Answers in Search of A Question: 10 Late Rounders and 3 Super Bowls

"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it than we do from learning the answer itself." -- Lloyd Alexander.

Denver vs Washington, Super Bowl XXII

    In the first two parts of this series, we looked at the Broncos' draft picks from round 5 and later in the 1960s and 1970s.  In this article, we will be looking at the 78 players drafted in the later rounds by the Broncos from 1980 through 1989.  The 1980s saw the Broncos rise quickly from the bottom dwellers of the 1960s to the middle of the pack teams of the 1970s to true prominence as a team that would be consistently in contention come playoff time, as the Broncos made their way into three Super Bowls during that decade.  What role did the late round draft picks play in that success?

More After the Fold

    In their first decade (1960-1969) the Broncos never experienced a winning season.  Their best season was in 1962, when under the leadership of HC Jack Faulker, QB Frank Tripucka, RB Donnie Stone, and WR Lionel Taylor, the Broncos posted a 7-7 record.  The rest of the 60s, from a W/L point of view, was rather forgettable.  The 1970s saw Denver begin to establish respectability as a professional football franchise, by posting their first winning season in 1973, on their way to having 5 winning seasons over the 6 years.  It was during this time that Denver made it's first three post season appearances:

1977 -- 12-2 in the regular season, beating Pittsburgh 34-21 in the Divisional round, defeating the Oakland Raiders 20-17 in the AFC Championship, only to lose to Dallas 27-10 in Super Bowl XII.

1978 -- 10-6 in the regular season, lost to Pittsburgh 33-10 in the Divisional round.

1979 -- 10-6 in the regular season, lost to the Houston Oilers 13-7 in the Wildcard round.

    The 1980s saw the Broncos build upon that early start.  After an 8-8 season in 1980, HC Red Miller was replaced by Dan Reeves.  In the remaining 9 years of the 1980s, Reeves' Broncos posted 7 winning seasons, 1 8-8 season, and 1 losing season (when they went 2-7 in the strike shortened 1982 season).  Under Reeves, Denver appeared in the post season 5 times, including appearances in Super Bowls XXI, XXII and XXIV.

    A part of achieving these successes lie in the 78 late round (5th or later) draft picks made by the Broncos.  During the 1980s, the NFL still had 12 rounds in the draft.  36 of those choices failed to make the team, nor caught on with any other team.  However, as we will see, among the 42 players that did make the team we find some notable names from Broncos history:  Keith Bishop, Sammy Winder, and Karl Mecklenberg to name a few. 


1980 -- 5 Players (+3 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

Four of the five players to make pro rosters started their careers with Denver; the most notable were Mike Harden and Keith Bishop.


1981 -- 2 Players (+5 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

Both players started their careers with the Broncos.  Lanier played 12 years with Denver, spent one year away then closed out his career with the Broncos.


1982 -- 3 Players (+3 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

This was a draft class that saw two players (Winder and Woodard) make strong contributions to the team.  Winder was the 2nd diamond in the rough found in the late rounds in the 1980s (the first being Keith Bishop).

1983 -- 6 Players (+3 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

An okay class so far as the number of players signed goes, this was a class that brought two player who will long remain a significant part of Broncos history: Gary Kubiak and Karl Mecklenberg.


1984 -- 7 Players (+1 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

A good late round draft class in terms of getting production for the entire group.  The production however, with the exception of Clarence Kay and Gene Lang was minimal.


1985 -- 1 Players (+7 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

A disappointing late round draft class -- 8 players drafted only 1 established a pro career, and it wasn't with the Broncos.


1986 -- 6 Players (+2 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

Two notable Broncos came out of this set of late round picks:  Orson Mobley and Mark Jackson.  Both were contributors during Denver's Super Bowl runs.


1987 -- 5 Players (+3 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

Tyrone Braxton  was the lone bright spot in an otherwise disappointing late round draft class.


1988 -- 2 Players (+5 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

Another disappointing draft class in the late rounds.

  
1989 -- 5 Players (+4 that did not make the team, nor any other team)

Still another late round disappointment for the Broncos in terms of draft picks.  Bratton was the only serious contributor.  The majority of the picks started with the Broncos but ended their careers with other teams.


Some Observations

1)The 1980s saw two things begin for the Broncos: the team began their rise to being a consistently competitive and winning team, and more late round players began to have an impact on the fortunes of the Denver franchise.

2)From 1980 to 1989, the Broncos drafted 78 players in round 5 or later, the fewest late round picks to date.

3)Of those 78 players, 36 failed to make the Broncos or any other NFL team.

4)Of the 42 that were drafted and became pro football players, only 33 began their careers with the Broncos, the best percentage to date.

4)The average Broncos career for these 33 players was  4.5 years; an increase of over a year from the 1970s late round draft picks.

5)Broncos fans can celbrate some good things that came about, in part, because of the contributions of these 33 late round choices:
1982 -- Denver's only losing season, which came in a strike shortened year
1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1989 -- Playoff appearances
1986, 1987, 1989 -- Super Bowl Appearances
The addition of Mike Harden, Keith Bishop, Ken Lanier, Sammy Winder, Gary Kubiak, Karl Mecklenberg, Clarence Kay, Orson Mobley, Mark Jackson and Tyrone Braxton to the list of notable Broncos players who came out of the later rounds.

6)The drafts of the 1980s reflect the solidifying of the Broncos as a true Super Bowl competitor, and Denver's increasing ability to find impact players in the later rounds.