Good morning, Broncos Country!

Steve Foley should be in the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame.

As was the case with Simon Fletcher and Rick Upchurch before they (finally) got inducted, how the Broncos defensive back isn’t already in baffles me. It makes no sense. Foley played in Denver from 1976-86. He played in 150 games, and that’s with missing all but one game in 1982. What may surprise some: Foley is the Broncos’ career leader in interceptions.

On the latest MHR Radio Podcast (iTunes, Spotify and Stitcher), I asked Adam Malnati and the listeners to help me find an answer to this question. On Twitter, the most common response I got was that Foley was good but not “Ring-of-Fame worthy.” I totally get that. Based on the responses, he seemed to get picked on by the likes of Terry Bradshaw and Dan Fouts.

My rebuttal to that: When you lead an organization in a statistical category, that is an automatic induction in that teams’ ring of fame/honor. Again, Foley is the Broncos’ all-time interceptions leader with 44. That number will never get passed. The only current member of the organization on the career list worth mentioning is Chris Harris Jr. Given that he plays this season, it’ll be his ninth in the NFL. Harris has 19 career interceptions. He’s also one who most say is a no-brainer for the Ring of Fame. So, again, I ask: Why isn’t Foley in the Ring of Fame?

There are no doubt players who deserve to get this distinction, some whom played in this century. The two who come to mind are Ed McCaffrey and Al Wilson. There are some old-time Denver players who need to get this recognition too. After Foley, tight end Riley Odoms is somehow overlooked. Mike Klis had a great tweet (don’t tell Laurie I said that) comparing the numbers of Odoms to two tight ends in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. On the podcast, I also threw out Orange Crush linebackers Bob Swenson and Joe Rizzo. There’s another name probably more deserving than any of them, save for Foley, and that’s Lyle Alzado. Here’s the story I wrote on Alzado two years ago.

This is a discussion and debate that will stand as long as sports are played. As long as the Broncos play football and they have a Ring of Fame. We all have our opinions, and there’s no way everyone will ever agree. There are times when the choice is easy, like Champ Bailey. But there are times when the choice and debate gets tougher, and the selection committee will never make anyone happy. Nor is that its job. But it also seems the committee makes this tougher than it is.

In this situation, the choice seems straight-forward enough. Foley is the Broncos’ all-time leader in interceptions and will never lose that spot. Over the course of his career, Foley played a role in Denver reaching its first two Super Bowls. What else is there to know? Whatever the reason he’s not in the Ring of Fame, it needs to get fixed. The time has come for Foley to (finally) get inducted.

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