So, I was thumbing through the Broncos 2008 Media Guide and came across an interesting bit of information, right on the first page. It was a picture of the 2 Vince Lombardi Trophies, along with 6 AFC Conference Championship trophies, and below were several statistics that showed how the Broncos have fared since 1970, when the AFL and NFL officially merged. That is 38 years of history heading into this season.
Let's take a look at some important stats when it comes to how successful a team has been over the past 4 decades --
| TEAM | No. | |
| 1. | Dallas | 8 |
| 2. | DENVER | 6 |
|
|
6 | |
| Pittsburgh | 6 | |
| 5. | Miami | 5 |
| SF, Wash | 5 |
| TEAM | No. | |
| 1. | Miami | 28 |
| 2. | Dallas | 27 |
| Pittsburgh | 27 | |
| 4. | DENVER | 24 |
| Minnesota | 24 | |
| 6. | SF, Wash | 23 |
| TEAM | No. | |
| 1. | Pittsburgh | 379 |
| 2. | Dallas | 378 |
| 3. | Miami | 374 |
| 4. | Denver | 356 |
| 5. | San Francisco | 355 |
| 6. | Minnesota | 349 |
| TEAM | No. | |
| 1. | Miami | 354 |
| 2. | Pittsburgh | 351 |
| 3. | Dallas | 347 |
| 4. | DENVER | 339 |
| 5. | Minnesota | 333 |
| 6. | San Francisco | 330 |
| TEAM | No. | |
| 1. | Pittsburgh | 210 |
| 2. | DENVER | 207 |
| 3. | Miami | 204 |
| 4. | Dallas | 198 |
| 5. | Minnesota | 196 |
| 6. | Washington | 185 |
So what does all this mean? First off, I had no idea the Minnesota Vikings have been so good, so consistent, for so long. Secondly, it tells me the Broncos have been very consistent, very successful, over the history of the modern-day NFL. Sometimes, when thing aren't going as well we we'd like, or it appears there isn't a light at the end of the tunnel, we need to remember that the track record of this team for the past 38 years has been one of success.
Of course, any time I speak of the history of success for the Broncos, my mind immediately goes to the Hall of Fame snubbing. How to the Broncos compare to the other 5 teams that seemed to appear in every category above with the Broncos? To do this, I'll use the HOF's official list, which breaks down Enshrinees in two ways - Primary and Secondary. I will focus on Primary members only, or those who spent the majority of their career with that team. I hope you are sitting, it isn't pretty...
| TEAM | No. | |
| 1. | Pittsburgh | 17 |
| 2. | San Francisco | 12 |
| 3. | Dallas | 10 |
| 4. | Miami | 9 |
| 5. | Minnesota | 8 |
| 6. | DENVER | 2 |
Any chance I can use to demonstrate the gross injustice by these so-called experts who vote for Hall Of Fame induction I will more than happily accept. Just remember, Broncos Fans, you can be proud of the Orange and Blue. The past has been a glorious one, and more great things are on tap in the future.
GO BRONCOS!