The 10 best moves John Elway made as the Broncos GM

On Monday, the Broncos surprised the football world when they announced that John Elway would no longer be the general manager of the team. Since taking the job on January 5, 2011, No. 7 had built teams that won five-straight AFC West titles, two conference championships and Super Bowl 50.

It was an impressive 10-season run, one filled with a lot of high points. To celebrate those accomplishments, here’s a look back at the 10 best moves Elway made as the Broncos GM:

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10. Drafted Justin Simmons

After a bit of a cold stretch in the draft, Elway struck gold in 2016. While most of that year’s class was forgettable, the Broncos did find a great player in the third round. There’s where they drafted Simmons with the 98th overall pick. In the five years since, the Boston College product has turned into one of the best safeties in the league. Last season, he earned All-Pro honors. And in 2020, Simmons was chosen to his first Pro Bowl. He’s a great player on the field, but also tremendous away from the game, earning back-to-back Walter Payton Man of the Year nominations from the team.

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9. Signed Emmanuel Sanders

In 2013, the Broncos had a great offense. But it lacked a true deep threat. Demaryius Thomas was the team’s physical receiver. Wes Welker (see below) was the safety net. And Julius Thomas was the matchup nightmare. As good as Eric Decker was as the other receiver, he didn’t give Denver a home-run target. So on March 16, 2014, Elway went shopping. He inked former Steelers wideout Emmanuel Sanders, snaring him away before the Chiefs could sign him. In five-plus seasons in Denver, Sanders caught 404 passes, chalked up 5,361 yards and scored 28 touchdowns.

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8. Drafted a Defensive Foundation

While none of the picks earned a lot of hype at the time, mainly because the Broncos didn’t own a first-round pick in 2012, that didn’t prevent Elway from finding some key pieces in his second draft. In the second round, Denver selected defensive lineman Derek Wolfe out of Cincinnati. In the fifth, they picked another interior defensive lineman, taking Malik Jackson out of Tennessee. And in the sixth round, Elway found middle linebacker Danny Trevathan out of Kentucky. All three would go on to start for the Broncos in Super Bowl 50, a game that was dominated by Denver’s defense.

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7. Signed Wes Welker

The Broncos had a good offense in 2012, their first season with Peyton Manning at quarterback. But it wasn’t off the charts. In 2013, however, that’s exactly what they were, becoming the most-prolific offense in the history of the NFL. What made the difference? There were a lot of factors, but none bigger than the addition of Welker. The idea slot receiver, he became a favorite target of Manning. During the record-setting season, the wide receiver caught 73 passes, racked up 778 yards and scored 10 touchdowns.

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6. Hired John Fox

On the heels of Josh McDaniels, the Broncos needed a grown up in the room. Bringing in Fox, who had enjoyed a successful nine-year run as the head coach of the Panthers, accomplished that goal. Fox was a steadying hand, helping Denver transition quickly from a losing organization to a winning one. In his first season, he showed his flexibility, pivoting to Tim Tebow as the team’s quarterback. A year later, he was smart enough to let Peyton Manning run whatever offense Peyton Manning wanted to run. At the end of the 2013 season, the Fox-led Broncos reached the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Seahawks.

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5. Signed Chris Harris Jr.

While Elway’s drafts haven’t always been stellar, his ability to find undrafted college free agents has been off the charts. On July 27, 2011, he inked perhaps the best of the bunch when he signed a little-known cornerback out of Kansas. Harris would go on to become one of the best defensive backs in franchise history, picking off 20 passes during his nine seasons in a Broncos uniform. CHJ was a four-time Pro Bowl selection and a key part of “The No-Fly Zone,” which helped power Denver to a world championship in 2015.

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4. Signed the Class of 2014

Coming off of an embarrassing 43-8 loss to the Seahawks in the Super Bowl, Elway decided that he needed to load up on the defensive side of the ball. Denver had a prolific offense, but they couldn’t stop anyone. That all started to change when Elway inked three of the top free agents on the market in March 2014. First, he signed cornerback Aqib Talib and safety T.J. Ward, both of whom would be integral to “The No-Fly Zone.” Then, he signed defensive end DeMarcus Ware, who would provide a pass rush on the field and mentorship to Von Miller off of it.

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3. Hired Gary Kubiak

Of late, it certainly seems like the Broncos have had a revolving door at Dove Valley, with head coaches coming and going on a regular basis. That’s in part due to the fact that the best one Elway hired, his former teammate, had to depart after just two seasons due to health reasons. Kubiak was the long-term plan, one that would have been great for the franchise. That said, the coach still had a huge impact in a short time. In his first season, Kubiak led the Broncos to a championship, deftly handling the Manning-Osweiler situation at QB. And in his final year, he went 9-7 with Trevor Siemian as his quarterback; that was Denver’s last winning season.

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2. Drafted Von Miller

Not long after taking the job, Elway had a big decision to make. The Broncos had the No. 2 overall selection in the draft, the highest pick in franchise history. They couldn’t afford to miss. Denver needed to select a transformational player, someone who would some day be enshrined in team’s Ring of Fame. Elway did just that, selecting outside linebacker Von Miller out of Texas A&M. Miller would go on to become one of the best defensive players in Broncos history, leading the franchise in career sacks and winning Most Valuable Player honors in Super Bowl 50.

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1. Signed Peyton Manning

This is without a doubt the greatest free agent signing in the history of the National Football League. And Elway pulled it off on March 20, 2012. When Manning first hit the open market, no one saw the future Hall of Fame quarterback coming to Denver. Other suitors were atop everyone’s lists, including the Texans, Titans, Jets and Redskins. But Elway won the competition, courting Manning to the Mile High City. What would follow was the best four-year stretch in franchise history, including four-straight AFC West titles, two trips to the Super Bowl and a Lombardi Trophy in 2015.

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