3 Broncos most deserving of Hall of Fame now that Randy Gradishar is off the list

Louis Wright, Cornerback

Now that Gradishar has been elected to the Hall of Fame, the Orange Crush Defense finally has some representation. Perhaps the voters will agree that it is time to start adding to that group.

Louis Wright is not just merely another member of that terrific defensive unit. He was the Broncos' original "shutdown corner" and one of the best defensive backs of his era.

A first-round pick out of San Jose State in 1975, Wright spent his entire 12-year career in Denver. He was a member of the All-Pro First Team four times while also being selected to five Pro Bowls. He finished his career with 26 interceptions but his potential spot in the Hall of Fame cannot be based on statistics.

Opposing quarterbacks would shy away from throwing the ball to the side of the field Wright was on, long before players like Deion Sanders and Darrelle Revis made that a thing. He would take the other team's No. 1 wide receiver and keep them off the stat sheet in many instances.

But the best argument as to why Wright should be in the Hall of Fame is this: There are four cornerbacks of the NFL's All-Decade Team for the 1970s. The other three — Willie Brown, Roger Wehrli and Jimmy Johnson — are all already in the Hall of Fame. There is no reason why Wright should not join them as he was every bit the player that all of them were.

The difference is, all of them have many more interceptions than Wright did during their careers but those numbers don't tell the whole story.