we Bronco fans remember with fondness. In a way we have all been spoiled with the mega super stars that surround our team each and every year. Remember back in the day when the Broncos were gong to Super Bowls with a bunch of nobody’s and John Elway.

Sure we had Dennis Smith, Karl Mecklenburg and other Pro Bowlers…but even they took back seats to the LT’s and Ronnie Lotts of the League.

Sammy was definitely good at getting into the end zone (saw that dance many times).

It was a Sunday ritual when 23 was in the line up…...........

Sammy get the ball
Sammy run forward
Sammy fall down…..................over and over and over

Don’t get me wrong, I liked Sammy. Everybody did, but he was not a very good back, yet he was the feature back through all those Super Bowl years in the 80’s. His longest run from scrimage his entire career (9 years) was 52 yds, the 2nd? only 42 yds, and he only twice broke a 30 yarder after that. Otherwise, sammy was srticktly a short yardage guy, nothing more. He rushed 1,495 times, and only 4 carries went further than 30 yards. I don’t blame Sammy, he was what he was. I blame Reeves.

Sammy played nine years in Denver and nowhere else. I believe it’s beacuse Reeves was committed to him He would not have made it on most teams. Unfortunately, Winder and Willhite were what we got. Reevs likes those small running backs. I think he always dreamed of finding another Dorset. Winder wasn’t the answer.

In Sammy Winders 9 years he averaged just 603 yards per season. He only broke 1000 yds once. It’s true that he was intrumental in winning those years and yes he was a key in “the drive”, but so were a lot of guys during those years. Sewell, Willhite, Lang, Humphreys. Remember Mobley and Clarence Kay?

Denver had a host of good football players and one GREAT player wearing #7. Nobody in the league did so much with so little. I have never seen with my own eyes, just one player on a team make so much of a difference in winning and losing as I did Elway. Like it or not, he was better than Montana, and I no longer consider that an opinion. I state it as fact. Just look at the rushing numbers back then. How much proof do you need?

There is no doubt that Shanahan is a much better HC than Dan Reeves ever was. Everything Reeves did was in the mold of Tom Landry…Everything! Remember in 92 when Reeves had Maddox and Moore switching off as QB on every down? That was the same stupid thing that Landry did with Staubaugh and Morton. I think that sometimes Reeves was hell-bent to still try and impress Landry long after he was gone. If you watched and remembered those games, you know what I’m talking about.

Like I said, I liked Sammy, I did, but Denver needed a blue chip running back during those years. If we had that, there would probably be a few more Lombari’s out at Dove Valley. (Disclaimer: Denver would have needed to play without Tony Lilly as well as a Blue Chip RB to win those Superbowls)

This post was not about Sammy Winder, and this is my fault. I made a comment to a post comparing Montana to Elway. In that comment I simply pointed out that Montana had this funny new thing called, ‘The West Coast Offense’, and Elway was stuck with this years old moldy Cowboy offense that teams had studied for years. Somewhere during typing the comment I had this flashback of Cleveland/Denver years gone by. You cannot deny that Sammy started ‘The Drive’.

I was trying to use that start to ‘The Drive’ and compare it to the drive that Selvin seems to have. The drive that this team will need to become great again.

I apologize for coming across wrong.

You know Reeves. Was so commited to that peice of crap Kay. man that dude couldnt catch a cold. Reeves best receiver he ever drafted (Sharpe) he never got to see up close until SB 33 and then he didnt last past the 1st qtr

Sammy, not a great tallent, did what he could over and over. Not the best tallent, but one of the best hearts. Lets hope this years tallents put their head and shoulder down and plow forward.