Top 10 wide receivers in Denver Broncos history

You could argue that two of the four quarterbacks on the NFL's "Mount Rushmore" of the position played for the Denver Broncos. John Elway and Peyton Manning are two all-time greats, and thanks to having two of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, the Denver Broncos also have some incredible, Hall of Fame-worthy wide receivers. Even if not every receiver in Broncos history is Hall of Fame worthy, there are certainly a wide variety of players who contributed to some of the best teams in history.

Differentiating between some of these top 10 receivers was not easy. For some guys, it was almost a roll of the dice. But when you look over the course of franchise history, I think it's fair to say that these 10 receivers are undoubtedly the best to play for the Denver Broncos.

But we'll start off with an honorable mention...

Top 10 wide receivers in Denver Broncos history

Honorable mention: Eric Decker

If Eric Decker had stuck around, how different could things have been for the Denver Broncos' offense? The Broncos wound up bringing in Emmanuel Sanders at a lower price in the 2014 offseason when Decker left for the New York Jets, so maybe we don't really want to live in that alternate reality.

But there's no denying that Decker was a playmaker and one of Peyton Manning's favorite targets. It was brutal when he left the team in the 2014 offseason because the Broncos were coming off of that record-setting 2013 campaign, where Decker had averaged almost 15 yards per reception. In four seasons with the Broncos, Decker caught 222 passes for over 3,000 yards and 33 touchdowns. The majority of that production came when Peyton Manning signed, but we can't discount Decker's tremendous 2011 season when he actually led the team in targets, receptions, yards, and receiving touchdowns.

That 2011 Broncos team was much more known for its ability to run the ball with Tim Tebow and Willis McGahee, but Decker was their most consistent threat in the passing game.

10. Brandon Lloyd

I'm sure it will be controversial to include a player like Brandon Lloyd on this list, but real ones will remember how impressive Lloyd was in his short time with the Denver Broncos. It was hard to include him on the list over a player like Eric Decker, but Lloyd did some things in Denver that the NFL world really hasn't seen a whole lot of, and he did it despite playing on one of the worst teams in franchise history.

In the 2010 season, Brandon Lloyd caught 77 passes for a whopping 1,448 yards and 11 touchdowns. You might be thinking to yourself, wow, that looks like a decent season. There's so much more than meets the eye. The most staggering number Lloyd posted that season was 18.8, as in yards per reception.

Only three players in NFL history have had at least 75 receptions, 1,000 yards, 18.8 yards per reception, and 10 or more touchdowns in a single season. Brandon Lloyd is the only player to do it in modern football history, although others have certainly come close. The unfortunate thing is that Lloyd's success in Denver wasn't sustained because the team became a "seller" in 2011 and traded him to the Rams, where he was again productive.

If only Lloyd could have stuck around in Denver, we might have seen him along with Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas with Peyton Manning throwing passes.

9. Brandon Marshall

Forget just Denver Broncos history, Brandon Marshall might be the most underrated receiver in NFL history. It's still shocking to me that he never played in a single playoff game.

Drafted in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft out of Central Florida, Marshall impressed late in his rookie year with the Broncos before becoming a household name in 2007 when Jay Cutler took over as the starting QB.

Despite only starting three seasons, Marshall had over 4,000 yards receiving with the Broncos and 25 touchdowns on 327 receptions. Believe it or not, he played more seasons with the Broncos (four) than he did with any of his other NFL franchises, which included stints with the Bears, Dolphins, Jets, Giants, and Seahawks.

Marshall was selected to six Pro Bowls as a member of four different teams. He finished his NFL career with over 12,000 receiving yards and eight seasons with over 1,000 receiving yards, including seven in a row from 2007-2013.

He dominated after the catch, at the catch point, and with his ability to win in the red zone. Brandon Marshall was an absolute stud of a receiver who doesn't get nearly the credit he deserves as one of the NFL's all-time greats. He ranks 23rd all-time in NFL history in receiving yards, ahead of guys like Antonio Brown, Hines Ward, Michael Irvin, and Calvin Johnson.

8. Vance Johnson

Vance Johnson played his entire NFL career (1985-1995) with the Denver Broncos. Selected in the second round of the 1985 NFL Draft out of Arizona, Johnson became one of the members of the Denver Broncos' Three Amigos receivers in the 80s as the team experienced a ton of offensive success.

Johnson was at the center of that, catching 322 passes for over 4,500 yards in his first six seasons. His production really spiked from 1987-1989 when he was undoubtedly one of John Elway's favorite and best targets in the passing game. He ranked 8th overall in Broncos history in yards and 6th in team history in receptions. Unfortunately, as often as those Broncos teams in the 80s made it to the Super Bowl, Johnson never got himself a ring.

And that was despite some outstanding playoff production. Johnson averaged almost 18 yards per reception in 10 total playoff games.

7. Steve Watson

Steve Watson ranks 9th all-time in Denver Broncos history with 353 career receptions, but at 17.3 yards per reception, he's got to be considered one of the best big play receivers in franchise history.

Watson was not even drafted by the Denver Broncos and for a long time, he held the title of best undrafted receiver in franchise history. By the 1981 season, Watson was a second-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl selection. That 1981 season was easily the best of Watson's NFL career, catching 60 passes for 1,244 yards and 13 touchdowns. With that being said, he wasn't a slouch from that point on, either.

He had over 6,000 receiving yards over the course of his NFL career and he was John Elway's top target early on in Elway's career, racking up over 1,000 yards receiving in each of the 1983 and 1984 seasons.

6. Haven Moses

Haven Moses was a first-round pick by the Buffalo Bills (9th overall) back in the 1968 NFL Draft out of San Diego State. After spending the first four years and change of his NFL career with Buffalo, he was traded to the Denver Broncos in what would turn out to be one of the more fortuitous moves in franchise history.

Moses made a Pro Bowl in his second season in the league as a member of the Bills, but he was obviously disappointing to them in the years following. After his arrival in Denver, he made another Pro Bowl in 1973 and wound up averaging a whopping 18.1 yards per reception over the course of his entire NFL career.

Moses ranks 9th in franchise history with 5,450 receiving yards, and he was inducted into the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame after a 10-year career with the franchise. Over the course of his career, Moses got more productive with age. He had some of his best statistical seasons in his early 30s and gave the Broncos a fair shot to win their first Super Bowl appearance in franchise history with a tremendous playoff run in 1977.

5. Emmanuel Sanders

It's still shocking, even today, that the Denver Broncos were able to get Emmanuel Sanders when and how they did. As it turns out, the Broncos signing Emmanuel Sanders in 2014 is one of the team's most recent wins against Andy Reid and the Chiefs.

Sanders was at the Chiefs' facility, as he recalls it, taking a visit with the team when he ultimately made the decision to sign with the Denver Broncos.

Sanders joined the Denver Broncos at a critical time for the franchise. Eric Decker played himself out of the team's price range in 2014 free agency, and Sanders was (thankfully) limited in Pittsburgh by guys like Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell eating up all of the targets. His "lack" of production landed him a relatively modest deal from the Broncos in free agency but he immediately became a star in the Broncos' offense.

From 2014-16, Sanders had his first (and only) three seasons with 1,000 receiving yards in his NFL career. He played six seasons in Denver and had over 5,300 yards receiving, helping the team win Super Bowl 50 in the 2015 season.

Even as the Broncos' QB play struggled, Sanders was still a tremendous weapon in the offense, catching over 62 percent of his passes over his career. He ranks 7th in franchise history in receptions and 10th in franchise history in receiving yards. Hopefully, we will one day see Sanders immortalized in the Broncos' Ring of Fame.

4. Ed McCaffrey

If you're a 90s kid, Denver Broncos wide receiver Ed McCaffrey is probably one of your all-time football heroes. McCaffrey and the no. 87 are synonymous with Denver Broncos history at this point and he's become one of the most beloved figures for the franchise through the years.

McCaffrey was a third-round pick out of Stanford back in 1991, drafted by the New York Giants. He ended up with the San Francisco 49ers in 1994 where he played for offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan. The two won a Super Bowl together with the 49ers before joining the Broncos together in 1995.

McCaffrey began establishing his legacy with the Broncos from that point forward, playing a bigger role year after year with the team. He ended up recording his first career 1,000-yard season at the age of 30 (1998) and would actually string together three straight 1,000-yard seasons at that stage. From 1996-2000, Ed McCaffrey and Rod Smith gave the Denver Broncos one of the most enviable wide receiver duos in franchise history.

Unfortunately, injuries stifled the momentum McCaffrey had found later on in his career. He was selected to just one Pro Bowl and one All-Pro team, surprising given how productive he was on one of the league's best teams, but perhaps most shocking is the fact that McCaffrey is not currently in the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame.

He's 5th in team history in career receptions, 5th in yards, and 4th in touchdowns. McCaffrey should undoubtedly be in the Ring of Fame.

3. Lionel Taylor

Lionel Taylor ranks fourth in Denver Broncos history with 6,782 yards receiving. He's tied with Haven Moses for 5th in franchise history with 44 touchdowns. Only two receivers in franchise history (Brandon Lloyd, Demaryius Thomas) averaged more yards per game than Lionel Taylor (71.6).

He is, of course, a Denver Broncos Ring of Famer and was part of the team's first induction class to earn such honors, as a matter of fact. He led the AFL in receptions on five separate occasions. At the time, no receiver had caught 90 passes in a season until Taylor did it, and he did it multiple times.

Lionel Taylor was one of the receivers who paved the way for other guys. He also helped another generation of receivers and broke into the coaching world after his playing career. In the 70s, he was a receivers coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers where he coached up the likes of Lynn Swann and John Stallworth. It was in Pittsburgh where Taylor became a Super Bowl champion, but he coached for nearly 30 years after his playing days.

Lionel Taylor is a legend.

2. Demaryius Thomas

It still doesn't feel real that Demaryius Thomas is no longer with us. The late, great Denver Broncos wide receiver was, once upon a time, quite a shocking pick by the team.

The Broncos entered the 2010 NFL Draft with a clear need at wide receiver after trading away Brandon Marshall to the Miami Dolphins. They were presented with an opportunity to take Dez Bryant in the first round of that 2010 NFL Draft, and Bryant was arguably the consensus top receiver in the class.

But not for Josh McDaniels and the Broncos. Drafting Thomas might have been the greatest contribution Josh McDaniels made in his short time in Denver, but it wasn't the most popular decision at the time, especially with the team passing on Bryant. Thomas came from the triple option offense at Georgia Tech where he made the most of rather limited opportunities as a receiver.

He had all of the coveted traits from a size, speed, and athletic standpoint, but there were concerns about whether his game would transition well to the NFL level.

Needless to say, Thomas squashed any pre-draft concerns with his play on the field.

He ranks second in Denver Broncos history with 9,055 receiving yards, 60 touchdowns, and 72.4 yards per game. In reality, with Brandon Lloyd ranking first in team history in yards per game, you can effectively put DT at the top of that list because he played so many more games as a Bronco.

From 2011-17, Thomas was dominant. He was Peyton Manning's no. 1 target during his time with the Broncos and had a stretch from 2012-15 (when Manning was a Bronco) in which he had at least 1,300 yards every single season.

Thomas was a playmaker, a superstar, and the go-to receiver on the best offense in NFL history. We will always miss you, DT.

1. Rod Smith

Alexa, is Rod Smith in the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

The fact that Rod Smith has not been immortalized as a Hall of Famer at this point shows that the process is very flawed. Smith is one of the greatest receivers in NFL history, and I think he's the best receiver in Denver Broncos history.

He's first on the team's all-time list with 11,389 receiving yards. He's first all-time with 68 receiving touchdowns. He's first all-time with 849 receptions. From 1995-2006, Smith was a model of consistency with 62.2 yards per game. There are very few players who match that level of consistency with similar longevity to Rod Smith.

Smith was a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Denver Broncos. He was a model of toughness with just two missed games from 1997-2006.

The craziest part? Smith was an undrafted free agent. He was not supposed to make it. The odds were stacked against him from day one, and he became a Hall of Fame caliber player and a favorite target of multiple Denver Broncos QBs, including John Elway and Jake Plummer.

Eight times in his NFL career Smith eclipsed 1,000 yards receiving. He nearly averaged 18 yards per reception in 13 career playoff games. Smith was clutch, he was consistent, and he cemented a legacy with the franchise that will last forever.