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1987 Denver Broncos
Franchise Index: Previous Season / Next Season
Record: 10-4-1, Finished 1st in AFC West Division
NFL Season Summary
1987 AFC Champions
Scored 379 points (25.3/g), 4th of 28 in the NFL.
Allowed 288 points (19.2/g), 7th.
Differential of 91 points (6.1/g), 5th.
Expected W-L: 9.9-5.1.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential +11 (0.7/g), 4th.
Simple Rating System: Total 4.1, Offense: 3.2, Defense: 0.9, SoS: -1.8, versus averages of 0.0.
Coached by
Dan Reeves
Offensive Coordinator: Mike Shanahan
Defensive Coordinator: Joe Collier
Training Camp: University of Northern Colorado (Greeley, Colorado)
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Starters
ProBowl(*), 1st-team All-Pro(+),Hide Non-primary Starters
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | ||||||
| QB | John Elway* | 27 | 4 | 12 | 224 for 410, 3,198 yards, 19 td, 12 int, & 66 rushes for 304 yards and 4 td | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 1st pick / 1983 |
| RB | Sammy Winder | 28 | 5 | 10 | 196 rushes for 741 yards, 6 td, & 14 catches for 74 yards and 1 td | Denver Broncos / 5th / 131st pick / 1982 |
| FB | Gene Lang | 25 | 3 | 6 | 89 rushes for 303 yards, 2 td, & 17 catches for 130 yards and 2 td | Denver Broncos / 11th / 298th pick / 1984 |
| WR | Mark Jackson | 24 | 1 | 9 | 26 catches for 436 yards, 2 td | Denver Broncos / 6th / 161st pick / 1986 |
| WR | Vance Johnson | 24 | 2 | 9 | 42 catches for 684 yards, 7 td, & 1 rush for -8 yards and 0 td | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 31st pick / 1985 |
| TE | Clarence Kay | 26 | 3 | 12 | 31 catches for 440 yards, 0 td | Denver Broncos / 7th / 186th pick / 1984 |
| LT | Dave Studdard | 32 | 8 | 14 | Baltimore Colts / 9th / 245th pick / 1978 | |
| LG | Keith Bishop* | 30 | 7 | 12 | Denver Broncos / 6th / 157th pick / 1980 | |
| C | Mike Freeman | 26 | 3 | 9 | ||
| RG | Stefan Humphries | 25 | 3 | 7 | Chicago Bears / 3rd / 71st pick / 1984 | |
| RT | Ken Lanier | 28 | 6 | 12 | Denver Broncos / 5th / 125th pick / 1981 | |
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Andre Townsend | 25 | 3 | 11 | 1.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 46th pick / 1984 |
| NT | Greg Kragen | 25 | 2 | 9 | 2.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | |
| RDE | Rulon Jones | 29 | 7 | 12 | 7.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1980 |
| LOLB | Simon Fletcher | 25 | 2 | 12 | 4.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 54th pick / 1985 |
| LILB | Karl Mecklenburg* | 27 | 4 | 12 | 7.0 sacks, 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Denver Broncos / 12th / 310th pick / 1983 |
| RILB | Ricky Hunley | 26 | 3 | 12 | 1.0 sacks, 2 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Cincinnati Bengals / 1st / 7th pick / 1984 |
| ROLB | Jim Ryan | 30 | 8 | 14 | 1.5 sacks, 3 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | |
| LCB | Mark Haynes | 29 | 7 | 12 | 0.0 sacks, 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | New York Giants / 1st / 8th pick / 1980 |
| RCB | Mike Harden | 29 | 7 | 12 | 0.0 sacks, 4 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Denver Broncos / 5th / 131st pick / 1980 |
| SS | Dennis Smith | 28 | 6 | 6 | 0.0 sacks, 2 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Denver Broncos / 1st / 15th pick / 1981 |
| FS | Tony Lilly | 25 | 3 | 9 | 0.0 sacks, 3 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Denver Broncos / 3rd / 78th pick / 1984 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Rich Karlis | 28 | 5 | 0 | 18 of 25 field goals & 37 of 37 extra points | |
| P | Mike Horan | 28 | 3 | 0 | 44 punts for a 41.1 average, 2 blocked | Atlanta Falcons / 9th / 235th pick / 1982 |
| PR | Kevin Clark | 23 | Rook | 3 | 18 punt returns for a 12.9 average and 1 td | |
| KR | Ken Bell | 23 | 1 | 1 | 15 kick returns for a 21.5 average and 0 td |
| No. | Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | AV | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 86 | Mitch Andrews | 23 | te | 8 | 3 | 239 | 6-2 | LSU | 3/4/1964 | Rook | 1 | |
| 67 | John Ayers | 34 | rg | 9 | 5 | 258 | 6-5 | Texas,West Texas A&M | 4/14/1953 | 10 | 3 | San Francisco 49ers / 8th / 223rd pick / 1976 |
| 73 | Kevin L. Belcher | 26 | t | 1 | 1 | 310 | 6-6 | Wisconsin | 11/9/1961 | 2 | 1 | Los Angeles Raiders / 7th / 186th pick / 1985 |
| 35 | Ken Bell | 23 | KR | 12 | 1 | 190 | 5-10 | Boston Col. | 11/16/1964 | 1 | 0 | |
| 54 | Keith Bishop* | 30 | LG | 12 | 12 | 260 | 6-3 | Nebraska,Baylor | 3/10/1957 | 7 | 8 | Denver Broncos / 6th / 157th pick / 1980 |
| 24 | Tony Boddie | 27 | 5 | 0 | 195 | 5-11 | Montana St. | 11/11/1960 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 65 | Walt Bowyer | 27 | de | 15 | 3 | 254 | 6-4 | Arizona St. | 9/8/1960 | 4 | 3 | Denver Broncos / 10th / 254th pick / 1983 |
| 34 | Tyrone Braxton | 23 | 2 | 0 | 185 | 5-11 | North Dakota St. | 12/17/1964 | Rook | 0 | Denver Broncos / 12th / 334th pick / 1987 | |
| 56 | Michael Brooks | 23 | 12 | 0 | 236 | 6-1 | LSU | 10/2/1964 | Rook | 1 | Denver Broncos / 3rd / 86th pick / 1987 | |
| 82 | Laron Brown | 24 | wr | 3 | 1 | 172 | 5-9 | Tennessee,Texas | 11/10/1963 | Rook | 0 | Washington Redskins / 11th / 304th pick / 1987 |
| 64 | Bill Bryan | 32 | c | 4 | 4 | 251 | 6-2 | Duke | 6/21/1955 | 10 | 2 | Denver Broncos / 4th / 101st pick / 1977 |
| 79 | Steve Bryan | 23 | de | 4 | 3 | 256 | 6-2 | Oklahoma | 5/6/1964 | Rook | 2 | Chicago Bears / 5th / 120th pick / 1987 |
| 28 | Scott Caldwell | 24 | rb | 3 | 1 | 196 | 5-10 | Texas-Arlington | 2/8/1963 | Rook | 1 | Detroit Lions / 8th / 202nd pick / 1985 |
| 28 | Jeremiah Castille | 26 | 11 | 0 | 175 | 5-10 | Alabama | 1/15/1961 | 4 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 72nd pick / 1983 | |
| 27 | Kevin Clark | 23 | PR | 11 | 3 | 185 | 5-10 | San Jose St. | 6/8/1964 | Rook | 4 | |
| 15 | Mike Clendenen | 24 | 3 | 0 | 191 | 5-11 | Houston | 6/12/1963 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 63 | Mark Cooper | 27 | 5 | 0 | 270 | 6-5 | Miami (FL) | 2/14/1960 | 4 | 0 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 31st pick / 1983 | |
| 55 | Rick Dennison | 29 | 12 | 0 | 220 | 6-3 | Colorado St. | 6/22/1958 | 5 | 1 | ||
| 59 | Kirk Dodge | 25 | lb | 3 | 1 | 231 | 6-1 | UNLV | 6/4/1962 | 3 | 1 | Atlanta Falcons / 7th / 175th pick / 1984 |
| 32 | Joe Dudek | 23 | rb | 2 | 2 | 200 | 6-0 | Plymouth St. | 1/22/1964 | Rook | 2 | |
| 7 | John Elway* | 27 | QB | 12 | 12 | 215 | 6-3 | Stanford | 6/28/1960 | 4 | 14 | Baltimore Colts / 1st / 1st pick / 1983 |
| 37 | Steve Fitzhugh | 24 | db | 3 | 1 | 188 | 5-11 | Miami (OH) | 1/28/1963 | Rook | 1 | |
| 73 | Simon Fletcher | 25 | LOLB | 12 | 12 | 240 | 6-5 | Houston | 2/18/1962 | 2 | 7 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 54th pick / 1985 |
| 62 | Mike Freeman | 26 | C | 13 | 9 | 256 | 6-3 | Arizona | 10/13/1961 | 3 | 5 | |
| 6 | Ralph Giacomarro | 26 | 3 | 0 | 190 | 6-1 | Penn St. | 1/17/1961 | 4 | 0 | Atlanta Falcons / 10th / 268th pick / 1983 | |
| 90 | Freddie Gilbert | 25 | de | 7 | 3 | 275 | 6-4 | Georgia | 4/8/1962 | 1 | 2 | Denver Broncos / 1st / 19th pick / 1984 Supp |
| 83 | Sam Graddy | 23 | 1 | 0 | 165 | 5-10 | Tennessee | 2/10/1964 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 31 | Mike Harden | 29 | RCB | 12 | 12 | 192 | 6-1 | Michigan | 2/16/1958 | 7 | 7 | Denver Broncos / 5th / 131st pick / 1980 |
| 76 | Archie Harris | 23 | 3 | 0 | 270 | 6-6 | William & Mary | 11/17/1964 | Rook | 0 | Chicago Bears / 7th / 193rd pick / 1987 | |
| 36 | Mark Haynes | 29 | LCB | 12 | 12 | 194 | 5-11 | Colorado | 11/6/1958 | 7 | 7 | New York Giants / 1st / 8th pick / 1980 |
| 78 | Winford Hood | 25 | g | 3 | 2 | 262 | 6-3 | Georgia | 3/29/1962 | 3 | 1 | Denver Broncos / 8th / 207th pick / 1984 |
| 2 | Mike Horan | 28 | P | 12 | 0 | 192 | 5-11 | Long Beach St. | 2/1/1959 | 3 | 0 | Atlanta Falcons / 9th / 235th pick / 1982 |
| 79 | Stefan Humphries | 25 | RG | 7 | 7 | 265 | 6-3 | Michigan | 1/20/1962 | 3 | 4 | Chicago Bears / 3rd / 71st pick / 1984 |
| 98 | Ricky Hunley | 26 | RILB | 12 | 12 | 242 | 6-2 | Arizona | 11/11/1961 | 3 | 7 | Cincinnati Bengals / 1st / 7th pick / 1984 |
| 80 | Mark Jackson | 24 | WR | 12 | 9 | 180 | 5-9 | Purdue | 7/23/1963 | 1 | 4 | Denver Broncos / 6th / 161st pick / 1986 |
| 25 | Roger Jackson | 28 | db | 3 | 2 | 186 | 6-0 | Bethune-Cookman | 2/28/1959 | 5 | 1 | |
| 21 | Earl Johnson | 24 | db | 3 | 3 | 195 | 6-0 | South Carolina | 10/20/1963 | 2 | 1 | New Orleans Saints / 9th / 236th pick / 1985 |
| 82 | Vance Johnson | 24 | WR | 11 | 9 | 185 | 5-11 | Arizona | 3/13/1963 | 2 | 7 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 31st pick / 1985 |
| 95 | Tim Joiner | 26 | lb | 3 | 3 | 235 | 6-4 | LSU | 1/7/1961 | 4 | 1 | Houston Oilers / 3rd / 58th pick / 1983 |
| 20 | Daryll Jones | 25 | db | 1 | 1 | 190 | 6-0 | Georgia | 3/23/1962 | 3 | 0 | Green Bay Packers / 7th / 181st pick / 1984 |
| 69 | David J. Jones | 26 | g | 3 | 1 | 262 | 6-3 | Texas | 10/25/1961 | 3 | 1 | Detroit Lions / 8th / 214th pick / 1984 |
| 45 | Leonard Jones | 23 | db | 2 | 1 | 185 | 6-2 | Texas Tech | 10/28/1964 | Rook | 1 | Minnesota Vikings / 9th / 239th pick / 1987 |
| 75 | Rulon Jones | 29 | RDE | 12 | 12 | 260 | 6-6 | Utah St. | 3/25/1958 | 7 | 7 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 42nd pick / 1980 |
| 12 | Ken Karcher | 24 | qb | 3 | 3 | 205 | 6-3 | Notre Dame,Tulane | 7/1/1963 | Rook | 2 | |
| 3 | Rich Karlis | 28 | K | 12 | 0 | 180 | 6-0 | Cincinnati | 5/23/1959 | 5 | 0 | |
| 60 | Keith Kartz | 24 | c | 12 | 3 | 270 | 6-4 | California | 5/5/1963 | Rook | 2 | |
| 88 | Clarence Kay | 26 | TE | 12 | 12 | 237 | 6-2 | Georgia | 7/30/1961 | 3 | 6 | Denver Broncos / 7th / 186th pick / 1984 |
| 97 | Bruce Klosterman | 24 | 9 | 0 | 230 | 6-4 | Iowa,South Dakota St. | 4/17/1963 | Rook | 1 | Denver Broncos / 8th / 217th pick / 1986 | |
| 56 | Mike Knox | 25 | 3 | 0 | 240 | 6-2 | Nebraska | 11/21/1962 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 71 | Greg Kragen | 25 | NT | 12 | 9 | 263 | 6-3 | Utah St. | 3/4/1962 | 2 | 5 | |
| 8 | Gary Kubiak | 26 | 12 | 0 | 192 | 6-0 | Texas A&M | 8/15/1961 | 4 | 0 | Denver Broncos / 8th / 197th pick / 1983 | |
| 33 | Gene Lang | 25 | FB | 12 | 6 | 196 | 5-10 | LSU | 3/15/1962 | 3 | 4 | Denver Broncos / 11th / 298th pick / 1984 |
| 76 | Ken Lanier | 28 | RT | 12 | 12 | 281 | 6-3 | Florida St. | 7/8/1959 | 6 | 7 | Denver Broncos / 5th / 125th pick / 1981 |
| 68 | Larry Lee | 28 | c | 9 | 5 | 265 | 6-2 | UCLA | 9/10/1959 | 6 | 3 | Detroit Lions / 5th / 129th pick / 1981 |
| 41 | Zeph Lee | 24 | 1 | 0 | 208 | 6-3 | USC | 6/17/1963 | Rook | 0 | Los Angeles Raiders / 9th / 246th pick / 1986 | |
| 22 | Tony Lilly | 25 | FS | 13 | 9 | 199 | 6-0 | Florida | 2/16/1962 | 3 | 6 | Denver Broncos / 3rd / 78th pick / 1984 |
| 74 | Bill Lobenstein | 26 | 3 | 0 | 261 | 6-3 | Wisconsin,Wisc-Whitewater | 5/11/1961 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 89 | Kerry Locklin | 28 | 3 | 0 | 230 | 6-3 | New Mexico St. | 9/9/1959 | 5 | 0 | Los Angeles Rams / 6th / 145th pick / 1982 | |
| 58 | Tim Lucas | 26 | lb | 11 | 3 | 230 | 6-3 | California | 4/3/1961 | Rook | 3 | St. Louis Cardinals / 10th / 269th pick / 1983 |
| 52 | Dan MacDonald | 25 | 3 | 0 | 230 | 6-2 | Idaho St. | 9/2/1962 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 29 | Warren Marshall | 23 | 1 | 0 | 218 | 6-0 | James Madison | 7/24/1964 | Rook | 0 | Denver Broncos / 6th / 167th pick / 1987 | |
| 83 | Rick Massie | 27 | wr | 9 | 4 | 190 | 6-1 | Kentucky | 1/16/1960 | Rook | 2 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 46th pick / 1984 Supp |
| 14 | Dean May | 25 | 3 | 0 | 220 | 6-5 | Louisville | 5/26/1962 | 3 | 0 | Miami Dolphins / 5th / 138th pick / 1984 | |
| 16 | Monte McGuire | 23 | 2 | 0 | 202 | 6-4 | Texas Tech | 5/7/1964 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 96 | Ron McLean | 24 | 3 | 0 | 270 | 6-3 | Cal State-Fullerton | 4/13/1963 | Rook | 0 | New York Jets / 9th / 241st pick / 1987 | |
| 77 | Karl Mecklenburg* | 27 | LILB | 12 | 12 | 240 | 6-3 | Augustana (SD),Minnesota | 9/1/1960 | 4 | 14 | Denver Broncos / 12th / 310th pick / 1983 |
| 46 | Bobby Micho | 25 | te | 15 | 3 | 236 | 6-3 | Texas | 3/7/1962 | 3 | 4 | Denver Broncos / 10th / 272nd pick / 1984 |
| 89 | Orson Mobley | 24 | te | 10 | 6 | 256 | 6-5 | Florida St.,Salem | 3/4/1963 | 1 | 4 | Denver Broncos / 6th / 151st pick / 1986 |
| 51 | Marc Munford | 22 | 12 | 0 | 231 | 6-2 | Nebraska | 2/14/1965 | Rook | 2 | Denver Broncos / 4th / 111th pick / 1987 | |
| 84 | Ricky Nattiel | 21 | wr | 12 | 3 | 180 | 5-9 | Florida | 1/25/1966 | Rook | 6 | Denver Broncos / 1st / 27th pick / 1987 |
| 88 | Russell Payne | 22 | 1 | 0 | 240 | 6-1 | Appalachian St. | 3/21/1965 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 71 | Jack Peavey | 24 | c | 3 | 1 | 260 | 6-2 | Springfield,Troy | 6/6/1963 | Rook | 1 | |
| 26 | Lyle Pickens | 23 | 1 | 0 | 175 | 5-10 | Colorado | 9/5/1964 | Rook | 0 | Detroit Lions / 9th / 231st pick / 1986 | |
| 38 | Bruce Plummer | 23 | 11 | 0 | 197 | 6-0 | Mississippi St. | 9/1/1964 | Rook | 1 | Denver Broncos / 9th / 250th pick / 1987 | |
| 34 | Nathan Poole | 31 | 2 | 0 | 210 | 5-9 | Louisville | 12/17/1956 | 8 | 1 | Cincinnati Bengals / 10th / 250th pick / 1979 | |
| 74 | Dan Remsberg | 25 | 5 | 0 | 275 | 6-6 | Abilene Christian | 4/7/1962 | 1 | 0 | San Diego Chargers / 9th / 252nd pick / 1985 | |
| 48 | Randy Robbins | 25 | db | 10 | 4 | 189 | 6-2 | Arizona | 9/14/1962 | 3 | 3 | Denver Broncos / 4th / 89th pick / 1984 |
| 40 | Martin Rudolph | 23 | db | 3 | 1 | 183 | 5-10 | Arizona | 10/19/1964 | Rook | 1 | |
| 39 | Darryl Russell | 23 | 3 | 0 | 190 | 6-0 | Appalachian St. | 12/14/1964 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 50 | Jim Ryan | 30 | ROLB | 14 | 14 | 217 | 6-1 | William & Mary | 5/18/1957 | 8 | 9 | |
| 30 | Steve Sewell | 24 | 7 | 0 | 210 | 6-3 | Oklahoma | 4/2/1963 | 2 | 3 | Denver Broncos / 1st / 26th pick / 1985 | |
| 49 | Dennis Smith | 28 | SS | 6 | 6 | 200 | 6-3 | USC | 2/3/1959 | 6 | 4 | Denver Broncos / 1st / 15th pick / 1981 |
| 57 | Matt Smith | 22 | 3 | 0 | 234 | 6-2 | West Virginia | 9/1/1965 | Rook | 0 | ||
| 70 | Dave Studdard | 32 | LT | 14 | 14 | 260 | 6-4 | Texas | 11/22/1955 | 8 | 9 | Baltimore Colts / 9th / 245th pick / 1978 |
| 80 | Shane Swanson | 25 | wr | 3 | 2 | 200 | 5-9 | Nebraska | 10/4/1962 | Rook | 1 | Cleveland Browns / 12th / 315th pick / 1985 |
| 4 | Bob Thompson | 25 | 2 | 0 | 170 | 5-9 | Youngstown St. | 9/9/1962 | Rook | 0 | New Orleans Saints / 6th / 142nd pick / 1986 | |
| 61 | Andre Townsend | 25 | LDE | 12 | 11 | 265 | 6-3 | Mississippi | 10/8/1962 | 3 | 6 | Denver Broncos / 2nd / 46th pick / 1984 |
| 91 | Jeff Tupper | 25 | de | 4 | 3 | 269 | 6-5 | Oklahoma | 12/26/1962 | 1 | 2 | St. Louis Cardinals / 5th / 116th pick / 1986 |
| 81 | Steve Watson | 30 | wr | 5 | 1 | 195 | 6-4 | Temple | 5/28/1957 | 8 | 2 | |
| 47 | Gerald Willhite | 28 | rb | 3 | 1 | 200 | 5-10 | San Jose St. | 5/30/1959 | 5 | 1 | Denver Broncos / 1st / 21st pick / 1982 |
| 45 | Steve Wilson | 30 | rcb | 11 | 5 | 195 | 5-10 | Howard | 8/24/1957 | 8 | 3 | |
| 23 | Sammy Winder | 28 | RB | 12 | 10 | 203 | 5-11 | Southern Miss | 7/15/1959 | 5 | 6 | Denver Broncos / 5th / 131st pick / 1982 |
| 55 | Bryant Winn | 26 | lb | 3 | 3 | 231 | 6-4 | Houston | 11/7/1961 | Rook | 2 | Washington Redskins / 12th / 331st pick / 1985 |
| 99 | Ray Woodard | 26 | de | 3 | 1 | 290 | 6-6 | Texas | 8/20/1961 | Rook | 1 | San Diego Chargers / 8th / 199th pick / 1984 |
| Team Total | 25.6 | 15 | 222.5 | 6-1.5 | 2.5 |
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