Three Broncos legends are one step closer to the Hall of Fame

Randy Gradishar, Mike Shanahan and Dan Reeves passed through the first hurdle in the path to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

After being named among 60 total semifinalists for nomination from the Hall’s Seniors Committee and Coach/Contributor Committees, the three Ring of Famers passed to the next level, as part of a total of 24 who advanced to the next stage of selection for the 2024 Hall class.

Twelve of those 24 are from the seniors pool, including Gradishar. The other half are coach/contributor nominees, including Reeves and Shanahan.

Gradishar has better odds. That results from the seniors committee sending up to three three nominees forward as finalists. The coach/contributor pool has just one finalist for next year.

Reeves, of course, is the only eligible coach to guide teams to four Super Bowls as a head coach and not have a bust in Canton. His teams lost all four of them, including three when he helmed the Broncos. But the other two coaches whose teams went 0-4 in Super Bowls — Bud Grant and Marv Levy – are long since in the Hall.

Shanahan is one of just three eligible coaches with two Super Bowl wins as a head coach who isn’t in the Hall of Fame. George Seifert and Tom Coughlin are the others. Coughlin is also among the 12 coaches or contributors who advanced to the next stage.

The coach/contributor committee will meet Aug. 15 to choose its finalist. The seniors committee meets seven days later.

The finalists will then have their candidacies decided by the Hall of Fame’s full selection committee, which votes in January.

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