DENVER — I ran into many Denver Broncos fans in the past week or so.
Most fans were the unconditional-love type who believe in Drew Lock, coach Vic Fangio and better years ahead. There were also the armchair general manager types who care so much about the team, they want John Elway to do this, that or else.
Our 9NEWS Denver Broncos Trivia Quiz is for the die-hards.
This might be the easiest one yet, so it will take six correct answers to earn die-hard status. Not one question was about Drew Lock — what was I thinking? — but it does test the Broncos fan’s knowledge of both past and present.
Good luck.
1. Vic Fangio’s first-year record of 7-9 was better than all these Broncos’ first-year head coaches except:
A. Vance Joseph
B. John Ralston
C. Wade Phillips
D. Lou Saban
E. Frank Filchock
2. Noah Fant finished his first season with 562 receiving yards, the most in franchise history among rookie tight ends. Whose rookie tight end record did he break?
A. Orson Mobley
B. Riley Odoms
C. Tony Scheffler
D. Shannon Sharpe
E. Clarence Kay
3. Phillip Lindsay has 2,048 yards rushing after two seasons, the team’s fifth-highest two-year rushing total to start a career. Terrell Davis (2,655 yards) and Clinton Portis (3,099) are gimmes. Who has the third- and fourth-best, two-year rushing totals among Broncos’ running backs?
A. Floyd Little and Bobby Humphrey
B. Otis Armstrong and Mike Anderson
C. Knowshon Moreno and C.J. Anderson
D. Tatum Bell and Ronnie Hillman
E. Bobby Humphrey and Mike Anderson
4. Courtland Sutton led the Broncos this year with 72 receptions. Who finished second?
A. Noah Fant
B. Emmanuel Sanders
C. Royce Freeman
D. DaeSean Hamilton
E. Phillip Lindsay
5. Despite an off year, Von Miller led the team in sacks (with 8.0) for a sixth consecutive season. Who was the last Bronco not named Miller who led the team in sacks?
A. DeMarcus Ware
B. Elvis Dumervil
C. D.J. Williams
D. Shaun Phillips
E. Trevor Pryce
6. This defensive player has the most safeties recorded by a Bronco with 3:
A. Malik Jackson
B. Rulon Jones
C. Jim Ryan
D. Rich “Tombstone” Jackson
E. Von Miller
7. The Broncos were 0-2-1 through the first five seasons of Monday Night Football before they got their first primetime win in 1975 against the Green Bay Packers. The Broncos were clinging to a 16-13 lead when this player returned a John Hadl pass 44 yards for a touchdown with 40 seconds remaining:
A. Steve Foley
B. Tom Jackson
C. Billy Thompson
D. Randy Gradishar
E. Louis Wright
8. Who had the Broncos record for career games played before the NFL season expanded from 14 to 16 games in 1978?
A. Paul Smith
B. Floyd Little
C. Bill Van Heusen
D. Mike Current
E. Fran Lynch
9. This player has the most kickoff returns in Broncos history:
A. Rick Upchurch
B. Vaughn Hebron
C. Floyd Little
D. Glyn Milburn
E. Eddie Royal
Answers
1. C. Wade Phillips
Wanted to give him a lift after he was let go as defensive coordinator earlier this week by the St. Louis Rams. Wade was 9-7 in his first season as Broncos’ head coach in 1993. Joseph was 5-11 in 2017; Ralston was 5-9 in 1972; Saban’s Broncos were 3-11 in 1967; Filchock was 4-9-1 in the Broncos’ inaugural season of 1960.
2. A. Orson Mobley had 332 yards receiving in 1986.
Odoms had 320 yards in his rookie season of 1972; Scheffler had 286 in 2006; Sharpe had 99 yards in 1990; Kay had 136 yards in 1984.
3. E. Bobby Humphrey and Mike Anderson
Humphrey rushed for 2,353 yards in 1989-90 and Anderson had a combined 2,165 yards in 2000-01.
4. C. Royce Freeman
The second-year running back had 43 catches. Fant was third with 40 catches followed by Lindsay with 35 and Sanders with 30. Hamilton had 28 – 11 in the last two games; and Patrick had 16.
5. D. Shaun Phillips
He had 10.0 sacks in 2013 when Miller finished that season with a career-worst 5.0. Miller was suspended from the first six games and essentially missed the final two games with a torn ACL.
Phillips signed a one-year, $1 million deal with the Broncos during the draft of 2013 and while he was money well-spent, he was not brought back for a second season as the team signed the free-agent Ware to a three-year, $30 million deal.
6. B. Rulon Jones
The defensive lineman registered three, 2-point safeties in his career and that doesn’t include his safety against New England quarterback Tony Eason that clinched a 1986-season second-round playoff game that preceded The Drive game in Cleveland the following week.
No other Bronco has more than one safety.
7. D. Randy Gradishar
The inside linebacker, who will learn next week whether he got enough votes to be elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a senior candidate, had three pick sixes in his career.
8. A. Paul Smith
The Broncos’ Ring of Fame defensive lineman had played in 122 games for the team through 1977, then played in 11 more in 1978 when the league season expanded from 14 to 16 games.
Floyd Little played in 117 games when he retired in 1975 and Van Heusen was next with 109 games followed by Current’s 108 and Lynch’s 99.
The Broncos’ all-time record for games played is 236 set by Jason Elam. In 2007, the kicker broke Elway’s record of 234 games played for Denver.
9. B. Vaughn Hebron with 134.
All 134 came in a three-year span from 1996-98, when kickoffs were from the 30 yard line, making touchbacks difficult to reach. The kickoff line was moved up to the 35 in 2011.
Ken Bell and Floyd Little are tied for second with 104 kickoff returns followed by Milburn with 96 and Upchurch with 95.
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