John Elway

1960-

American football player

John Elway is arguably one of the best quarterbacks in football history. He retired after sixteen seasons and two Super Bowl championships as the winningest starting quarterback in the history of the National Football League (NFL).

Two Sports

John Elway was born on June 28, 1960 in Port Angeles, Washington. He grew up in a happy home with his twin sister Jana, older sister Lee Ann, and his parents. His father, Jack, was a college football coach, and the family followed his coaching jobs from Washington, to Montana, to Los Angeles, where Elway attended Granada Hills High School. With his father as his mentor and ad hoc coach, Elway learned the basic elements of throwing, running, and reading defenses, as well as the values of hard work and sportsmanship. In his first football game as a sixth-grader, Elway ran for six touchdowns in the first half.

Elway was talented in football, basketball, and baseball. Washington State University basketball coach George Raveling, who saw Elway at a basketball camp, thought he showed significant promise as a basketball player. As a senior he batted .491, had a pitching record of 4-2, led his team to the Los Angeles City championship, and was named Southern California's player of the year. In his final season on the football field at Granada Hills, he completed 129 passes on 200 attempts for 1,837 yards and nineteen touchdowns. His athletic abilities earned the attention of an array of college football

and baseball scouts, as well as professional baseball scouts. The Kansas City Royals selected him in the eighteenth round of the 1979 draft; however, Elway, opting to play college football, signed a letter of intent with Stanford University.

During his four years at Stanford, from 1979 to 1983, Elway set five major National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) records as well as nine major Pac-10 conference records. He completed 774 of 1,243 pass attempts (62.1 percent) for 9,349 yards and seventy-seven touchdowns. Elway also played baseball at Stanford for two years. In his last season as a sophomore, he batted.349 with nine home runs and fifty runs batted in (RBI) in forty-nine games. He was drafted by the New York Yankees and played a summer with the Yankees' single-A farm club in Oneonta, New York. His batting average was .349, and he had a team-high twenty-four RBIs.

Joins the Broncos

Graduating with a degree in economics in 1983, Elway entered the NFL draft with several other celebrated college quarterbacks, including Jim Kelly and Dan Marino . The Baltimore Colts had first pick and selected Elway. However, Elway made it clear that he did not want to play for the Colts, a team characterized by their dictatorial coach, Frank Kush. He also wanted to play closer to home and even considered opting for a professional baseball contract rather than play football in Baltimore. Accordingly, the Colts worked a deal to trade Elway to the Denver Broncos, whose generous contract made the rookie the second highest paid quarterback in the NFL.

Elway's entrance into the NFL proved to be a rocky road. A superstar at Stanford, he was expected by fans to be an instant success in Denver. It was the first time Elway had ever heard booing directed at him. In his regular season debut he completed just one of eight pass attempts for fourteen yards, threw one interception, and was sacked four times before injuring his elbow and being replaced by veteran quarterback Dan DeBerg. After the first five games Elway was benched, but started the last five games of the season after DeBerg was injured. Working much of the year with a sore elbow and a porous offensive line that offered little protection, Elway ended his first season with a completion rate of just 47.5 percent with seven touchdown passes and fourteen interceptions.

Following his rookie year, Elway married his college sweetheart, Janet. They have four children, three daughters and a son. With his feet more firmly under him during his sophomore season, Elway began to improve his performance. In fifteen games Elway led the team to twelve wins. He completed 214 of 380 passes for 2,598 yards, was third on the team in rushing with 237 yards, and improved his completion rate to 56.3 percent. With an overall team record of 13-3, the Broncos were the American Football Conference (AFC) Western Division champions. Elway and his team strolled into the postseason, but lost in the first round to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Hits His Stride

Better in his second year than his first, Elway began to shine in 1985, his third season. No booing could be heard as Elway broke nearly every Broncos record on the books and knocked at the door of several NFL records. He led the league with 605 pass attempts, a Bronco record and just four shy of the all-time NFL record of 609 set by Dan Fouts. Other franchise records set included pass completions (327, second in the NFL), passing yards (3891, second in the NFL), and total offense (4,414, first in the NFL). He threw twenty-two touchdowns, but also threw a career-high twenty-three interceptions, the one blemish on his otherwise incredible season.

In 1986 the Broncos repeated as the AFC champions in dramatic fashion. Locked in a tight game with the Cleveland Browns, Elway took the Broncos from their own two-yard line, in what became known as simply "The Drive," to score a game-tying touchdown with just thirty-seven seconds left on the clock. The Broncos won in overtime on a field goal, 23-20, and Elway was poised to appear in his first Super Bowl. Although he threw for 304 yards against the New York Giants, the Giants came from behind, outscoring Denver 30-20 in the second half, to defeat the Broncos, 39-20. Despite losing the Super Bowl, Elway earned his first trip to the Pro Bowl.

In a season shortened by a players' strike, Elway still managed to pass for over 3,000 yards in twelve games in 1987, and, in another thrilling AFC championship game, the Broncos once again defeated the Browns. Appearing in his second straight Super Bowl, this time facing the Washington Redskins, Elway threw a 55-yard touchdown pass on Denver's first play from scrimmage, setting a record for the earliest touchdown ever scored in a Super Bowl game. Unfortunately, that was the first and last of the Broncos' highlights on the day as Elway threw three interceptions and the Broncos were stomped by the Redskins, 42-10. Despite his final performance, Elway was named the NFL's Most Valuable Player.

Chronology

Awards and Accomplishments

Super Bowls: 0-3

Missing the playoffs in 1989, Elway led his team back to the AFC championship for the third time in four years in 1990, once again sending the Browns home in the AFC championship game. Facing Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl, Elway and the Broncos were embarrassed by the 49ers, losing 55-10. Elway passed for just 108 yards and threw two interceptions; his Super Bowl record fell to 0-3. The following season Elway experienced his first losing season as the Broncos posted a record of 5-11, but in 1991 the team bounced back to win eleven games, winning the AFC Western Division title before being beaten by the Buffalo Bills in the conference championship.

By the early 1990s Elway's relationship with head coach Dan Reeves was becoming increasingly tense. Depending on the viewpoint, Elway came off looking a bit like a spoiled brat, or Reeves appeared to be a stiff-necked, control freak. The conflict boiled over into the press after Reeves fired offensive coach Mike Shanahan, Elway's close personal friend. After finishing the 1992 season with a record of 8-8, Elway was intimating that it was going to be either him or Reeves. The Broncos organization chose Elway, and Reeves' contract was not renewed after the end of the season.

Elway entered the 1993 season with renewed focus. He threw 551 passes, completing 348 (63.2 percent), for 4,030 yards, twenty-five touchdowns and only ten interceptions, but the Broncos struggled in 1994, and Shanahan was invited to return to Denver as the head coach in 1995. After two years of rebuilding, the Broncos, who had added sensational running back Terrell Davis to its roster, posted a record of 13-3 in 1996, and Elway became just the fourth player in NFL history to throw for more than 45,000 career yards. The Broncos made their first appearance in postseason play since 1993, but were upset at home in the first round by the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In 1997 Elway threw twenty-seven touchdown passes, a career high, and led the Broncos to a 12-4 regular season record. Reaching his fourth Super Bowl, Elway, already considered one of the game's greatest quarterbacks, was under serious scrutiny regarding his ability to perform in the big game. Although Elway only threw for 123 yards in the Super Bowl against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Broncos' win, 31-24, quieted his detractors and Elway, now with a Super Bowl title, finally got the monkey off his back.

The Broncos came back strong in 1998, and Elway joined Marino as the only quarterbacks to pass for more than 50,000 yards. On January 16, 1999, Elway played his last game at Mile High Stadium, earning his fifth trip to the Super Bowl. In a made-for-television match-up, Elway and the Broncos squared off in the Super Bowl against the Atlanta Falcons, coached by Dan Reeves. The Broncos prevailed, and Elway won his second consecutive Super Bowl.

Career Statistics

Having reached the mountaintop twice, 38-year-old Elway, who was suffering from some nagging injuries, announced his retirement in May 2000. After sixteen years of play, he walked away with a career record of 142-82-1 (.643), making him the NFL's all-time winningest starting quarterback. With two Super Bowl titles, the Comeback Kid had made the biggest comeback of them all.

FURTHER INFORMATION

Books

Newsmakers 1990, Issue 3. Detroit: Gale Group, 1990.

Sports Stars. Series 1-4. Detroit: U•X•L, 1994-98.

St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture. five volumes. Detroit: St. James Press, 2000.

Periodicals

Attner, Paul. "Smart. Very Smart."Sporting News (May 3, 1999): 12.

Bechtel, Mark. "The King of the Comeback."Sports Illustrated (February 10, 1999): 22.

Elliott, Josh. "Back in the Game."Sports Illustrated (June 24, 2002)

King, Peter. "Where Does He Stand?"Sports Illustrated (February 10, 1999): 84.

Looney, Douglas S. "Elway on Elway."Christian Science Monitor (January 22, 1998).

Reilly, Rick. "Welcome to the Real World."Sports Illustrated (August 19, 2002): 80.

Silver, Michael. "Champions At Last."Sports Illustrated (February 10, 1999): 50.

Silver, Michael. "Last Call."Sports Illustrated (May 3, 1999): 52.

Other

Carter, Bob. "Elway Led Broncos on 'The Drive.'" ESPN Classic. http://www.espn.com (December 28, 2002)

"Football Scrapbooks: John Elway."Sporting News. http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/elway/timeline.html/ (December 28, 2002)

"John Elway." Denver Broncos.com. http://www.denverbroncos.com/history/ringoffame/elway/php3/ (December 28, 2002)

"John Elway: President and Chief Executive Officer." Colorado Crush Arena Football. http://www.coloradocrush.com (December 28, 2002)

"QB Club: John Elway." National Football League. http://www.nfl.com/qbclub/elway.html/ (December 28, 2002)

Knisley, Michael. "Elway-Reeves Power Struggle Threatens Broncos' Success."Sporting News.com. http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/elway/article13.html/ (December 28, 2002)

Sketch by Kari Bethel

Where Is He Now?

A longtime owner of numerous Denver-area automobile dealerships, a few years before retirement Elway sold most of his car business for a reported $82.5 million. So, after retiring in 2000 he didn't need a job; he needed something to do to fill the void created when he walked off the field for the last time. After briefly considering an office job with the Broncos, Elway joined Wayne Gretzky and Michael Jordan in forming MVP.com, an online sporting goods store. However, the venture, which Elway later called a good idea at a bad time, went bust. After unsuccessfully making bids on ownership of several professional sports teams, in 2002 Elway became one-third owner and the chief executive officer of the Colorado Crush, a new Arena Football League team set to begin play in 2003.

Elway's ride off into the sunset has been marred by personal tragedy. In the winter of 2001 his twin sister Jana was diagnosed with lung cancer. Two months later, his father died of a heart attack. His sister died in the summer of 2002; Elway was at her side when she passed away. Also during that same summer, Elway's wife of eighteen years moved out, taking the couple's four children, but within a month the family was back on track and reunited under one roof.