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Denver Broncos: Recalling the career of Bobby Humphrey

By Travis Wakeman

DENVER,CO,CIRCA 1989:Bobby Humphrey of the Denver Broncos rushes against the Phoenix Cardinals at Mile High Stadium circa 1989 in Denver,Colorado on December 20th 1989. (Photo by Owen C. Shaw/Getty Images)
DENVER,CO,CIRCA 1989:Bobby Humphrey of the Denver Broncos rushes against the Phoenix Cardinals at Mile High Stadium circa 1989 in Denver,Colorado on December 20th 1989. (Photo by Owen C. Shaw/Getty Images) /
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Denver Broncos, Bobby Humphrey
Bobby Humphrey #26, Running Back for the Denver Broncos runs the ball on a play as Shane Conlan #58, Linebacker for the Buffalo Bills attempts to block him during their American Football Conference East game on 30 September 1990 at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York, United States. The Bills won the game 29 – 28. (Photo by Rick Stewart/Allsport/Getty Images) /

How good could Humphrey have been?

Humphrey is the answer to a great trivia question, as he became the first e the first running back in team history with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. As good as he was, Floyd Little never even did that.

There is no doubt that Humphrey could have gone down as one of the best running backs in the history of the team. Choosing to hold out was such a bad decision.

Current Broncos running back Melvin Gordon has faced a lot of criticism for deciding to hold out from the Los Angeles Chargers last summer and many have questioned why he took the advice he received. The advice he got was excellent compared to whoever gave Humphrey advice to hold out for a better deal.

As a result, Broncos fans will always be left to wonder. Could they have beaten the Bills in the 1991 AFC title game with the same Humphrey they had in the previous two seasons? It’s certainly possible.

Instead, Humphrey will be remembered as a player who started hot but flamed out quickly because he was looking for more money. Fans of most teams don’t ever appreciate these players and as a result, there will always be a sour taste in the mouths of Broncos fans when Humphrey’s name pops up.

But it’s not all bad. Bobby’s son Marlon Humphrey is a cornerback for the Baltimore Ravens. Like his father, Marlon played at Alabama and was drafted in the first round, though not of the supplemental sort.

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