One of the silver linings of the offseason is that it allows us the time to let our hair down, whether that's breaking down the roster, projecting the future, or reminiscing about the past. This year, Denver Broncos On SI/Mile High Huddle is deep-diving into team history by studying the three best players to ever wear the jersey number.
We started at No. 1 (because only two Broncos have ever worn No. 0), and we'll work our way to 99. Today, we'll remember the three best to ever wear the No. 5, and keep in mind, this list is heavily weighted by Pro Football Reference's Approximate Value metric.
Matt Prater | K | 2007-2014
Prater went undrafted out of UCF in 2007 and spent time with three NFL teams before joining the Broncos in December of his rookie year. As a Bronco, Prater would go on to set an NFL record for the longest field goal ever (64 yards), breaking Ring-of-Famer Jason Elam's previous all-time record of 63 yards (shared at the time by Tom Dempsey).
Prater would also kick a a whirlwind of game-winners, many of which were from 50-plus yards. Broncos Country will fondly remember the 2011 Tim Tebow season when Prater would hit one improbable game-winner after another on the way to winning the AFC West.
Prater kicked in Super Bowl XLVIII, although it was in a losing effort. It's also noteworthy that, as a specialist, he survived the head-coaching turnover of the Mike Shanahan regime being succeeded by Josh McDaniels.
Prater would survive another head-coaching turnover when McDaniels was fired and replaced by John Fox. In 2011, John Elway became the top football executive in Denver, and the following offseason, he franchise-tagged Prater before signing him to a four-year, $13 million extension, which was big kicker money at the time.
Prater would garner two Pro Bowl nods as a Bronco and was named a second-team All-Pro in 2013. That year, the Broncos set a new NFL scoring record with 606 points, 150 of which came off Prater's right leg. Indeed, between extra points and field goals, Prater averaged nearly double-digit points per game (9.37) in 2013 as Peyton Manning passed for 55 touchdowns.
Unfortunately, it wasn't all roses with Prater, as he had a few run-ins with the NFL's substance abuse and conduct policies, opening the 2014 season (his last in Denver) on a four-game suspension. The Broncos had brought in Brandon McManus to survive while Prater was suspended in 2014.
After dealing with that off-the-field drama, including a DUI (2011), the Broncos liked McManus enough to waive Prater in October of 2014. It was the end of an era, and the beginning of a new one, as McManus would hold down the kicker fort until 2023.
But today isn't about McManus. It's about the massive-legged Prater, who was one of the best clutch kickers in Broncos history. Prater is the best player to ever rock the No. 5 jersey in Denver.
Prater is still going, at age 40, spending the past four years with the Arizona Cardinals, though a knee injury ended his tenure there. He's now a free agent.
What a legend.
Teddy Bridgewater | QB | 2021
Bridgewater entered the league in 2014 as a Minnesota Vikings first-round pick out of Louisville. He had a couple of good years in Minnesota but injuries limited his impact.
Bridgewater would go on to play for the New York Jets before resuscitating his career under Sean Payton in New Orleans in relief of an injured Drew Brees. The Carolina Panthers were impressed, giving Bridgewater a fat contract, but in his one-and-only year as their starter, he went 4-11.
Meanwhile, Vic Fangio was entering his third year as Broncos head coach in 2021 and had yet to produce anything close to a winning season. Running out of time and patience with Drew Lock, Fangio advocated for a Bridgewater trade, and Elway obliged.
Fangio pitted Lock and Bridgewater in an open competition that summer in training camp, and although the difference was negligible, the former first-round pick got the nod. Bridgewater would go 7-7 as Fangio's starter, but once again, injuries kept him from turning in a complete season and the Broncos missed the playoffs yet again.
Bridgewater finished his year in Denver with 3,052 passing yards and 18 touchdowns, with seven interceptions. He also scored twice on the ground, giving him 20 total touchdowns.
Fangio was fired, and Bridgewater was allowed to walk in free agency because the Broncos had a new plan. It started by hiring Nathaniel Hackett as head coach and acquiring Russell Wilson via trade. Thus ended the Fangio/Bridgewater era and began one of the most embarrassing seasons in Broncos history.
Joe Flacco | QB | 2019
Speaking of Fangio, the Broncos had just hired him, and they wanted to get out of the Case Keenum business. Keenum was traded to Washington, and the Broncos acquired 'Mile High Joe' Flacco via trade to be the new veteran starter.
Elway's long-term plan was Lock, though, whom the Broncos drafted in the second round later that spring. Alas, Lock would get injured in the summer, opening the season on short-term injured reserve.
Fangio was okay with that, hoping that with his defensive expertise, Flacco could follow the same blueprint that he did in Baltimore to Super Bowl success. Alas, it wasn't meant to be, as Fangio's defense took some time getting up to speed, failing to even notch one sack until Week 4 of the season as the Broncos opened 0-4.
By that point, everyone was getting impatient with Fangio and Flacco, and following a dubious injury suffered in Week 8, the veteran quarterback was placed on IR. Lock wasn't quite ready, so Denver rolled with Brandon Allen as a temporary band-aid.
Lock finally was greenlit with five games left to go, winning four of them. Broncos Country ended the season on a disappointing 7-9 note, but hope sprung eternal in Lock. Alas, that wasn't meant to be.
Flacco would finish his one season as a Bronco as an eight-game starter, passing for 1,822 yards and six touchdowns, with five interceptions. The 'Mile High Joe' era ended with a whimper, but a 40-year-old Flacco is still plugging away in the NFL, currently employed by the Cleveland Browns.
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