- 1960
- 1983
- 1996
- 1997
- 2001
- 2012
- 2015
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Denver Broncos Team Formation
In the summer of 1959, Bob Howsam, owner of minor league baseball’s Denver Bears, had a problem. He’d expanded Bears Stadium to 34,000 after Denver was named a charter member of the Continental League, a proposed third major league. However, the league died when the established major leagues granted expansion franchises to two of its cities (New York and Houston) ... -
Trade for Elway
Quarterback John Elway arrived in 1983. Originally drafted by the Baltimore Colts as the first pick of the draft, Elway proclaimed that he would shun football in favor of baseball (he was drafted by the New York Yankees to play center field) unless he was traded to one of a selected list of other teams, which included Denver. During the ... -
Super Bowl XXXII Winner 1997
Super Bowl XXXII was an American football game between the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers and the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 1997 season. The Broncos defeated the Packers by the score of 31–24. The game was played on January 25, 1998, at Qualcomm Stadium ... -
Super Bowl XXXIII Winner 1997
During the 1997 season, Elway and Davis helped guide the Broncos to their first Super Bowl victory, a 31–24 win over the defending champion Green Bay Packers in Super Bowl XXXII. Although Elway completed only 13 of 22 passes, throwing one interception and no touchdowns (he did, however, have a rushing touchdown), Davis rushed for 157 yards and a Super ... -
John Elway as Executive
Following the 2010 season, Joe Ellis was promoted from Chief Operating Officer to team president, while John Elway returned to the organization as the team’s Executive Vice President of Football Operations. -
Arrival of Peyton Manning
On March 20, 2012, the Broncos and quarterback Peyton Manning reached an agreement on a 5-year contract worth $96 million. The following day, the Broncos traded Tim Tebow and a seventh-round draft selection to the New York Jets in exchange for fourth- and sixth-round draft selections. Shortly after acquiring Manning, the Broncos also signed tight ends Joel Dreessen and Jacob ... -
Super Bowl 50 Winner 2015
Super Bowl 50 was an American football game to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2015 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion Denver Broncos defeated the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Carolina Panthers 24–10 to earn their third Super Bowl title. The Broncos took an early lead in Super Bowl 50 and never trailed. ...
History of the Broncos
The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquartered in Dove Valley, Colorado, and plays home games at Empower Field at Mile High in Denver, Colorado.
The team began to play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL) and joined the NFL as part of the merger in 1970. The Broncos do not currently have an owner and play home games at Empower Field at Mile High; prior to this, the club played its home games at Mile High Stadium from 1960 to 2000.
The Broncos were barely competitive during their 10-year run in the AFL and their first seven years in the NFL. They did not have a winning season until 1973 and qualified for their first playoffs in 1977, eventually advancing to Super Bowl XII that season. Since 1975, the Broncos have become one of the NFL's most successful teams, having suffered only eleven losing seasons. They have won eight AFC Championships (1977, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1997, 1998, 2013, 2015), and three Super Bowl championships (1997 (XXXII), 1998 (XXXIII), 2015 (50)), and share the NFL record for most Super Bowl losses (5 — tied with the New England Patriots). The Broncos have eight primary members enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame: John Elway, Floyd Little, Shannon Sharpe, Gary Zimmerman, Terrell Davis, Champ Bailey, and Steve Atwater, along with late club owner Pat Bowlen.
Established
1960
City
Denver
League History
1970 - Present / National Football League
1960 - 1969 / American Football League
Team History
1960 - Present / Denver Broncos
Nickname
Broncos - A “bronco” is an unbroken or untamed horse, and it is a reference to Denver’s Wild West heritage. The Broncos nickname came about by being the winning entry of a name the new team contest that the new Denver AFL franchise had in early 1960. The winner out of only 162 entries was by Ward M. Vining. There was a previous pro team in Denver with the same name an Independent minor league baseball club in the 1920s named the Denver Broncos.
Championship
Super Bowl 3
2016, 1999, 1998
Stadium
2019 - Present / Empower Field at Mile High
2016 - 2019 / Broncos Stadium at Mile High
2011 - 2016 / Sports Authority Field at Mile High
2001 - 2010 / Invesco Field at Mile High
1960 - 2000 / Mile High Stadium
Owner
1984 - Present / Pat Bowlen Trust
1981 - 1984 / Edgar Kaiser
1961 - 1981 / Gerald Phipps
1960 - 1961 / Bob Howsam
To qualify as the greatest player for this team, the player must have played one season for this team. If not, we will remove the player.
* verifies that player has played for this team as an added player by a fan.
Retired Number
7 / John Elway
18 / Frank Tripucka
18 / Peyton Manning
44 / Floyd Little
*Blue is this team’s history