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Elvis Dumervil came into the world on January 19, 1984 in Miami, Florida. After growing up in Miami, Dumervil attended college at the University of Louisville. He was a two-year starter for the Cardinal (2004, 2005). As a senior (2005), Dumervil logged 36 solo tackles, 22 of those were for losses. Those 22 tackles for loss were 4th in the NCAA that year. He added 27 assists on tackles. He led the NCAA in sacks with 20. He was also first in the NCAA in forced fumbles with 10. He was named the 2005 Big East Defensive Player of the Year.
Dumervil was drafted by Denver in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL Draft. He was the 126th player drafted overall. The Broncos were impressed with his ability to be a productive playmaker. He had shown exceptional speed as a pass rusher, using his short stature and long arms to gain leverage on would-be blockers. He was characterized as a player who gave 100% on each and every play. Those coveted characteristics most certainly carried over into his NFL career.
Despite being moved around in the Broncos defensive schemes -- he was a DE in a predominately 4-3 offense under head coach Mike Shanahan, moved to an OLB in a predominately 3-4 defense under head coach Josh McDaniels, then moved back to a DE in the predominately 4-3 defense favored by current head coach John Fox -- Dumervil amassed an impressive set of statistics. Listed in the table below are his year-by-year production.
| Year | Gms/St | Sk | Int | PD | FF | FR | Tkl | Ast | Sfty |
| 2006 | 13/0 | 8.5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 14 | 3 | 0 |
| 2007 | 16/16 | 12.5 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 34 | 5 | 0 |
| 2008 | 16/15 | 5.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 7 | 0 |
| 2009 | 16/14 | 17.0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 41 | 7 | 0 |
| 2010 | 0/0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 | 14/14 | 9.5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 31 | 12 | 0 |
| 2012 | 16/16 | 11.0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 32 | 22 | 1 |
Dumervil saw limited playing time his rookie season, though he did see the field more and more as the season went on. In 2007, he came on strong, starting all sixteen games and leading the team in sacks with 12.5. His production dropped off in 2008 only to surge back to a lead-best 17.0 sacks in 2009. He was given a six-year contract extension in 2010 by then-head coach Josh McDaniels -- the $43.168 million in guaranteed money that would lie at the heart of the issue in 2012. That same season, Dumervil tore a pectoral muscle during a training camp practice and missed the entire 2010 season. He returned to form in 2011 when he logged 9.5 sacks. He improved his production by 1.5 sacks in 2012.
If he had any weakness -- and there are some who would argue that he didn't -- it was that he was not as strong in his run defense as he was in his pass rushing.
Dumervil's excellence was recognized by his peers, the league and fans as he was elected to represent the AFC in three Pro Bowls (2009, 2011 and 2012). He was also voted to the 1st Team All-Pro in 2009. Dumervil and fellow Bronco Von Miller were widely acclaimed as one of the best pass rushing duos in the league over the last two years.
As everyone is most likely all too painfully aware of the events that transpired with the who Late Great Fax Snafu, I will not reiterate them here.
Dumervil was well-liked by the Broncos Front Office, by his teammates and by Broncos fans everywhere. Few things were more fun to watch than Dumveril out-maneuvering a defender to put pressure on the quarterback. Or, as in the picture at the top of this article, forcing a veteran quarterback such as Ben Roethlisberger to fumble the ball. No matter what the game situation, we knew that Dumvervil was going to be a force to be reckoned with.
Elvis, thanks for the memories, and sorry to hear that you have left the building.