has been elected as a member of the 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame class, the league announced during NFL Honors on Thursday night.

A seven-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro, Gradishar was the leader of the Denver Broncos’ famous “Orange Crush” defense that led the team to their first Super Bowl (XII in 1977). One year later, Gradishar won the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award.

The Broncos credit Gradishar with 2,049 career tackles, 19.5 sacks, 20 interceptions, 13 fumble recoveries and four defensive touchdowns during his 10-year career in the NFL.

Gradishar was a finalist three other times before finally being elected as a senior candidate this year. He will be enshrined in Canton, Ohio in August.

He becomes the 10th* former Broncos player to reach Canton, joining RB Floyd Little, QB John Elway, DB Steve Atwater, TE Shannon Sharpe, OL Gary Zimmerman, RB Terrell Davis, CB Champ Bailey, QB Peyton Manning and OLB DeMarcus Ware. Late team owner Pat Bowlen is also in the Hall of Fame, as are a few *other players who spent time in Denver.

Gradishar, 71, is already a member of the Broncos’ Ring of Fame. Now he’s a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame as well.

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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.

Broncos nominate Randy Gradishar for 2023 Salute to Service Award

The Broncos named Randy Gradishar their 2023 Salute to Service Award nominee this week.

The Denver Broncos named Pro Football Hall of Fame Finalist Randy Gradishar as their 2023 Salute to Service Award nominee on Tuesday. The award is sponsored by USAA. 

According to a press release from the team, Gradishar has been instrumental in leading the franchise’s efforts to the military community.

Gradishar, the son of a World War II veteran, has participated in three United Service Organizations (USO) tours to troops in Iraq, Iraq, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Currently, Gradishar works as the Outreach Coordinator at Mt. Carmel Veteran’s Service Center nonprofit organization in Colorado Springs, helping active-duty military personnel make the difficult transition to civilian life.

Previous winners of this award include current Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera and former Broncos Ben Garland and Andrew Beck.

This honor is just a small part of what has been a significant year for the Broncos’ Ring of Famer. In addition to being named Denver’s Salute to Service nominee, Gradishar was named as a Pro Football Hall of Fame finalist by the Senior Committee in August. His selection as a finalist by the Committee is almost certain to be seconded and set in bronze by the Hall of Fame’s voting committee the week before Super Bowl LVIII.

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Sean Payton reacts to Randy Gradishar’s Hall of Fame status

“It’s pretty remarkable,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said of Randy Gradishar’s impressive career.

Randy Gradishar moved one step closer to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Wednesday when he was named a senior finalist for the 2024 class.

Gradishar, 71, played for the Denver Broncos from 1974-1983. After Wednesday’s practice session, current Broncos coach Sean Payton reacted to the news.

“I think the first item of business would be congratulating Randy Gradishar on becoming a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame,” Payton said. “We just had the chance to introduce him to our team and read through his statistics, years played, and never missing a game.

“It’s pretty remarkable. Congratulations to him, his family and those teammates that were part of a lot of great defenses, and certainly, really good teams later in his career.”

Payton recalled collecting 7-Eleven NFL Slurpee cups featuring Alan Page and Gradishar while growing up.

“You’d have a stack in your room,” Payton said of the cups. “Then they were so sticky that your mom would just throw them away someday and wouldn’t tell you. I can remember those defenses very well.”

Gradishar led the team’s famous “Orange Crush” defense that helped the team reach their first Super Bowl following the 1977 season.

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Former Ohio State linebacker named Pro Football Hall of Fame senior finalist

This is long overdue. #GoBucks

Former Ohio State linebacker, Randy Gradishar, has been named a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame class of 2024. Gradishar, who played all of his ten-year career with the Denver Broncos, was announced as one of three senior finalist on Wednesday.

Out of Champion, Ohio, Gradishar played for Ohio State from 1971 to 1973 under Woody Hayes, who at one time called him the “greatest linebacker I’ve ever coached.” During his time with the Buckeyes, Gradishar was named an All-American twice and finished sixth in the Heisman voting in 1973. He is a member of the Ohio State and College Football Hall of Fame.

The Broncos selected Gradishar with the 14th overall pick in the 1974 NFL draft where he quickly became a cornerstone of the “Orange Crush” defense.  He was a selection for the Pro Bowl seven times, was an All-Pro five times, and was named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1978. Gradishar was inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame in 1989.

He was a tackle machine and unofficially (tackling stats weren’t official until 1994) the second all time leading tackler in NFL history behind Ray Lewis.

In order to be inducted in Canton, Gradishar must survive the selection process of receiving approval from 80% or more of the full Selection Committee during its selection meeting early in 2024. In case you are wondering, most senior finalists do make it through.

It would be a shame if he doesn’t because the wait has been long enough after missing out as a traditional finalist in 2003 and 2008. In all reality, Gradishar should already be enshrined and we’ll be the first to pop the champaign if it happens this time around.

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Randy Gradishar named senior finalist for 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame class

A seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro, Randy Gradishar ranks No. 1 in Broncos history with 2,049 career tackles.

Former Denver Broncos inside linebacker Randy Gradishar is one of three senior finalists for the 2024 Pro Football Hall of Fame class, voters announced Wednesday. Gradishar was previously named one of 12 senior semifinalists in July.

Gradishar, 71, played for the Broncos from 1974-1983. A seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro, Gradishar ranks No. 1 in franchise history with 2,049 career tackles. He led the team’s famous “Orange Crush” defense to Super Bowl XII in 1977. One year later, Gradishar won the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award.

Gradishar is long overdue for enshrinement to the Hall of Fame and he is now one step closer.

Broncos Super Bowl 50 champion DeMarcus Ware was enshrined in Canton, Ohio as a member of the 2023 Hall of Fame class earlier this month. Mike Shanahan and late coach Dan Reeves were snubbed as coach/contributor candidates for the 2024 class last week.

Gradishar could become the 12th former Bronco to reach the Hall of Fame. He will need to receive 80% approval when voters meet to elect the full 2024 Hall of Fame class in January.

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Broncos Wire podcast: Injuries, Nathaniel Hackett, Hall of Fame and more

On the latest Broncos Wire podcast, Ryan O’Leary and Jon Heath recap the injury updates, Hackett drama, Hall of Fame semifinalists and more.

The Denver Broncos had quite an eventual first week of training camp.

To break down all the news and updates, I joined host Ryan O’Leary on the Broncos Wire podcast to recap and react to the latest developments. You can listen to episode No. 82 below:

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Our unedited notes for this week’s pod can be seen below. 

Tim Patrick and KJ Hamler injuries 
  • Patrick, 29, suffered a non-contact Achilles tear on Monday. He will be placed on IR and miss the entire 2023 season. Patrick also missed the entire 2022 season with a torn ACL. He signed a three-year, $34 million contract extension late in the 2021 season and will now miss 34-straight games. Patrick has a potential out in his contract next spring. If the Broncos bring him back, Patrick will turn 31 during the 2024 season and have a $13 million salary cap hit.
  • Hamler, 24, was diagnosed with pericarditis, which he called a “mild heart irritation.” The Broncos waived him with a non-football illness designation. If they placed him on the reserve/NFI list, Hamler would have been ruled out for the entire 2023 season. Instead, Sean Payton said Hamler will need about a month to recover and then a few weeks to get up to football speed, then Denver might bring him back.
  • Hamler has had awful injury luck since being drafted by the Broncos in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft. Hamler has been unavailable for 27 of the team’s 50 games over the last three years.
  • Big-name WRs available include Julio Jones, Jarvis Landry, T.Y. Hilton and Kenny Golladay, but Denver seems more likely to stick with in-house options. Behind Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton, the top candidate to step up and help replace Patrick and Hamler is second-round pick Marvin Mims.
Sean Payton blasts Nathaniel Hackett 
  • Hackett, of course, is now OC for the Jets. New York head coach Robert Saleh stood up for Hackett and said “there’s a lot of crows pecking at our neck.”
  • Jets OL Billy Turner (who played under Hackett with the Packers and with the Broncos last season) called Payton an “[expletive] bum” and “childish” on his Instagram story.
  • Jets QB Aaron Rodgers said the comments were “way out of line” and Rodgers also called Payton “insecure.”
  • Hackett suggested that Payton broke a coaches code and he said “it’s unfortunate that that had to happen.”
  • The damage has clearly been done, though, and the Jets won’t forget those comments. Denver will host New York in Week 5 🍿🏈
Broncos have a new alternate helmet 
  • The Broncos have to wear the alternate helmet with their existing Color Rush uniform, which is all-orange. Some fans wanted the team to wear all-white or white pants with it.
3 former Broncos one step closer to Hall of Fame 
  • Broncos Super Bowl 50 champion DeMarcus Ware will sing the national anthem before the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday and he will then be enshrined in Canton as part of the 2023 class on Saturday.
  • Looking ahead to next year, ex-Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among 12 senior semifinalists for the 2024 Hall of Fame class. Up to three senior candidates will be elected to the 2024 class.
  • Mike Shanahan, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Broncos, is among 12 semifinalists in the coach/contributor category for 2024. Only one coach/contributor will be enshrined with the 2024 class.
  • Late coach Dan Reeves is also a coach/contributor semifinalist for 2024. Reeves reached nine Super Bowls as a player and coach, representing the third-most in NFL history only behind Bill Belichick (12) and Tom Brady (10).
Two quick questions on special teams to wrap things up
  • 1. The NFL has a new rule this year — a fair catch on a kickoff will result in the ball being spotted at the 25-yard line (even if it’s fielded inside the 25). Many coaches don’t like the change, and Sean Payton thinks it will have unintended consequences. The idea is to make the game safer by creating even fewer kickoff returns, a play that is responsible for many injuries every season. Do we think it’s a good rule change?
  • 2. Pat Surtain got a few reps as a punt returner this spring. He’s very willing to contribute on special teams, but the Broncos are only having him practice for emergency-type situations, not as a primary returner. Being such a valuable player, should Surtain even be a fallback option as a returner?
We will return later in the offseason with new podcast episodes as news pops up. If you enjoy this podcast, you can check out previous episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or on your podcast service of choice. Please consider giving the podcast a positive rating and review!

You can listen to every past episode below or at this link.

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Two Ohio State greats named semifinalists for Pro Football Hall of Fame

In case you missed it, there are two former Buckeyes with a chance to get into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. #GoBucks

The Pro Football Hall of Fame is perhaps the most iconic of all of the professional sports Hall of Fames. Situated in Canton, Ohio, it’s just a buckeye nut’s throw from the Horseshoe and 10 former Ohio State players are enshrined within its walls.

There could be more coming soon as well. Two former Buckeye greats were announced as semifinalists on Wednesday. Those two iconic names are Randy Gradishar and Jim Marshall. They are among 31 names that the Hall of Fame’s senior committee will have to sort through to name the 2024 class.

Gradishar played for Ohio State from 1971-1973 and was called by Woody Hayes “the greatest linebacker I ever coached.” He was a two-time All-American at Ohio State and starred in the NFL with the Denver Broncos.

He amassed a slew of tackles and is one of the all-time leaders in bringing down ball carriers despite official stats not being tallied since 2001. He made the Pro Bowl seven times and was selected as a first-team All-Pro three times. He was the Defensive Player of the Year in 1978, is a part of the Denver Broncos Ring of Honor, and became a member of the College Football Hall of Fame in 1998.

Marshall wore the scarlet and gray from 1956 to 1958 and was named an All-American. He was part of the 1957 national championship team before leaving school a year early to play in the Canadian Football League with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 1959.

He began his NFL career with the Cleveland Browns in 1960 but starred for the Minnesota Vikings from 1961 to 1979 and is included in the organization’s Ring of Honor. He made two Pro Bowls during his time with the “purple people eaters.” He started 270 consecutive games, still a record for an NFL defensive player. We can’t mention Marshall unfortunately without bringing up the wrong way fumble return he is most well-known for.

Here’s to hoping one or both of the two icons get a bust in Canton next year.

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Randy Gradishar, Dan Reeves, Mike Shanahan, Alex Gibbs among 2024 Hall of Fame semifinalists

Randy Gradishar, Mike Shanahan and late coaches Dan Reeves and Alex Gibbs have been named semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

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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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Randy Gradishar named best player in NFL history to wear No. 53

Touchdown Wire named Broncos great Randy Gradishar the best player in NFL history to wear No. 53.

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Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar recently revealed his list of the best players to wear each jersey number in NFL history.

For jersey No. 53, Farrar picked former Denver Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar.

Gradishar was named Defensive Player of the Year in 1977 after he led the famous “Orange Crush” defense to Denver’s first Super Bowl appearance.

Gradishar totaled a franchise-record 2,049 tackles in 10 seasons while adding 20 interceptions and 13 fumble recoveries before retiring at age 31.

The recognition from Farrar is nice, but Gradishar also deserves recognition from the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The fact that Gradishar doesn’t already have a spot in Canton is a terrible oversight by Hall of Fame voters.

A seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro, Gradishar is a member of the Broncos’ Ring of Fame.

In addition to Gradishar, four other Broncos were named the best players to ever wear their respective numbers: outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware (94), running back Terrell Davis (30), quarterback Peyton Manning (18) and quarterback John Elway (7). 

To view the full list of the best players to wear each number in NFL history, visit Touchdown Wire.

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