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John Albert Elway (born June 28, 1960) was an
American football quarterback in the National
Football League for the Denver Broncos from 1983
through 1998.

Biography

Elway was born in Port Angeles, Washington. He
attended Granada Hills High School in Granada
Hills, California, and then Stanford University,
where he was a baseball player and quarterback.
His last football game at Stanford was one of the
most famous games of all time, the 1982 Big Game
versus Cal, which ended with "The Play", an
amazing play with five laterals that allowed Cal
to win the game. By the end of his senior year,
Elway had set nearly every Pac-10 and Stanford
career record for total offense and passing. He
was a consensus All-American and finished second
in Heisman Trophy balloting. He graduated with a
degree in economics.

In the 1983 draft, Elway was selected as the 1st
overall pick by the Baltimore Colts, but he
threatened to quit football and play professional
baseball if he was not traded (he had by then
played two summers in the New York Yankees
organization). The Colts traded him to the Denver
Broncos for two veterans and a first-round pick in
the 1984 draft. In his fifth season, Elway was
named league MVP. He finally won a Super Bowl in
the 1997 season after three previously failed
attempts, behind the overwhelming running game of
Terrell Davis. In 1998, the Broncos repeated this
feat and Elway was awarded the MVP of Super Bowl
XXXIII; it was his last game.

On May 2, 1999, at the age of 38, Elway announced
his retirement from pro football. Elway is
regarded as one of the top quarterbacks ever to
play the game. Not only does he have more wins
than any other quarterback in NFL history, but he
has the best winning percentage in league history
(148-82-1), and is tied for most Pro Bowl
selections for a quarterback (nine). He is second
to Dan Marino in career passing yards, attempts,
and completions. He is the first quarterback to
have started in five Super Bowls.

Elway also holds the record for most game-winning
or game-tying scoring drives in the fourth
quarter, with 47. Surprisingly often, if Elway had
the ball late in the fourth quarter and the
Broncos were within a touchdown, he would lead
them to tie or win the game. Elway had many
comeback opportunities because for most of his
career, the Broncos were a good, but not dominant,
team. Part of the reason that Denver was not a
dominant team can be attributed to Dan Reeves, who
coached Elway for the majority of his career.
Reeves had a conservative "run-first" approach,
and did not have an intimidating running back to
power the offense. This often left the Broncos in
situations where they were behind in the fourth
quarter. Elway holds the record for most times
being sacked (516).

He and his ex-wife Janet have four children:
daughters Jessica, Jordan, Juliana, and a son,
Jack. Jessica is currently a basketball player for
Stanford's women's team.

His number 7 jersey was retired by the Denver
Broncos in 1999, the same year he was inducted
into the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame. He was the
first player to have the five-year waiting period
waived. In 2004, Elway was inducted into the Pro
Football Hall of Fame. He is the only player to be
inducted into the Hall of Fame as a Bronco.
Former American football player John Elway
speaking to United States troops while preparing
to throw a football.
Enlarge
Former American football player John Elway
speaking to United States troops while preparing
to throw a football.
[edit]

Career highlights

    * In 1979, Elway was drafted out of high
school by the Kansas City Royals to play
baseball.
    * In the 1981 summer draft, he was the first
selection of the New York Yankees. The following
year he hit .314 and a club-high 24 runs while
playing for the Oneonta, New York single-A farm
club.
    * In the 1983 NFL draft, he was selected as
the 1st overall pick by the Baltimore Colts and on
May 2 was traded to the Denver Broncos.
    * In 1987, he was named the NFL Most Valuable
Player and the AFC Offensive MVP.
    * In 1991, he became the only quarterback to
pass for over 3,000 yards and rush for over 200
yards in the same season for seven consecutive
seasons.
    * He was named the AFC Offensive MVP in 1993
when he passed for over 4,000 yards and 25
touchdowns.
    * In 1997, he led the Broncos to their first
ever Super Bowl win in Super Bowl XXXII. His three
previous attempts in Super Bowls XXI, XXII, and
XXIV were unsuccessful.
    * On January 31, 1999, in Super Bowl XXXIII he
passed for 336 yards in a 34-19 victory over the
Atlanta Falcons. Elway was named the Super Bowl
MVP.
    * He was selected to the Pro Bowl nine times
during his 16 seasons with the Broncos.
    * Over his professional career, he led his
teams to a record 47 fourth quarter comebacks.
    * He led the NFL all-time list with 148 wins
as a starting quarterback. He was also sacked 516
times, more than any other quarterback.
    * At retirement, Elway's 300 career touchdown
passes placed him third behind Dan Marino and Fran
Tarkenton.
    * He was only the second quarterback to pass
for at least 3,000 yards in 12 seasons.
    * On January 31, 2004, he was elected into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame.
    * On August 8, 2004, he was inducted to the
Hall of Fame along with Bob Brown, Carl Eller, and
Barry Sanders.
    * Elway's economics degree from Stanford has
also benefited him. He owns a successful network
of car dealerships in the Denver area, and is also
the owner of the Colorado Crush of the Arena
Football League.

[edit]

Career statistics
[edit]

Regular season
¹Led league ²Second place ³Third place †Tied Year
	Passing 		Rushing
Att 	Comp 	Yds 	TD 	Int 		Att 	Yds 	Avg 	TD
1983 	259 	123 	1,663 	7 	14 		28 	146 	5.2 	1
1984 	380 	214 	2,598 	18 	15 		56 	237 	4.2 	1
1985 	605¹ 	327² 	3,891² 	22 	23 		51 	253 	5.0
	0
1986 	504 	280 	3,485 	19 	13 		52 	257 	4.9 	1
1987 	410 	224 	3,198 	19 	12 		66 	304 	4.6 	4
1988 	496 	274 	3,309 	17 	19 		54 	234 	4.3 	1
1989 	416 	223 	3,051 	18 	18 		48 	244 	5.1 	3
1990 	502 	294 	3,526 	15 	14 		50 	258 	5.2 	3
1991 	451 	242 	3,253 	13 	12 		55 	255 	4.6 	6
1992 	316 	174 	2,242 	10 	17 		34 	94 	2.8 	2
1993 	551¹ 	348¹ 	4,030¹ 	25² 	10 		44 	153 	3.5
	0
1994 	494 	307 	3,490 	16 	10 		58 	235 	4.1 	4
1995 	542 	316 	3,970 	26 	14 		41 	176 	4.3 	1
1996 	466 	287 	3,328 	26 	14 		50 	249 	5.0 	4
1997 	502 	280 	3,635 	27 	11 		50 	218 	4.4 	1
1998 	356 	210 	2,806 	22 	10 		37 	94 	2.5 	1
Total
(all-time) 	7,250
(2nd) 	4,123
(2nd) 	51,475
(2nd) 	300
(4th) 	226 		774 	3,407 	4.4 	33
[edit]

Playoffs
*includes Super Bowl Year 	Passing 		Rushing
Att 	Comp 	Yds 	TD 	Int 		Att 	Yds 	Avg 	TD
1983 	15 	10 	123 	0 	1 		3 	16 	0.0 	0
1984 	37 	19 	184 	2 	2 		4 	16 	0.0 	0
1986* 	107 	57 	805 	3 	4 		15 	101 	0.0 	2
1987* 	89 	42 	797 	6 	5 		18 	76 	0.0 	1
1989* 	82 	42 	732 	4 	3 		16 	91 	0.0 	1
1991 	54 	30 	378 	1 	2 		10 	49 	0.0 	0
1993 	47 	29 	302 	3 	1 		5 	23 	0.0 	0
1996 	38 	25 	226 	2 	0 		5 	30 	0.0 	0
1997* 	96 	56 	726 	3 	2 		9 	25 	0.0 	1
1998* 	86 	45 	691 	3 	1 		9 	34 	0.0 	1
Total 	651 	355 	4,964 	27 	21 		94 	461 	0.0 	6