With the Broncos’ 60th season coming up, here are the top quarterbacks to play in Denver.
The Denver Broncos are set to begin their 60th season of play when the NFL season kicks off for them on September 14th. Crazy that the Broncos have been playing football for 60 years. This means there have been a collection of players who have suited up for the orange and blue over the years.
There is no question that one of the biggest positions in the NFL today is the quarterback. If a team does not have a solid quarterback under center, the team could run into some serious problems. Of course, Broncos Country has been dealing with that over the past few years.
However, there is hope with Drew Lock under center. Will his second season be a chance to see growth? We are all hoping for that to happen.
There have been plenty of quarterbacks to play for the Denver Broncos. Some have been successful while others have crashed and burned. But the question is who are some of the best quarterbacks in franchise history? I take a look at those players here.
Honorable Mentions
Brian Griese (52 games played)
After John Elway retired and Bubby Brister had a poor showing during the 1999 preseason, the Broncos decided to make Griese the starter for their season opener against the Miami Dolphins. Griese’s time in Denver was marked by inconsistency and injuries. In fact, he never played an entire 16-game season during his NFL career. After four seasons, he would end up being released.
Jay Cutler (37 games started, 17-20 as starter)
When looking back, I thought Cutler played in Denver a lot longer than the 37 starts he had. Unfortunately, he was subpar during his time in Denver. It took a new head coach to drive him out of town, granted it was due to a lot of disagreement. While Jay Cutler had some good moments, he never really fared well in the Mile High City.
Tim Tebow (14 games started, 8-6 as starter)
While Tim Tebow will be the only player on this list who did not start at least 16 games during the course of his career in Denver, he was one of the more electrifying players. Not to mention one of the few quarterbacks on the list who won at least one playoff game. He was given a chance to shine shortly after Josh McDaniels was kicked to the curb.
After Kyle Orton could not get anything going five and a half games into the 2011 season, Tebow came in and helped lead the team to their first division title since 2005. Fans won’t forget the come from behind wins and the remarkable playoff win against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Frank Tripucka (40 games started, 13-26-1 as starter)
First on this list is the first starting quarterback for the Broncos. Frank Tripucka might not have the record that screams franchise quarterback, but with the AFL just setting up shop and Denver just starting their time, it honestly could have been worse.
He spent the first few years of his career with the Chicago Cardinals and started six games for the Dallas Texans after a season with the Detroit Lions. His most successful time as a player was with the Broncos.
While the Broncos never made the playoffs during Tripucka’s time with the team, he was the first quarterback in the team’s history. His number would go on to be retired by the team shortly after he called it a career in 1963. 15 years professionally was the number after it was all said and done. But his final few years helped give the Broncos somewhat of a jump start.
Jake Plummer (54 games started, 39-15 as starter)
Once John Elway retired from the game, the Broncos spent the next few seasons struggling to find a quarterback that could be the next successor. Griese, as mentioned earlier, was okay. However, his injuries likely kept him from reaching his full potential. When the opportunity to acquire Jake Plummer in free agency arrived, Denver took the chance to upgrade at quarterback.
Jake “The Snake” Plummer gave the Broncos hope again at the quarterback position. He helped lead the Broncos to the playoffs in his first two seasons. Sadly, he would always run into another quarterback that will be on this list later and lost both meetings soundly.
It was in 2005 that would see Plummer have his best season as a professional. He would lead the Broncos to a 13-3 record, good for the second overall seed and a first-round bye. Jake became the quarterback on record to give the Broncos their first playoff win in the post-Elway era when they defeated the New England Patriots.
The team would fall one game short of the Super Bowl, as they would be defeated at home by the eventual champion Steelers. Despite all that, it was not enough to keep Plummer around. Cutler would be drafted by Denver that offseason and Plummer did not make it the entire 2006 season before he was benched.
Plummer gave us some hope in the early 2000s. It is a shame that it didn’t work out.
Craig Morton (64 games started, 41-23 as starter)
I could easily flip flop between Plummer and Craig Morton. However, due to the success Morton had in the early part of his time in Denver, that is what puts him at number three on this list.
In his first season with the Broncos, Morton recorded a 12-2 record as a starter. That was good for the number one seed in the AFC playoffs, one game better than division rival Oakland. Morton would then lead the Broncos to playoff wins over the Steelers and Oakland Raiders to secure the team’s first Super Bowl appearance.
The magic came to an end at the hands of Morton’s former team, the Dallas Cowboys, and Denver fell short in their first Super Bowl appearance.
Morton became an ageless wonder during his time with the Broncos. He would call it a career the same year as another Broncos legend would get his start in the league. But more on that later. There was no doubt Morton was the most successful Broncos quarterback in the early years.
Peyton Manning (58 games played [57 starts], 45-12 as starter)
After Plummer left in free agency, the Broncos thought they had an answer in Cutler. However, he was traded away and the Broncos struggled to find a decent quarterback. Orton did not do the job well in his time and would be benched for Tebow in 2011.
Tebow helped the Broncos for a short time. But Elway knew the team had the tools to get back to the big game. They just needed a quarterback that could go levels beyond what Tebow could give the team. The following offseason of the 2011 miracle playoff win, the Indianapolis Colts released Peyton Manning.
Manning was on the sidelines that entire year due to neck surgery. The Colts were the worst team that year and with Andrew Luck coming out of college, the Colts decided to part ways.
Elway made it his mission to get Manning and he delivered. The end result was 45 wins as a starter, four straight AFC West titles, two AFC championships, and one Super Bowl 50 victory.
Manning set countless records during his time in the Mile High City and it was truly a special time. Getting to ride off into the sunset was the icing on the cake. Broncos Country is grateful for Peyton Manning.
John Elway (234 games played, 231 started, 148-82-1 as starter)
When you think Denver Broncos, perhaps the biggest name to come to mind is John Elway. Like I mentioned when talking about Morton, Elway became Morton’s successor after he retired. It was perhaps the most perfect timing at the moment.
It did not start off well as the Broncos struggled in Elway’s rookie year. But the Stanford product figured it out fast and got the Broncos to multiple winning records. In fact, the Broncos only had two losing seasons in 16 seasons with Elway at the helm.
It seemed, however, that the quarterback was snake bitten. Getting to the big game to only suffer a heartbreaking or devastating loss. It was not until his 15th season in the league that the monkey was finally off his back and the Broncos were Super Bowl champions.
He decided to give it one more go in the 1998 season and it paid off with his second title. All the hard work had paid off. With all that he has done in his time as a player, there is no doubt Elway is the best quarterback in Broncos history.