Hall of Fame voters turn away several Denver Broncos legends

Travis Wakeman

•
Hall of Fame voters turn away several Denver Broncos legends image

The Pro Football Hall of Fame has narrowed its list of senior nominees from 183 down to 60 and that list is void of any former Denver Broncos. 

Players like Louis Wright, Karl Mecklenburg, Lyle Alzado and Dennis Smith will have to wait for a potential trip to Canton. Other players under consideration were Rich "Tombstone" Jackson, Tom Jackson, Sammy Winder, Rich Upchurch, Bob Scarpitto and Michael Dean Perry. The Hall of Fame committee chose not to include any of them. 

Some of the names who advanced in the process were Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson, San Francisco 49ers running back Roger Craig, wide receivers Henry Ellard and Sterling Sharpe and defensive linemen L.C. Greenwood and Ed "Too Tall" Jones. 

Several former Broncos players still deserving of Hall of Fame honor

Many Broncos fans would love to see Mecklenburg get his day in the Hall. One of the most likable players in team history, "Meck" spent his 12-year career in Denver, named a First Team All-Pro four times while making the Pro Bowl six times. 

Smith was one of the best safeties in the league during his career and helped bring a young Steve Atwater along en route to Atwater becoming a Hall of Famer himself. 

But the player on the list with the biggest gripe is Wright. Considered one of the NFL's first "shutdown" corners, Wright is the only cornerback on the All-Decade Team of the 1970s who is not in the Hall of Fame already. He was a huge piece of the team's "Orange Crush" defense and hopefully, will get that call one day. 

Broncos fans can take a lot of solace that Randy Gradishar was finally given his moment and inducted into the Hall of Fame this summer. It could be some time before another Broncos player joins the elite group. These players will have to wait at least one more year. 

MORE BRONCOS NEWS

Broncos vs. Raiders series history

Week 5 Expert Picks: Broncos vs. Raiders

NFL Power Rankings: Broncos slowly climbing out of league's basement

Travis Wakeman

Travis Wakeman Photo

Travis Wakeman has been covering the NFL since 2012 when he started with Bleacher Report. After reporting about the Broncos there until 2016, he joined the FanSided network as a site expert covering the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers while simultaneously covering the Broncos at Broncos Wire when that site launched. He then took over the Broncos site at FanSided in March 2020 and covered the team there until spring of 2024. A lifelong Broncos fan and fan of the game, Travis is filled with sometimes useless NFL knowledge, but it always serves him well in any trivia contest. You can follow him on Twitter/X @traviswakeman10.