With his five yard touchdown
pass to Rod Smith in the second quarter at San Diefo, Nov. 30, 1997,
QB John Elway moved past Johnny Unitas into third place all-time
in total touchdowns. He retired only Dan Marino and Fran Tarkenton
among players with 300 or more career total touchdowns:
Player
Total Touchdowns
Passing Touchdowns
Rushing Touchdowns
Receiving Touchdowns
1.
Dan Marino
428
420
8
0
2.
Fran Tarkenton
374
342
32
0
3.
John Elway
334
300
33
1
4.
Warren Moon
313
291
22
0
5.
Johnny Unitas
303
290
13
1
NFL
LEADERS, MOST 3,000 YARD PASSING SEASONS
Name
3,000-Yard Seasons
Years with 3,000 Yards
NFL Seasons
Career Yards
Dan Marino, Miami
13
84-92, 94-95, 97-98
17
61,448
John Elway, Denver
12
85-91, 93-97
16
51,475
Brett Favre
9
92-00
10
34,706
Warren Moon, Hou/Min/Sea/KC
9
84, 86, 89-91, 93-95, 97
17
49, 117
Joe Montana, SF/KC
8
81, 83-85, 87, 89-90, 94
14
40,551
Jim Kelly, Buffalo
8
86, 88-89, 91-95
11
30,894
ELWAY
PUT BRONCOS AMONG THE WINNERS
During the course of John Elway's
16-year career with the Broncos, the club boasted the best record
in the AFC and the 2nd-best record in the NFL with 161 victories.
Elway started in 148 of those victories (91.9%), and NFL record for
most wins by a starting quarterback.
TOP
5 RECORDS OF NFL TEAMS, 1983-98
(Regular Season Only)
TEAM
W
L
T
PCT.
1.
San Francisco
192
62
1
..755
2.
Denver
161
93
1
.633
3.
Miami
154
101
0
.604
4.
Washington
144
110
1
.567
5.
Chicago
143
112
0
.561
GREATNESS
MEASURED IN VICTORY
John Elway became the NFL's winningest
all-time starting QB late in the 1996 season (Dec. 15 vs. Raiders),
passing Fran Tarkenton (125), and retired with 148 wins to his credit
during his magnificent career. Miami's Dan Marino is 2nd with 147.
Included in that record is a remarkable 94-23 (.803) mark at home.
Elway had at least a .500 record against 26 of the 30 NFL teams he
has faced, including all but two in the AFC (Oak, Mia).
MOST
VICTORIES BY STARTING QUARTERBACKS, ALL-TIME
(Regular Season Only)
No.
Player
W-L-T
PCT.
1.
John Elway
148-82-1
.643
2.
Dan Marino
147-93-0
.613
3.
Fran Tarkenton
125-109-6
.533
4.
Warren Moon
102-97-0
.513
5.
Dave Krieg
98-77-0
.560
TOP
5 ALL-TIME RUSHING QUARTERBACKS
No.
Player
Rush
Yards
Avg.
LG
TD
1.
Randall Cunningham*
761
4,888
6.4
52t
34
2.
Steve Young
707
4,168
5.9
49t
43
3.
Fran Tarkenton
675
3,674
5.5
52t
32
4.
John Elway
774†
3,407
4.4
31
33
5.
Tobin Rote
635
3,125
4.9
--
37
* active player
† most all-time
MOST
TIMES SACKED, ALL-TIME NFL QUARTERBACKS
ALL-TIME QUARTERBACKS
(since 1963)
Player
Seasons
Times Sacked
Yds Lost
Miles Lost
John Elway
16
516
3,785
2.15
Dave Krieg
19
494
3,797
2.16
Fran Tarkenton
18
483
3,528
2.00
Phil Simms
14
477
3,596
2.04
Randall Cunningham*
14
472
3,339
1.87
Warren Moon
17
458
3,403
1.91
* active player
ELWAY
VS. HALL OF FAME QUARTERBACKS AFTER 16 SEASONS
At the time when Elway retired,
after 16 seasons, he had thrown and completed more passes, and thrown
for more yards than all 18 QBs currently enshrined in the Hall of
Fame. He ranks 1st in rushing attempts and total offense, 2nd in rushing
yards, tied 2nd in rushing TDs, 2nd in completion %, and 2nd in TD
passes. Only Tarkenton had more passing TDs, and only Graham had more
rushing TDs after 16 seasons.
(Listed in descending order by passing yards)
PASSING
RUSHING
Player
Att.
Comp.
Yds.
Pct.
TD
INT
Rtg.
Att.
Yds.
Avg.
TD
Elway, John
7250
4123
51475
56.9
300
226
79.8
774
3407
4.4
33
Fouts, Dan
5604
3297
43040
58.8
254
242
80.2
224
476
2.1
13
Tarkenton, Fran
5225
2931
38840
56.1
291
212
81.4
609
3629
6.0
30
Unitas, Johnny
4777
2616
37715
54.8
281
231
80.3
439
1757
4.0
13
Tittle, Y.A.
3817
2118
28339
55.2
212
221
73.5
291
999
3.6
33
Bradshaw, Terry
3901
2052
27989
51.9
212
210
70.7
444
2257
5.1
32
Namath, Joe
3762
1886
27663
50.1
173
220
65.6
71
140
2.0
7
Jurgenson, Sonny
3891
2200
27108
56.5
236
175
79.8
170
497
2.9
15
Layne, Bobby
3700
1814
26768
49.0
196
243
63.2
611
2451
4.0
25
Griese, Bob
3429
1926
25092
56.2
192
172
77.1
261
994
3.8
7
Starr, Bart
3104
1448
24425
46.6
152
135
72.1
244
1297
5.3
14
Van Brocklin, Norm
2895
1553
23611
53.6
173
178
75.1
102
40
0.4
11
Dawson, Len
2960
1664
23483
56.2
212
149
85.1
257
1143
4.4
9
Staubach, Roger
2958
1685
22700
57.0
153
109
83.5
410
2264
5.5
20
Baugh, Sammy
2972
1673
22507
56.3
184
202
72.9
317
323
1.0
6
Blanda, George
2641
1287
17996
48.7
149
166
63.5
125
345
2.8
9
Luckman, Sid
1774
904
14683
51.8
139
131
75.7
204
209
1.0
2
Graham, Otto
1565
872
13499
55.7
88
94
78.2
405
882
2.2
44
Waterfield, Bob
1617
813
11849
50.3
98
127
62.0
75
21
0.3
13
GETTING
BETTER WITH AGE
John Elway not only maintained his
status as an elite NFL QB in the latter years of his career, but dramatically
improved in several statistical categories over his final 6 years.
The following are Elway's season averages as a full-time starter (1983
not included).
SEASONS
AVG. YARDS
AVG. TDS
AVG. INTS
1984-92
3,172.6
16.8
15.8
1993-98
3,543.2
23.7
11.5
ALL-TIME
NFL POSTSEASON PASSING LEADERS BY CATEGORY
PASSING YARDS
TOUCHDOWN PASSES
No.
Player
Games
Yards
No.
Player
TDs
1.
Joe Montana
23
5,772
1.
Joe Montana
45
2.
John Elway
22
4,964
2.
Dan Marino
32
3.
Dan Marino
17
4,510
3.
Terry Bradshaw
30
4.
Jim Kelly
17
3,863
4.
John Elway
27
5.
Troy Aikman*
15
3,849
5.
Roger Staubach
24
* active player
PASS ATTEMPTS
PASS COMPLETIONS
No.
Player
Attempts
No.
Player
Completions
1.
Joe Montana
734
1.
Joe Montana
460
2.
Dan Marino
687
2.
Dan Marino
385
3.
John Elway
640
3.
John Elway
355
4.
Jim Kelly
545
<
4.
Jim Kelly
322
5.
Troy Aikman*
502
5.
Troy Aikman*
320
* active player
ALL-TIME
NFL QBS WITH 3,000 PLAYOFF AND 40,000 REGULAR SEASON PASS YARDS
Player
Team
Postseason Yards
Regular Season Yards
Joe Montana
San Francisco, Kansas City
5,772
40,551
John Elway
Denver Broncos
4,964
51,475
Dan Marino
Miami Dolphins
4,510
61,361
TOUCHDOWN
PASSES IN CONSECUTIVE POSTSEASON GAMES
John Elway threw at least one TD
pass in 17 of 22 playoff games. After not throwing for one in his
1st game, Elway threw for at least one in his next 9.
No.
Player
Team
Seasons
Cons. Gm with TD pass
1.
Dan Marino
Miami
1983-95
13
2.
Joe Montana
San Francisco
1988-90
10
3.
Ken Stabler
Oakland
1973-77
10
4.
John Elway
Denver
1984-89
9
ALL-TIME
SUPER BOWL QUARTERBACK LEADERS
Elway saved one of his best career
performances for his final game, Super Bowl XXXIII vs. Atlanta. He
threw for 336 yards in the Broncos' 34-19 win - now fourth-most in
Super Bowl history - and was voted MVP. He also set a record for career
pass attempts in the Super Bowl, and for the 2nd straight year, became
the oldest player to score in a Super Bowl.
MOST PASSING YARDS
IN A SUPER BOWL
SUPER BOWL PASSING
YARDS, CAREER
Player
Team
Yds
Opp(Date)
Result
Player
Team
Yards
Gms
1.
Kurt Warner
StL
414
Ten (1/30/00)
W 23-16
1.
Joe Montana
SF
1,142
4
2.
Joe Montana
SF
357
Cin (1/22/89)
W 20-16
2.
John Elway
Den
1,128
5
3.
Doug Williams
Was
340
Den (1/31/88)
W 42-10
3.
Terry Bradshaw
Pit
932
4
4.
John Elway
Den
336
Atl (1/31/99)
W 34-19
MOST CAREER SUPER
BOWL PASS ATTEMPTS
MOST CAREER SUPER
BOWL COMPLETIONS
Player
Team
Att
Gms
Player
Team
Comp
Gms
1.
John Elway
Den
152
5
1.
Joe Montana
SF
83
4
2.
Jim Kelly
Buf
145
4
2.
Jim Kelly
Buf
81
4
3.
Joe Montana
SF
122
4
3.
John Elway
Den
76
5
MOST SUPER BOWL STARTS
BY A QUARTERBACK
Player
Team
Starts
Games
Record
1.
John Elway
Denver
5
XXI, XXII, XXXII, XXXIII
2-3
2.
Terry Bradshaw
Pittsburgh
4
IX, X, XIII, XIV
4-0
3.
Joe Montana
San Francisco
4
XVI, XIX, XXIII, XXIV
4-0
4.
Jim Kelly
Buffalo
4
XXV, XXVI, XXVII, XXVIII
0-4
5.
Roger Staubach
Dallas
3
VI, XII, XIII
2-1
THE
BRONCOS' RECORD WHEN ELWAY...
(Regular Season, Games
Started Only)
Threw 0 Touchdowns:
33-31-1
Rushed for a Touchdown:
22-10
Threw 1 Touchdown:
45-30
Rushed for 50 or more Yards:
2-2
Threw 2 Touchdowns:
41-17
Was Not Intercepted:
74-22
Threw 3 Touchdowns:
20-3
Was Intercepted:
74-59-1
Threw 4 Touchdowns:
9-0
Played on Grass:
121-50-1
Threw 5 Touchdowns:
1-0
Played on Turf:
27-31
Threw at least 1 TD:
115-50
Played in Domes:
13-13
Was Not Sacked:
31-8
Played on Monday Night:
13-10
Was Sacked:
117-72-1
Played on Sunday Night:
10-8
Threw for 300 Yards
24-12
Played in Prime Time:
24-18
Threw for under 200 Yards
51-42
Played on Non-Sundays:
21-12
A
MODEL OF CONSISTENCY
John Elway threw at least one TD
pass in 166 out of 234 regular season games (70.9%) and in 17 out
of his 22 playoff games (77.3%). In all, he threw a TD pass in 183
of 256 career games, regular and postseason (71.5%). John threw a
TD pass in 60 of his last 73 regular season games (82.2%):
ELWAY'S GAMES WITH
AT LEAST ONE TD PASS, YEAR-BY-YEAR
YEAR
REGULAR SEASON
POSTSEASON
OVERALL
1983
4 of 11
0 of 0
4 of 12
1984
9 of 15
1 of 1
10 of 16
1985
11 of 16
0 of 0
11 of 16
1986
12 of 16
3 of 3
15 of 19
1987
10 of 12
3 of 3
13 of 15
1988
11 of 15
0 of 0
11 of 15
1989
11 of 15
2 of 3
13 of 18
1990
9 of 16
0 of 0
9 of 16
1991
10 of 16
1 of 2
11 of 18
1992
7 of 12
0 of 0
7 of 12
1993
13 of 16
1 of 1
14 of 17
1994
10 of 14
0 of 0
10 of 14
1995
14 of 16
0 of 0
14 of 16
1996
13 of 15
1 of 1
14 of 16
1997
12 of 16
2 of 4
14 of 20
1998
10 of 12
2 of 3
12 of 15
TOTAL
166 of 234
17 of 22
183 of 256
In Elway's career the Broncos posted
a 34-31-1 mark in the 68 regular season games in which he did not
throw a TD pass, while posting a 3-2 postseason record in such contests.
Elway also had 90 multiple-touchdown regular season games, in which
Denver posted a 71-19 record (78.9%). Elway also produced 7 postseason
multiple-touchdown games, in which the Broncos posted a 4-3 record.
JOHN
ELWAY BY STADIUM
Elway threw at least 1 TD pass in
24 different NFL stadiums. His 180 at Mile High is an NFL record for
one player at a stadium. There are only 8 current stadiums where Elway
has not thrown a TD pass including Soldier Field, the Superdome, Pro
Player Stadium (he did throw a postseason TD pass there). He never
played at 6 other stadiums: Ericcson, Raymond James, PSINet, Trans
World Dome, and Jack Kent Cooke Stadium. Elway threw 27 touchdown
passes in the playoffs at 7 different venues.
Elway's Regular Season
Touchdown Passes by Stadium
Mile High
180
Giants
3
Kingdome
16
Anaheim
3
Jack Murphy/Qualcomm
16
Foxboro
3
L.A. Coliseum
12
Atlanta-Fulton County
3
Arrowhead
10
Georgia Dome
3
Cleveland Municipal
8
RCA Dome
3
Rich
6
Sun Devil
2
Three Rivers
6
Texas
2
Oakland-Alameda County
6
Veterans
2
HHH Metrodome
5
Candlestick/3COM
1
Astrodome
4
Lambeau
1
Cinergy Field
4
Silverdome
1
Elway's Postseason
Touchdown Passes by Stadium
Mile High
18
L.A. Coliseum
3
Three Rivers
2
Cleveland Municipal
1
Jack Murphy
1
(Super Bowl XXII)
Rose Bowl
1
(Super Bowl XXI)
Pro Player
1
(Super Bowl XXXIII)
JOHN
ELWAY'S LONGEVITY
Most Career Games
Played by a Bronco
Pos
Player
Years
Games
QB
John Elway
1983-98
234
LB
Tom Jackson
1973-86
191
G
Paul Howard
1973-75, 77-86
187
S
Dennis Smith
1981-94
184
DE
Barney Chavous
1973-85
182
Elway By the Numbers
- 16 -
Seasons in which Elway has worn the orange, blue and white of
the Broncos, a club record. The greatest player in franchise
history is also the team's career leader in regular-season games
played, with 234. (Elway will be on top for quite a while; Steve
Atwater, with 155, is next among active Broncos.)
Most Regular-Season Games Played for Denver
PLAYER
POSITION
GAMES
John Elway
Tom Jackson
Paul Howard
Dennis Smith
Barney Chavous
Quarterback
Linebacker
Guard
Safety
Defensive end
234
191
187
184
182
- 15 -
AFC Offensive Player of the Week.
Elway's Major Career Honors
HONOR
NO.
AFC Offensive Player of the Week
Pro Bowl selection
Pro Bowl starter
AFC Offensive Player of the Month
NFL MVP
AFC Player of the Year
Super Bowl MVP
15
9
6
2
1
1
1
- 14 -
Quarterbacks, including Elway, who have thrown a regular-season
pass for the Broncos since 1983.
Regular-Season Stats for Broncos QBs Since 1983
PLAYER
GAMES
COMP.-ATT.
YDS.
TDS
INT.
RTG.
STEVE DEBERG
JOHN ELWAY
GARY KUBIAK
SCOTT STANKAVAGE
KEN KARCHER
DEAN MAY
MONTE MCGUIRE
TOMMY MADDOX
SHAWN MOORE
HUGH MILLEN
BILL MUSGRAVE
JEFF LEWIS
BUBBY BRISTER
BRIAN GRIESE
Games in his 16-year career that Elway has missed due to injury
or illness, a remarkable run of durability at football's most
difficult position. (Elway has also missed eight other games
for which he was healthy.)
Seasons in which Elway has passed for 3,000 or more yards, the
second-highest such total in league history.
Most 3,000-yard passing Seasons
QUARTERBACK
SEASONS
DAN MARINO
JOHN ELWAY
WARREN MOON
JIM KELLY
JOE MONTANA
BOOMER ESIASON
JIM EVERETT
BRETT FAVRE
13
12
9
8
8
7
7
7
- 11 -
Broncos running backs who have rushed for 100 yards in a regular-season
or playoff game with Elway at quarterback, a total of 63 games.
Nine of those have come in the postseason, including Terrell
Davis's 102 yards against the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl
XXXIII. On Dec. 27, 1997, against the Jacksonville Jaguars,
both Davis and Derek Loville reached the century mark--a postseason
first for the franchise.
Elway's 100-yard Rushers
RUNNING BACK
BRONCOS CAREER
100-YD. GAMES
TERRELL DAVIS
BOBBY HUMPHREY
GASTON GREEN
SAMMY WINDER
ROD BERNSTINE
TONY DORSETT
LEONARD RUSSELL
AARON CRAVER
GREG LEWIS
DEREK LOVILLE
GLYN MILBURN
Times that Elway was featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated
through 1998.
- 9 -
Quarterbacks that the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts have chosen
in the NFL draft since 1983, the year they selected Elway with
the No. 1 pick. Unable to sign Elway, the Colts traded his rights
to the Broncos for promising quarterback Mark Herrmann; the
draft rights to the No. 4 pick, tackle Chris Hinton; and Denver's
first-round draft choice in the 1984 draft, which turned out
to be guard Ron Solt. Since acquiring Elway, the Broncos are
161-93-1 (.633) in the regular season and have reached the playoffs
10 times and the Super Bowl five times. Since trading Elway,
the Colts are 98-157 (.384) in the regular season, have reached
the playoffs just three times and have won only two postseason
games. They've also gone through eight head coaches in that
span.
Quarterbacks Drafted by the Colts Since 1983
PLAYER
GAMES
COMP.-ATT.
YDS.
TDS
INT.
RTG.
JIM BOB TAYLOR
JACK TRUDEAU
CHRIS CHANDLER
JEFF GEORGE
PEYTON MANNING
TOTALS
ELWAY'S TOTALS
* Stats
are from regular-season games with the Colts. The Colts drafted
four QBs who never played for them: Wayne Johnson (1989), Steve
Taylor (1989), Gene Benhart (1990) and Mike Cawley (1996).
- 8 -
Times that Elway has engineered fourth-quarter game-winning
or game-tying drives against the Kansas City Chiefs. Former
Chiefs and Cleveland Browns coach Marty Schottenheimer has been
on the wrong end of nine Elway comebacks.
Elway's Most Frequent Comeback Victims
TEAM
GAMES
Kansas City Chiefs
San Diego Chargers
Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders
Cleveland Browns
New England Patriots
Seattle Seahawks
8
6
4
3
3
3
- 7 -
NFL teams that have never beaten Elway in the regular season.
The winningest quarterback in league history has played against
all 31 NFL franchises (including the Cleveland Browns), and
he has regular-season victories against 30. The lone team that
Elway has not tamed in the regular season is the Miami Dolphins,
against whom his Broncos are 0-2 (but 1-0 in the postseason,
after a 38-3 win in a 1998 AFC divisional playoff game).
Teams that Never Defeated Elway in the Regular Season
TEAM
W-L
New England Patriots
Cincinnati Bengals
Atlanta Falcons
Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals
Jacksonville Jaguars
Baltimore Ravens
Carolina Panthers
0-10
0-7
0-4
0-3
0-2
0-1
0-1
- 6 -
Receivers who have caught 20 or more touchdown passes from Elway
over the years. In all, 40 players have hauled in at least one
Elway TD pass.
Players Who have Caught 20 TD Passes from Elway
PLAYER
REGULAR SEASON
PLAYOFFS
TOTAL
SHANNON SHARPE
VANCE JOHNSON
ED MCCAFFREY
MARK JACKSON
ROD SMITH
ANTHONY MILLER
42
35
23
21
19
21
2
4
2
2
3
0
44
39
25
23
22
21
- 5 -
Times that Elway has been the starting quarterback in the Super
Bowl, an NFL record.
- 4 -
Professional sports teams that drafted Elway.
Kansas City Royals -- A lefthanded-hitting
outfielder for Granada Hills High School in Los Angeles, Elway
was taken in the 18th round of the June 1979 baseball draft.
Earlier that day the Royals had drafted a righthanded pitcher
by the name of Dan Marino, from Pittsburgh's Central Catholic
High. Kansas City failed to sign either player; they opted
for college.
New York Yankees -- In 1981,
after his sophomore year at Stanford, Elway was again selected
in the baseball draft, in the second round by the Yankees.
This time Elway signed, and the following summer he played
42 games in the Class A New York-Penn League with Oneonta,
hitting .318 with four home runs and 25 RBIs.
Oakland Invaders -- As a
product of Stanford, Elway was taken in the first USFL draft,
in 1983, by the Invaders, who held his territorial rights.
He didn't sign.
Baltimore Colts -- The Colts
selected Elway with the first pick of the famed 1983 draft,
making him the first of six quarterbacks taken in the first
round; Baltimore then traded his rights to the Broncos.
- 3 -
Times that Elway has caught a pass in a regular-season game.
Two of those were from Steve Sewell. In his seven-year career,
Sewell threw seven regular-season passes; his only two completions
were to Elway.
Steve Sewell, RB
Steve Sewell, RB
Steve Sewell, RB
Rod Smith, WR
23 yards*
23 yards
24 yards
14 yards
*Touchdown
pass, Super Bowl XXII
- 2 -
Times that Elway and Dan Marino, the only two quarterbacks in
NFL history to pass for 50,000 yards, have faced each other
in the regular season. Marino won both games, but Elway came
out on top in 1998 in their only postseason showdown.
NFL Career Comparison of Elway and Marino
ELWAY
MARINO
Seasons
Games
W-L as regular-season starter
W-L as postseason starter
Head-to-head regular-season wins
Head-to-head postseason wins
W-L in regular-season prime-time games
Attempts
Completions
Completion percentage
Yards passing
Touchdown passes
Interceptions
Passer rating
Times sacked
Yards rushing
Rushing touchdowns
Total offense
3,000-yard passing seasons
4,000-yard passing seasons
5,000-yard passing seasons
*alltime
leader - [1]second alltime - [2]1998 AFC divisional playoff
game
- 1 -
Members of the vaunted quarterback class of 1983 who have won
a Super Bowl. Dan Marino was the first to get to the NFL title
game, after the 1984 season. Nine years later, Jim Kelly became
the first QB to start four straight Super Bowls. But with two
championship rings, Elway will likely be the only one to have
taken home football's top prize.
