The 15 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2019 includes three former Denver Broncos players and team owner Pat Bowlen.

Bowlen, 74, has been owner of the Denver Broncos since 1984 and served as the team’s CEO for three decades (1984-2014). His impact on the franchise and league as a whole is undeniable.

Under Bowlen’s leadership, the Broncos have won seven AFC Championships, three Super Bowls and have averaged 10.1 victories per season. That is roughly two wins per season better than long-time Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt (8.1), Browns/Ravens owner Art Modell (8.2) and Raiders owner Al Davis (8.7).

Along with making the Broncos one of the stable franchises in the NFL, Bowlen is also widely recognized as the most influential people in the entire game. Bowlen served on 15 different committees, played a major role in revitalizing national interest in the league in the 1990s when he helped facilitate a deal with FOX, and later helped create Sunday Night Football on NBC.

Of all the owners in NFL, few have committed to excellence quite like Bowlen, and much of Broncos Country feels that he should have been honored by the league years ago, especially when considering his impact on the NFL as a whole.

Bowlen is not the only member of the Broncos that has a chance to be forever enshrined in Canton, OH., this year either. Legendary cornerback Champ Bailey has an opportunity to enter the HOF on his first ballot, and safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch each made the cut as well.

In 15 seasons, 10 of which were played in the Mile High City, Bailey had 52 interceptions and 908 total tackles in 215 career games. In three different seasons with the Broncos, Bailey recorded 80 or more tackles, including 2006 when No. 24 led the NFL with 10 interceptions and also had a career-best 85 tackles.

Bailey ranked fourth all-time in franchise history with 34 interceptions in a Broncos uniform. Only Bill Thompson (40), Goose Gonsoulin (43) and Steve Foley (44) had more.

Atwater, 52, was one of the hardest hitting safeties in the league from 1989-99. In 11 seasons with Jets and Broncos, Atwater racked up 1,180 total tackles and also recorded 24 interceptions. Atwater was a two-time Super Bowl champion as well.

Of all the Broncos finalists announced on Thursday, Lynch spent the shortest amount of time in the orange and blue, but the current 49ers General Manager terrorized opposing wide receivers for a decade-plus. In his 15-year career, Lynch spent 11 seasons with Tampa Bay and his final four seasons in Denver.

In 60 career games with the Broncos, Lynch forced nine fumbles and also managed to sack opposing quarterbacks seven times.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2019 will be announced on Saturday, Feb. 2.