Some consider John Elway (born 1960) to be the best contemporary American football player. He played quarterback for the Denver Broncos for 16 years, leading them to two consecutive Super Bowl victories before retiring in 1999. John Elway was born in Port Angeles, Washington, on June 28, 1960. His father, Francis Joseph "Frank" Elway, was a longtime defensive back who played for the Pittsburgh Steelers and San Francisco 49ers during his career and later served as an assistant coach for the University of Colorado Buffaloes. His mother, Eileen Delaney, was a swimmer who competed at the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia.
Elway first learned how to throw a ball from his father. At the age of five, he started playing organized football with the Port Angeles Youth Sports Association. In 1967, his family moved to Loveland, Colorado, where Elway's father got a job coaching football at Colorado State College-Loveland. During this time, Elway's mother went to nursing school and became a nurse.
He graduated from Loveland High School in 1978 and then attended Brigham Young University (BYU), where he played on the football team from 1979 to 1983. While attending BYU, he met his wife, Jeanne, who was a student at the time at Eastern Washington University. They married in 1984 and have three children together.
In what is largely regarded as the greatest quarterback selection of all time, John Elway was chosen first overall. Elway has nine Pro Bowl appearances, was the 1987 MVP, and was the Super Bowl XXXIII MVP. He is widely recognized as the greatest clutch quarterback of all time, having led the Broncos to 45 game-tying or game-winning touchdowns.
Elway is only one of two players in NFL history to have his number retired by both the Broncos and the Colts (the other being Peyton Manning). He is also the only player in NFL history with three consecutive 50-plus yard touchdown passes.
He is the most successful coach in Denver sports history, with a record of 95-63-1. His.561 winning percentage is the highest of any Denver coach.
Elway played at Duke for three seasons, leading them to a 30-3-0 record and two Southern Conference titles. He passed for 3,000 yards each season and averaged 11 touchdowns per game.
After college, Elway went straight into the NFL draft. The Broncos were looking for someone to replace the retiring Billy Wade. They had lost the last three games of the previous season, but came away with a 4-12-1 record when they made their move.
In a stunning move, the Broncos chose Elway over future No. 1 pick Steve Young and third-stringer Mark Herrmann.
John Albert Elway Jr. (born June 28, 1960) is a former American football quarterback who is now the general manager and President of Football Operations of the National Football League's Denver Broncos (NFL). Elway spent his entire 16-year professional career with the Denver Broncos, where he played collegiate football at Stanford. He was the most successful player in NFL history until Peyton Manning surpassed him in 2012.
Elway led the Broncos to victory in their first two playoff games before retiring after the 1993 season. He returned for one more season in 1996 before retiring for good. The following year, he was hired by Gary Kubiak to be his offensive coordinator on January 22, 1997. In 1998, Elway was given the task of replacing the retired Dan Marino as the Broncos' starting quarterback. He responded by leading them to their first Super Bowl win that year. Elway has been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame twice, in 2015 and 2017.
He graduated from Castle Rock High School in 1978 and then attended Stanford University, where he played college football for the Cardinal under head coach Jack Christiansen. As a freshman in 1979, Elway started seven games for the Cardinal before being sidelined with an ankle injury. He returned in time for the 1980 season opener but missed the next six games due to knee surgery. When he did return, he helped lead the team to a 5-1 record before suffering a shoulder injury that required surgery.
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