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Steve Atwater is the last member of the Denver Broncos to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, an honor he received in 2020. In 2024, there could be up to four more Broncos among the elite club.
Broncos Ring of Fame linebacker Randy Gradishar is Denver’s only player in the HOF semifinals, but according to a July 12 announcement, former head coaches Mike Shanahan and Dan Reeves are also among the 60 nominees this year.
Former offensive line coach Alex Gibbs has also been nominated.
Gradishar has been a finalist three different times but has never been inducted. This year he joins 30 other semifinalists in the Senior category.
The leader of the “Orange Crush” defense helped get the Broncos to their first-ever Super Bowl in the 1977-78 season. Gradishar was named the Defensive Player of the Year in 1978 and was awarded All-Pro honors five times in the late ’70s and early ’80s.
The seven-time Pro Bowler came close to making it into the hall of fame after he finished in the Top 10 in 2003.
‘Mike Shanahan Deserves to Be in the Hall of Fame’
Shanahan was the head coach for three teams — the Raiders, Broncos, and Washington — for 20 years between 1988 and 2013. Shanahan ranks 15th all-time in wins with an overall record of 170-138.
While in Denver, Shanahan won back-to-back Super Bowls joining Vince Lombardi, Don Shula, Chuck Noll, Jimmy Johnson, and Bill Belichick as the only six coaches to ever win back-to-back championships.
During his time in Denver, Shanahan had an overall record of 148-86 and won at least 10 games in seven of the 14 years he was there.
In 27 seasons as a head coach or offensive coordinator, Shanahan appeared in the playoffs 14 times and made it to the conference championship nine times. In five Super Bowl appearances, Shanahan would close out his career with three Lombardi Trophies (one as an assistant).
Former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Bill Cowher praised Shanahan back in 2020, saying, “Mike Shanahan deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.” Cowher also added, “The two toughest coaches for me to prepare for were Bill Belichick and Mike Shanahan.”
Of the four meetings between Shanahan and Cowher, the former Denver head coach beat Cowher three times. In the postseason, they split with a 1-1 record when they beat each other in the AFC Championship to go on and each win a Super Bowl in those seasons.
Even against arguably the greatest head coach of all time in Belichick, Shanahan owns a 5-4 record over the New England head coach.
Legacy of Dan Reeves
The Broncos franchise might not be where it is today if it wasn’t for Reeves. After being part of the trade that brought hall of fame quarterback John Elway to Denver, Reeves coached the Broncos to six postseason appearances and five division titles.
Reeves took Denver to three Super Bowls in his 12 years with the Broncos but failed to win a single one. Winning a total of 117 games with the Broncos, Reeves was fired after the 1992 season.
Reeves became the head coach of the New York Giants from 1993-1996 and was named the Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year in 1993. Despite having a losing record with the Giants (32-34), New York made the playoffs just one time.
In 1997, Reeves was then hired by his hometown team the Atlanta Falcons, where he was named NFL Coach of the Year once again in 1998. During that same season, Reeves led his Falcons to the Super Bowl for his fourth-time and they faced off against Shanahan’s Broncos.
In total, Reeves combined to appear in nine total Super Bowls as a player and coach.
In Reeves’ head coaching tenure, he won over 200 games and has been inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame.
History of Alex Gibbs
If you watch today’s NFL and see all the zone-blocking schemed plays from Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay to Mike McDaniel and Matt LaFleur, it all came from Gibbs.
Gibbs was a huge part of the puzzle as to why the Broncos won back-to-back Super Bowls in 1998 and 1999.
Arguably one of the most famous offensive line coaches in NFL history, Gibbs’ zone-blocking helped Terrell Davis rush for 2,000 yards and win the league MVP during the 1998 season.
According to DenverBroncos.com, Gibbs went on to coach a 1,000-yard rusher in four of five seasons following the team’s 1999 Super Bowl win.
While he wasn’t on the staff, Gibbs’ zone-blocking scheme also helped former Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak lead Denver to their Super Bowl victory in 2016.
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