One of the most well-known defensive players of his day, Lyle Alzado was more recognized with the Oakland Raiders but his best years and most extended years were with the Denver Broncos.  With Denver, Alzado would be a First Team All-Pro in 1977, and he was a Pro Bowl Selection that year and the one after.  The Defensive End would notably lead the NFL in Fumble Recoveries in 1972.

A 1^st Round Pick (12^th Overall) in 2008, Ryan Clady would have an excellent rookie campaign where he was named a Second Team All-Pro and finished third in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.  Clady, who was instituted as the starting Left Tackle as soon as he began his professional career, would be named to his first Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro and he would remain an upper echelon Offensive Lineman with three more Pro Bowls and one more First Team All-Pro nod.  A torn ACL would take him out of the 2015 season, but he would finish his career in 2016 with a final season with the New York Jets.

A late round pick in 1987, Tyrone Braxton would become a starting Cornerback in 1989.  His career was up and down, and he was released after 1993 as one of the many scapegoats for a bad Broncos season.

Steve Foley was drafted in the 8^th Round in 1975, but he would try his luck in the upstart World Football League, and he would play for the Jacksonville Express in 1975.  The WFL folded, and he would join Denver in 1976 and would play there for his entire career in the NFL, which comprised 150 Games over 11 Years.  Foley would record 44 Interceptions, which as of this writing makes him the all-time leader in that category.

From Florida State, Ken Lanier would play 13 of his 14 seasons with the Denver Broncos where he would start 163 Games, mostly at Right Tackle.  Lanier was a steady presence protecting John Elway's right side for over a decade, and the Broncos were lucky to have him.

Simon Fletcher was one of the most consistent Linebackers of the early 1990s, and from 1989 to 1993 he would have at least 10 Sacks.  A Bronco for his entire 11-year career, Fletcher would at one time share the record with ten consecutive games with a Sack, and he would have 97.5 overall.  Fletcher was never chosen for a Pro Bowl, but he was a significant part of Denver's multiple trips to the playoffs.

Fletcher entered the Broncos Ring of Fame in 2016.

Despite a good career at Kansas, Chris Harris went undrafted in 2011, but he found a home with the Denver Broncos where he played in all 16 Games of his rookie season, starting four of them. 

By 2013 he was cemented as a starting Cornerback, and in 2014 he would be named to his first of three straight Pro Bowls, the last of which saw him secure a First Team All-Pro Selection.  Harris would also help the Broncos win Super Bowl 50, and in 2018 he would earn his fourth Pro Bowl.  Harris played one more year with Denver before signing with the Los Angeles Chargers as a Free Agent in 2020.  He had an even 20 Interceptions as a Bronco.

Rich Jackson was traded from the Oakland Raiders after his rookie season and from 1968 to 1970, the Defensive End would be considered among the best Defensive Ends in Professional Football.  In those three seasons, he was named a First Team All-Pro and AFL All-Star, and while he was not in the AFL for very long, he was named a Second Team All-Team Selection.  Jackson, who was the master of the now illegal "head slap" unofficially had 10 or more Quarterback Sacks in those years and the man named "Tombstone" will never be forgotten in the state of Colorado.

Tombstone's reign as a star was brief, but more than enough to enter the Bronco's RIng of Fame as part of their first class in 1984.

You can’t talk about Bill Romanowski without mentioning how he was one of the dirtiest players ever to put on an NFL uniform. 

A member of the Denver Broncos for all nine of his seasons in the National Football League, John Mobley was a member of the two straight Denver Broncos Super Bowls wins in Super Bowl XXXIII and XXXIII.  Mobley would have three 100 Tackle seasons, the first of which would see him accrue 132 and that year (1997) he was also named a First Team All-Pro, though he would miss out on a Pro Bowl.

Haven Moses was traded from the Buffalo Bills during the 1972 Season for another Wide Receiver (Dwight Harrison), and with all due respect to Harrison, it was the Broncos who got the better end of the swap of wideouts.  Moses would be in the top nine in Yards per Reception four times with Denver and was named to the Pro Bowl in 1973.  As a Bronco, Moses would have 302 Receptions for 5,450 Yards and 44 TDs.

The Broncos chose Moses for their Ring of Fame in 1988.

Rick Upchurch was a decent Wide Receiver who started 69 of his 119 Games, which reflects where he was in the food chain.  His best season as a wideout was in 1979 where he had 937 Receiving Yards with seven Touchdowns.  Where he shined in the league was as a Returner, and he would be named a four-time Pro Bowl and two-time First Team All-Pro as a Return Specialist.  Upchurch would three times lead the NFL in Yards per Punt Return, and overall he would accumulate 10,081 All-Purpose Yards.

Denver inducted Upchurch to their Ring of Fame in 2014.

Rubin Carter played his entire professional career with the Denver Broncos where he predominantly played Nose Tackle.  Carter would start 162 of his 166 Games where he was a decent pass rusher.  While he was never named to a Pro Bowl, he was on the fringe of making one in a few seasons, and he was named a Second Team All-Pro in 1977.

Arguably the best Safety in the American Football League days of the Denver Broncos, Goose Gonsoulin would lead the AFL in Interceptions as a rookie in 1960, which coincidentally was also the “rookie” year of the AFL.  Gonsoulin would finish in the top eight in pick the next five seasons, and he would be an AFL All-Star four times while also being named a First Team All-AFL selection twice.  At the time of his signing with the San Francisco 49ers in 1967, he was the all-time leader (though passed) in Interceptions with 40.

Gonsoulin entered the Broncos Ring of Fame as part of the first class in 1984.

A 9^th Round Pick from New Mexico in 1968, Paul Smith would become the starting Left Defensive Tackle in 1970 and switched over to Right Defensive Tackle in 1972 would be named to his first of two Pro Bowls.  His second one, which would come the year after, would see him make it as a Left Defensive Tackle.  Smith would move back to Right Defensive Tackle and then to Right Defensive End.  He would start 86 of his 133 Games played with the Broncos.

Denver enshrined Smith to their Ring of Fame in 1986.

Gary Zimmerman was a member of the All-Time USFL Team and was a four-time Pro Bowler before his trade to the Denver Broncos where he immediately became the leader of the team's Offensive Line.  The Left Tackle arrived in 1993, and he put on a three-year run of Pro Bowl appearances from 1994 to 1996, the last of which saw him named a First Team All-Pro.  He was a large part of the Broncos first Super Bowl win in the 32^nd contest and that leadership helped Denver in countless ways.  He would retire after that championship win.

Demaryius Thomas was a 2010 1^st Round Pick who struggled as a rookie and in his second pro season due to injuries, but he was healthy in his third year where he showed off over the next five years what was expected of him.  Thomas went to the Pro Bowl in 2012 with a 1,434 Years and 10 Touchdown season, and in 2013 he had similar yardage (1,430) with a career-high 14 Touchdowns.  It was another Pro Bowl year, and he would set a then record 13 Receptions in their Super Bowl loss to the Seattle Seahawks.  2014 would see him go to his third Pro Bowl with career highs of 111 Receptions and 1,619 Receiving Yards, but it was 2015, a season where he was not chosen for the Pro Bowl (but still hit 1,304 Receiving Yards) where he won the Super Bowl.  Thomas had his last Pro Bowl in 2016 with his final four digit Receiving Yard campaign.  Before he was traded to the Houston Texans midway through the 2018 season, he finished his career at Mile High with 9,055 Yards for 60 TDs.

The Denver Broncos might be one of the elite teams of the National Football League, but their origin in the AFL saw them struggle and there were frankly very few highlights.  One of those brighter spots was Lionel Taylor, a Wide Receiver who many forget led the American Football League five times (1960, 1961, 1962, 1963 & 1965) in Receptions.  The Spilt End was the first pro to secure 100 Receptions, yet because he did that in the AFL’s infancy for a team that did not do well, many did not notice. 

Jason Elam was drafted in the 3^rd Round in 1993, and it proved to be a high-value selection as the Place Kicker would participate in 236 Games over 15 years as a Denver Bronco.  Elam was a member of the first two Broncos Super Bowl wins, and he would be named to three Pro Bowls (1995, 1998 & 2001) and at one time he co-held the record for the longest Field Goal made with a 63 Yarder.

Elam entered the Broncos Ring of Fame in 2016.

Drafted 5th Overall in 1972 from the University of Houston, Riley Odoms would have a very good career in the NFL, which all transpired in Denver.  Odoms was one of the better receiving Tight Ends of his day, and he would be named to four Pro Bowls (1973, 1974, 1975 & 1978) with two of those seasons earning him a First Team All-Pro nod.  He would retire with 396 Receptions for 5,755 Yards and 41 Touchdowns.