Mile High Sports

Broncos legend, late Dan Reeves deserves to be a Hall of Famer

Nicholas Manning

Broncos Country and the NFL community mourn the loss of another legend. Former Denver Broncos head coach Dan Reeves passed away on New Year’s Day. His passing brought a natural reflection into the impact Reeves had on the NFL.

Reeves’ career as a player, assistant, and head coach in the NFL lasted nearly four decades.

As the head man in Denver, Reeves would lead the Broncos to three Super Bowl appearances in a four-season span. During his 12-year run with the team, Reeves coached the Broncos to 112 victories and an impressive .601 winning percentage per Pro Football Reference.

Reeves would go on to win 190 games over 23 seasons as head coach of the Broncos, New York Giants, and Atlanta Falcons, ranking 10th all-time.

As many in the NFL community reflect on Reeve’s impact on the NFL, a case for his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame grows stronger.

“Reeves deserves a bust in Canton,” NBC Sports’ Peter King argued. “He should be enshrined for Contributions to Pro Football. A man who was the biggest offensive weapon on the first great Dallas team, who threw a touchdown pass in the Ice Bowl, who was a gritty piece of the Cowboys at the birth of America’s team, who was a key offensive assistant on seven Dallas teams in the seventies, who coached the Broncos to three AFC titles in four seasons, who won Coach of the Year with three different franchises, who won more games than all but eight coaches in NFL history.”

Reeves’s contributions to the NFL as a player and coach left an enormous impact. His legacy is so vivid, the history of the NFL cannot be written without his name etched throughout.

Participating in almost 20 percent of the 52 Super Bowls to date is no small feat.

King is not the only prominent voice calling for Reeves’ family to accept his Pro Football Hall of Fame invitation.

Reeve’s accomplishments grab the attention of some of the most respected individuals the NFL community has to offer.

“The football world lost a heckuva coach and man today in Dan Reeves,” Said Elway in a statement following the loss of his former coach. “Dan was a winner. I owe a lot to him — he was instrumental in my career and growth as a quarterback. We were able to win a lot of football games together, going to three Super Bowls and competing every single year at a high level.

Additionally, Reeve’s impact went beyond cultivating the talents of No. 7.
Reeves fostered young talents like Shannon Sharpe and Michael Vick. Reeves’s belief in Sharpe opened the door for the future Hall of Famer that most likely would not have been available for him anywhere else. The former Bronco tight end understands his career evolved thanks to Reeves’s vision for the Savannah State product.
Both Sharpe and Vick acknowledged the legendary coach’s impact on their career and life.

 

Reeves also coached players like Phil Simms and Lawernce Taylor at the end of their careers. Not only did Reeves get the most out of his players regardless of their status, but he appreciated them as people.

It is clear, Reeves has the resume of a Hall of Famer.
If being a winner for three franchises, leading two teams to four total Super Bowls, and being a two-time AP Coach of the Year is not enough to get Reeves into the Hall of Fame, his impact on the people within the game should be.
Exit mobile version