The Denver Broncos have struggled for the better part of a decade now, so fans can be quick to forget how great they were for so long. Peyton Manning’s retirement after the team won Super Bowl 50 signaled a new era for Broncos football, and the team has struggled since. However, Denver had the third-highest winning percentage in the NFL over the 16-game era.
Two of the best quarterbacks in league history have suited up for the Broncos, as have many other megastars who changed the NFL landscape and revolutionized the game of football. Denver’s sustained success over decades was led by historically great athletes on both sides of the football.
For years, the Broncos were underrepresented in the Hall of Fame, but a number of the team’s legends have been enshrined in recent years. Denver is now up to 15 Hall of Famers, 14 of which were players. With the Broncos preparing for the 2025 NFL Draft, let’s look at the Top 10 players in franchise history.
10. Karl Mecklenburg: 1983-1994, LB
The Broncos have had a lot of great linebackers step foot on the gridiron throughout their existence. Simon Fletcher and Tom Jackson were two linebackers who just missed out on being in this list. Karl Mecklenburg deserves a spot in the Top 10, but it is also somewhat unfair to label him as a linebacker.
The Albino Rhino was one of the most versatile defensive players we have ever seen. He played every position on the front seven at an extremely high level.
He was an elite run stopper as an inside linebacker, and he could rush the passer while playing outside linebacker or as a defensive end. Mecklenburg could even step up and clog the middle in the defensive interior when need be.
Mecklenburg’s versatile skillset is evident in the record books. He not only ranks second in franchise history in tackles with 1,104 (according to Pro Football Reference), but he also ranks third in sacks (79). The linebacker made six Pro Bowls and carried the Broncos defense to three Super Bowl appearances in the ’80s.
9. Randy Gradishar: 1974-1983, LB
Randy Gradishar anchored the Orange Crush defenses of the late ’70s and early ’80s. Behind the “No Fly Zone” defenses of the mid-2010s, Gradishar-led defenses were the best in franchise history. The Orange Crush hit often and hit hard. The team bent the rules defensively and were no fun to play against.
His hard-nosed style was much appreciated during its time, and the Broncos teams of this era can be credited with turning the Denver football team into a respectable and feared organization for the following decades. Gradishar, a tough linebacker who played with reckless abandon, was a big reason the team found success and reached their first Super Bowl in 1977.
He played the game hard, which led to him not only making seven Pro Bowls but also being named the Defensive Player of the Year in 1978. Solo tackles weren’t officially recorded until 1994, and pro football focus didn’t start recording them until 1987.
That means a good chunk of Mecklenburg’s tackles are recorded (although not all of them). Gradishar, on the other hand, retired before tackles were tracked. Estimates have his tackle number to be around 2,049, which would blow the competition out of the water amongst his Broncos peers.
8. Rod Smith: 1994-2007, WR
The late great Demaryius Thomas is Denver’s most recent superstar receiver, but before him, Rod Smith was lighting the football world on fire with precise route running and sure hands. Smith’s name litters the Broncos’ record books are when it comes to receiving.
He ranks first in receiving yards (11,389), first in receptions (849), and first in receiving touchdown catches (68). In an era with tons of great receivers, Smith was one of the best, and he even led the league in receptions in 2001.
Smith wasn’t just a product of John Elway, either. That 2001 season came after Elway’s retirement, and Smith spent more seasons catching passing from other quarterbacks than he did from Elway. All three of Smith’s Pro Bowl nods even came post-Elway.
Smith is one of many unheralded and underappreciated players in Broncos history. Terrell Davis was a sixth-round draft choice, while Shannon Sharpe was a seventh-rounder. Smith, though, went down as one of the best Broncos ever despite originally going undrafted. He will forever be remembered as one of the greatest undrafted players in NFL history.
7. Steve Atwater: 1989-1998, S
Steve Atwater is one of the hardest-hitting safeties in league history. His hit-stick tackle on the Kansas City Chiefs’ Christian Okoye illustrated his ability to smash on the football field and proved that he played with no fear.
That play style led to eight Pro Bowl appearances with the Broncos, tied for the most (with Champ Bailey and Von Miller) for any defensive player in Broncos history and only trailing John Elway overall.
Atwater wasn’t a one-trick pony, though. He was also an excellent defensive back in coverage. He paired with Dennis Smith (and later with Tyrone Braxton) as the last line of defense for Denver’s defense. Atwater led Denver to back-to-back Super Bowl victories, and he finished his career with 24 interceptions in the blue and orange.
6. Shannon Sharpe: 1990-1999/2002-2003, TE
Shannon Sharpe’s success with the Denver Broncos has helped him stay one of the most popular figures in football to this day. Long before he was one of the biggest sports broadcasters, though, he was tearing it up on the football field. Sharpe played the tight end position, a position he helped revolutionize.
Sharpe ushered in the modern tight end play that focuses more on catching passes than on blocking. He was one of the game’s greatest pass-catching tight ends ever despite playing in an era where few players at his position thrived in that regard.
Of Sharpe’s 10,060 career receiving yards, 8,439 came with the Broncos. He also notched 675 receptions and 55 touchdowns for the Broncos. All of those statistics rank within the top three in franchise history. The tight end is undoubtedly one of the 10 greatest players ever at his position, and he has a pretty solid case for the top five as well.
5. Von Miller: 2011-2021, LB
Von Miller is the most recent player to join the list of the top 10 Broncos players in franchise history. Miller was a force to be reckoned with from the day the team made him the second overall NFL Draft choice in 2011. That draft class is viewed by many as the greatest draft ever, and Miller more than earned his worth of being such a high selection.
Although he struggled with some injury and off-the-field issues early in his career, the talent was evident from day one, and Miller quickly established himself as one of the best defensive players in football. The edge rusher has an unmatched ability to get after the quarterback. His speed/strength combination is something you’d create in a video game, and his pass-rushing moves are unreplicable.
As a pass rusher, Miller is most known for his ability to bend low to the ground to avoid blocking offensive linemen. He was a nightmare for opposing blindside protectors and offensive coordinators alike during his time with Denver. Miller finished his Broncos career with a franchise record of 110.5 sacks.
The No Fly Zone defense – known for an incredible secondary that neutralized opposing passing attacks – wouldn’t have existed if Miller didn’t get to the quarterback so quickly and effectively. He forced passers into quick decisions and poor throws, and the secondary behind him capitalized.
Miller’s defensive unit in 2015 was one of the best in league history, and he capped that season off by winning Super Bowl 50 and becoming only the 10th defensive player to win the Super Bowl MVP. It was one of the toughest days to be a Broncos fan when Denver had to trade him during their rebuild in 2021.
4. Terrell Davis: 1995-2002, RB
Terrell Davis wasn’t highly touted when he first came into the NFL. It took a standout special teams tackle for the running back to make a name for himself and earn a roster spot. Davis then went from special teams standout to one of the best running backs the game has ever seen.
Davis rushed for a record seven postseason touchdowns en route to winning the Super Bowl MVP the first time the Broncos won the big game. His heroics in Super Bowl XXXII, namely when the Broncos used him as a decoy while suffering through a migraine, will be remembered forever.
He followed that up with an MVP-winning season in which he became the fourth of now only nine players to ever rush for 2,000 yards.
Davis’ prime only lasted four years, and that is the only factor holding him back from the top three on this list. Injuries ended his prime and cut his career short, but at his best, Davis was the most unstoppable force in the NFL.
3. Champ Bailey: 2004-2013, CB
Champ Bailey is one of the most underrated players in NFL history, but our opinion pins him as the best cornerback ever and lands him inside the top three for best players in Broncos history. Bailey was so good that he could lock down an entire side of the field, and quarterbacks simply stopped throwing in his direction.
Bailey holds the cornerback record for Pro Bowl seasons with 12, and his 203 passes defended are also the most in history. Some of that success came with the Washington Redskins, but the vast majority of it happened in Denver after the Broncos gave up Clinton Portis to acquire him.
Bailey’s career highlight was the 2006 season. That year he only allowed four total receptions, whereas he secured a league-leading 10 interceptions. That is right: Bailey allowed fewer receptions in the entire season than many defensive backs do per game, and he even had more interceptions than catches allowed all year long.
2. Peyton Manning: 2012-2015, QB
Peyton Manning may only be the second-best player in Broncos history, but he also has a case as the second-best player in NFL history (only behind his longtime rival, Tom Brady).
The fact that The Sheriff ranks so high on the Broncos’ all-time list despite playing just four seasons with the franchise goes to show you how dominant his Broncos tenure was. The 2012-2015 run in Denver was one of the most memorable stretches in NFL history around the league.
During that time, Manning broke the NFL single-season passing records, as he threw 55 touchdowns and 5,477 yards during the 2013 season that is the best in league history from an offensive perspective. No offense has been more effective than the Manning-led offense that year, but the quarterback wasn’t a one-hit wonder.
Manning racked up 17,112 passing yards and 140 passing touchdowns during his somewhat brief career with the Broncos. He broke records left and right in Denver. Most notably, he became the all-time passing touchdowns record holder during his time with the team. Manning even threw for seven touchdown passes in a single game with the Broncos.
Manning had a Hall of Fame career with the Indianapolis Colts, but he missed the entire previous season after career-threatening neck surgery. He bounced back from the injury and added another MVP to his resume and ended his career with another championship.
While Manning wasn’t a Broncos lifer like the next player on this list, his impact during his four-year stint with the team was so massive that he has to rank as the second-best Bronco ever.
1. John Elway: 1983-1998, QB
John Elway is one of the greatest players in NFL history, let alone in Broncos history, and he spent his entire career in Denver. The Baltimore Colts drafted him first overall in 1983 but then traded him to Denver when he refused to play for the Colts.
Elway was a freak athlete whose skillset was ahead of its time. The signal-caller had a rocket for an arm that made him one of the best deep ball throwers ever seen, and he was one of the greatest rushing quarterbacks in NFL history.
No one in franchise history comes close to Elway’s 51,475 passing yards or 300 passing touchdowns. In fact, few players in league history have reached those thresholds, as Elway ranks in the Top 15 in both of those metrics.
Elway led Denver to five of their eight Super Bowl appearances. He received the label as a guy who couldn’t win it all in the ’80s. Despite consistently being among the league leaders in passing categories, Elway lost his first three championship games largely because the Broncos didn’t have enough talent around him.
The gunslinger proved the doubters wrong at the end of his career. He won the Super Bowl in each of his last two seasons before riding into the sunset. He even won the Super Bowl MVP in his final professional game.
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