For years, the Denver Broncos were deficient in the number of Hall of Famers representing their historic franchise in Canton, OH.

Lately, they’ve seen Terrell Davis finally get in (2017), part-time Denver safety Brian Dawkins was enshrined this year, and before them it was Gary Zimmerman (2008), Floyd Little (2010) and Shannon Sharpe (2011).

Notice a trend?

Of the seven Broncos players in the Hall, only Dawkins is a defensive player. Denver’s “Orange Crush” defense was dominant in the late 70s and throughout the 80s, leading the team to four Super Bowls.

And throughout those decades, there were a ton of phenomenal players who deserve the nod. This year, we see Karl Mecklenburg and Steve Atwater from those great 80s teams as semifinalists for the Hall of Fame, while modern-era defenders Champ Bailey and John Lynch are also among the 25 candidates.

Other semifinalists include Ed Reed (Baltimore Ravens and New York Jets), Tony Gonzalez (Kansas City Chiefs and Atlanta Falcons) as well as coaches Don Coryell and Jimmy Johnson.

The selection committee will vote on the 15 members during their meeting on Saturday, Feb. 2, trimming them down to 10 and then to five. Once they have been cut down to five, the committee votes a third time, and the players/coaches must receive an 80 percent “yes” vote to be enshrined in the Professional Football Hall of Fame.

Mecklenburg represents those old-school, hard-nosed Broncos defenders who have been looked over time and time again. He’s an eight-time semifinalist, making it this far for the last eight straight years.

Other Broncos players in his era that deserve to be enshrined include Randy Gradishar and Louis Wright, among multiple more who have a case.

Atwater started his career in the late 80s and enjoyed seven straight Pro Bowl appearances in the 90s. He was long feared as one of the hardest hitters in the NFL, a representative of that bygone era.

Lynch, too, was a hard-hitting safety in the 90s and into 2007, when he retired with the Broncos.

But, likely the most deserving of the for Denver semifinalists is Champ Bailey. Bailey played from 1999-2003 with the Washington Redskins before coming to the Mile High City and playing 10 more years as one of the greatest Broncos players of all-time.

In 2005 and 2006 combined, Bailey picked off 18 passes, enjoyed three pick-6s, defended 44 passes and recovered a fumble. He was the definition of lock-down cornerback in an era in which the game was tilted to give the offense advantages at every turn.

If it’s not Bailey, one of the four Broncos players has a solid chance of getting in this time around. Their four semifinalists represent 27 percent of the field, which may be a sign from the committee they know Denver is far underrepresented.