Ghosts from the Broncos’ not-so-glorious past are beginning to stir.
The spirit of coach “Half-a-Loaf” Lou Saban, the ineptitude of quarterbacks such as Steve Tensi, Pete Liske, Steve Ramsey and Don Horn, as well as a losing culture that defined the team for its first 13 seasons, were buried long ago.
Or so it seemed.
Now there are parallels between those dark days and the current state of the Broncos. Namely, a struggling head coach whose job status is the talk of the town and chronic problems at quarterback.
Under coach , the Broncos are 3-6 on the heels of an unsightly 5-11 record last season. The team is careening toward its first back-to-back losing seasons since the 1971-72 seasons. The Broncos finished 4-9-1 under Saban and interim coach Jerry Smith in 1971, and went 5-9 in 1972 under John Ralston.
Toss in their 1-3 record under down the stretch in 2016 and the Broncos are 9-20 in their past 29 games, a stretch marred by inconsistent quarterback play following the retirement of and a talent drain throughout the roster.
Hall of Fame running back Floyd Little, the Broncos’ lone star during the dark ages, looks upon his former team with concern.
“They are struggling, no doubt,” Little said from his home in Las Vegas. “Any time you lose twice to Kansas City in one season, it’s a disaster.” (The Broncos have been swept by Kansas City the past three seasons.)
As outspoken defensive end said recently, “Itap sad that we went from a championship-caliber team to a team that stinks and nobody respects us.”
It’s been a long time since the Broncos were so poorly regarded.
Just how remarkable has the Broncos’ era of competitiveness been? Consider this: The last time the Broncos had two consecutive losing seasons, 1972, John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High” was a huge hit, the Vietnam War was still raging and the average cost of a new home in American was $27,500. That was also the year Colorado voters rejected the state’s bid to host the 1976 Olympics.
An advertisement for United Airlines touted Denver with a pamphlet featuring a saddle, a horse and rifle. It was, indeed, a “dusty old cowtown.”
For more than half a century, orange-clad followers have remained loyal, vocal and rabid. When Denver lost 19-17 to Houston last Sunday at Mile High, it marked the 400th consecutive home sellout, a streak that stretches to the first game of the 1970 season — Denver’s first in the NFL after a decade in the American Football League.
But the fans’ dissatisfaction is beginning to show.
Quarterback problems
When the Broncos lost to the Rams on Oct. 14, there were 9,131 no-shows. The last time so many fans stayed home was at a loss to the St. Louis Rams in 2010 when Josh McDaniels was coach. Not long after he was fired.
“The biggest question, in my mind, is they’ve never had any consistency at quarterback since Peyton left,” Little said. “They are struggling to find a leader. Back in my day, we didn’t have a lot of all-pro players like other teams and we were always looking for a quarterback.”
In 1966, during a 4-10 season that included a 56-10 home loss to the Chiefs, the Broncos started four different quarterbacks and played five. The quintet combined for 12 touchdown passes vs. 30 interceptions. Shortly before the 1967 season, Saban, in his first year as coach/general manager, traded Denver’s No. 1 draft picks in the 1968 and 1969 common AFL-NFL draft to San Diego in exchange for Tensi. But Tensi, plagued by poor pass protection and a shoulder injury, retired in 1970.
Little, drafted in the first round out of Syracuse in 1967, was Denver’s first true star, as well as the essence of its offense. Lacking a difference-making quarterback, Denver’s game plan was typically Little off left tackle, Little off right tackle.
“When I came to the Broncos, it was all about Floyd, and he took a pounding,” said Bobby Anderson, an All-American quarterback and tailback at Colorado who was drafted by the Broncos in the first round in 1970.
“Lou would come up to me after the game and say, ‘Floyd, hang in there, we’re going to get you some help,’ ” Little recalled.
Saban came to Denver having won back-to-back AFL championships with Buffalo. Expectations were high, but success never arrived.
“Lou was a tough guy and respected by the team, but I don’t know if he had the motivational skills to get more out of the team,” Anderson said. “He helped build up the team, but we never won consistently.”
The low point arrived in the 1971 season opener in front of 51,228 fans at the original Mile High Stadium. Hosting the talent-rich (who would go on to lose to Dallas in the ), the Broncos had a chance for a huge upset. The game was tied 10-10 late when Anderson recovered a fumble by Jake Scott on a punt return with 1:14 remaining.
A holding call took Denver out of field goal range with 15 seconds left. Still, a quick sideline pass might have set up a game-winning field goal attempt for Jim Turner. Instead, Saban chose to run Little into the middle of the Dolphins’ defensive line as time expired.
Boos rained down from the stands and several players later said that Saban’s conservative approach suggested that he had little faith in the team.
But it’s Saban’s postgame quotes that live in infamy. He explained to the media how he was trying to engineer the game’s final minute before finishing with this nugget: “It didn’t work out. It’s an old saying, but I’d rather have half a loaf then none.”
Success-starved fans went ballistic. Denver lost the next three games — two at home — and the fans began throwing half loaves of bread onto the field. Some even discovered where Saban lived and threw bags of garbage on his front lawn.
After a Week 9 home loss to Cincinnati, Saban was gone. He resigned before he could be fired and left without speaking to his players.
Pressure mounts on VJ
Now it’s Joseph’s future that’s in question, even though general manager said recently that the Broncos are “going to stay the course.”
As with Saban’s “half-a-loaf” debacle, Joseph’s decision making is being called into question. In their loss to Houston, the Broncos reached the Texans’ 44-yard line as time ran down in first half. With 22 seconds remaining, instead of punting and taking a 13-10 deficit into the locker room, Joseph opted for a 62-yard field-goal attempt by . The kick was wide right.
The Texans ran two plays to set up a 46-yard field goal for a 16-10 lead.
“Thatap totally on me; I was chasing points,” Joseph said, adding that the Broncos’ losing record played into his decision to try a long field goal. “If you have a winning record, you don’t go for a long field goal, in my opinion. You do take more chances when you’re on the other side of things (record-wise).”
Joseph’s decisions at game’s end also came under fire after McManus missed a 51-yard kick that would have won the game. Joseph went conservative instead of trying to get deeper into Houston territory to set up a shorter kick.
Saban’s departure didn’t immediately end the Broncos’ losing ways. Ralston finally produced Denver’s first winning season in 1973. Ralston’s teams — loaded with Ring of Famers, including , Tom Jackson and Rick Upchurch — posted winning records in three of his five seasons. But it was first-year coach Red Miller who led the Broncos to their first Super Bowl in 1977, which ignited a mania that remains to this day.
The current Broncos have young talent that portends a brighter future. Of the 10 players selected in the 2018 draft, four already have starting experience: linebacker , wide receiver , running back and linebacker Josey Jewell. And undrafted rookie running back is making his mark on offense.
“They are our guys right now. We’ve got seven or eight rookies in major, major roles,” Joseph said.
Maybe so, but two enormous make-or-break questions linger. Will Joseph be around to see those players blossom? And how long will it take to find, and develop, a premier quarterback?
