John Elway is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 16 seasons with the Denver Broncos. He is now the general manager and executive vice president of football operations for the Broncos. Elway is widely considered to be one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
Elway was born in Port Angeles, Washington, and played college football at Stanford University. He was drafted by the Baltimore Colts with the first overall pick in the 1983 NFL Draft but refused to play for the Colts, who then traded him to the Broncos. Elway became the Broncos’ starting quarterback in his second season and helped lead the team to five AFC Championship Games and two Super Bowl victories, winning Super Bowl XXXIII in his final season.
Elway was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004 in his first year of eligibility and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
Table of Contents:
1. Early Life
2. College Career
3. Professional Career
4. Later life and Career
5. Legacy
6. Personal Life
7. Awards and Honors
8. John Elway Quotes
- Early Life
Elway was born in Port Angeles, Washington, the son of Janet (née Lee) and Jack Elway, then the head coach at Port Angeles High School on the Olympic Peninsula. The family of five included a sister, Jana, and brothers, Lee and Mark. He is of Dutch and Irish ancestry.
Elway’s father was a quarterback at San Francisco State University and had been drafted in the seventh round by the NFL’s Detroit Lions in the 1951 NFL Draft. His maternal grandfather, Jack Lee, played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and was a member of the 1950 Grey Cup champions.
- College Career
Elway accepted a football scholarship to Stanford University, where he played for the Stanford Cardinal football team from 1979 to 1982. He had a successful college career, completing 62.8 percent of his passes for 9,349 yards and 77 touchdowns, with 27 interceptions.
Elway was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
- Professional Career
Elway was the first overall pick in the 1983 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Colts, but he refused to play for them.
Elway was drafted by the Baltimore Colts as the first overall pick in the 1983 NFL Draft. He did not want to play for the Colts, who had posted a 2-14 record in their first season in Indianapolis, and threatened to play baseball for the New York Yankees if they did not trade him to an NFL team that he preferred.
The Colts traded him to the Denver Broncos for Mark Herrmann, a first-round pick in the 1984 NFL Draft, and a third-round pick in the 1985 NFL Draft.
Elway became the Broncos’ starting quarterback in his second season and helped lead the team to five AFC Championship Games and two Super Bowl victories, winning Super Bowl XXXIII in his final season.
Elway was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004 in his first year of eligibility.
- Later Life and Career
In retirement, Elway became involved in a number of business ventures, most notably as the owner of two Arena Football League teams, the Colorado Crush and the Arizona Rattlers.
In 2002, Elway and business partner Stuart Wolff bought the Crush, an AFL expansion team. The team won ArenaBowl XVIII in its inaugural season.
In 2004, Elway and Wolff bought the Arizona Rattlers, another AFL team.
In 2014, Elway became the executive vice president of football operations for the Broncos, and in 2017, he was named the general manager.
- Legacy
Elway is widely considered to be one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
In 1999, he was ranked number 36 on The Sporting News’ list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the highest-ranking player who had not yet been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
In 2010, he was ranked number 10 on the NFL Network’s The Top 100: NFL’s Greatest Players, the highest-ranking player who had not yet been inducted into the Hall of Fame.
In 2016, he was ranked number 5 on the NFL Top 100 Greatest Players of All Time.
- Personal Life
Elway has been married three times. His first marriage was to Shannon Sharpe, a former tight end for the Broncos, from 1999 to 2003.
Elway married Paige Green in 2009. They have four children: twins Jordan and Juliana, and Jack and Jessica.
Elway and Green divorced in 2018.
Elway married former Broncos cheerleader Brooke Thompson in 2019.
- Awards and Honors
Elway is a nine-time Pro Bowl selection, a two-time Super Bowl champion, and a Super Bowl MVP. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2004 and the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
John Elway Quotes
“You learn a lot more from the lows because it makes you pay attention to what you’re doing.” – John Elway
“The patience that goes with the game, the little things that go along with the game, you have so much more time to think in golf than you do in football – you have to keep your thoughts positive. I’m not sure I’ve got that mastered.” – John Elway
“A guy as great as Brett Favre has been for the length of time he’s been, you would hope that he would be able to leave the game with a positive flavor in his mouth.” – John Elway
“As football players, you have all the experience on the field. You don’t have the experience off the field.” – John Elway
“There have been openings, but I have not interviewed for any jobs, nor do I want to right now.” – John Elway
“To be able to get a football team that’s capable of competing for world championships, you always got to get a little bit lucky, but you got to have all phases to win it all.” – John Elway
“I was a baseball player and a football player at Stanford, so I didn’t play a lot of golf in college. I really started playing a lot after I turned pro and I had some time in the off-season.” – John Elway
“I was so lucky to walk away with two Super Bowls and know that the last year was positive.” – John Elway
“I’m getting the basics with the AFL, but the NFL is a different animal.” – John Elway
“I don’t have any pangs to where I want to be with the Broncos.” – John Elway
“I always believe there’s a reason why you go through everything.” – John Elway
“I think I’m lucky in life and not just in football. I was very fortunate to play for a great organization and a great team that was really good near the end of my career.” – John Elway
“I look at my career and it’s still hard for me to believe the way things turned out and how things happened. I’ve been so blessed.” – John Elway
“I would hope this experience would help me if that NFL opportunity were to arise. But I also know that it’s a totally different league. There’s a lot more to it.” – John Elway
“The Arena League is the best thing that could have happened to me because I get to run the whole process. I’m seeing not only the football side but the business side.” – John Elway
“You always want to have a good balance. That’s the key to winning a Super Bowl. You look at the teams who have won championships, you got to have balance. So, to be able to run the ball effectively and throw the ball effectively is what gives you the chance to win a world championship.” – John Elway
“I’m happy with the Arena Football League right now. I’m happy in Denver.” – John Elway
“I’m watching the Weather Channel more than I’ve ever watched it. I’m scared to death it’s going to rain.” – John Elway
“I had a great time doing Vegas. It’s just that it takes a lot of time.” – John Elway
“I can’t compare quarterbacks to apples and oranges in my mind because everybody’s in a different system.” – John Elway
“It’s all about putting the best team together – not just in the front office but the players on the field.” – John Elway
“It’s really been a better situation for me being with the Crush than it would if I were with the Broncos because this has given me a lot more broad range.” – John Elway
“I’ve experienced the highest of highs and lowest of lows. I think to really appreciate anything you have to be at both ends of the spectrum.” – John Elway
“Even when I retired, there was part of me that didn’t want to retire. But once you decide it’s time to move on then you have to stick with it.” – John Elway
“How ironic, to be my last game that I ever played would be against Dan in a Super Bowl. The thing I always was afraid of was playing in a Super Bowl when it was raining. I can’t throw a wet ball.” – John Elway
“We get done with the game, and it’s an absolute downpour 30 minutes later. That’s when I thought God was telling me that’s enough time for you to go do something else.” – John Elway
“I don’t know if I like being the sentimental favorite.” – John Elway
“Being thrown into the fire and getting the thing turned around in a hurry made it more difficult. Things have been done the hard way. I think you learn better when things are done the hard way.” – John Elway
“I’ve always joked about Joe Montana not appreciating his Super Bowls nearly as much as I do because he never lost one. We lost three before we got one.” – John Elway
“There are a lot of people who might not get another chance to win a Super Bowl, not just me.” – John Elway
“I would have loved to have played for Joe Gibbs. Look at his record of winning three Super Bowls.” – John Elway
“When I retired, I really wanted to spend time with my family and kids. Coaching would have prevented that due to the commitment of the job and travel that goes with it, too.” – John Elway
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