1968 Denver Broncos season

Last updated

1968 Denver Broncos season
Owner Gerald Phipps
General managerLou Saban
Head coach Lou Saban
Home field Mile High Stadium
Results
Record5–9
Division place4th AFL Western
Playoff finishDid not qualify

The 1968 Denver Broncos season was the ninth season for the team in the American Football League (AFL). Led by second-year head coach and general manager Lou Saban, the Broncos improved their record from the previous season by posting a record of five wins and nine losses. They finished fourth in the AFL's Western division for the sixth straight season; the expansion Cincinnati Bengals finished fifth, allowing Denver to escape the cellar.

Contents

There were threats of the Broncos relocating to Atlanta, Chicago, and Birmingham, Alabama. [1]

The 1968 season was the first in which Denver wore blue helmets with the trademark orange "D" logo; the helmets remained the same until the 1997 season. [2]

In 1968, Bears Stadium was sold to the city of Denver, which renamed it "Mile High Stadium" and built the upper deck along the west side, raising capacity to 50,657. [3]

Offseason

NFL/AFL Draft

1968 Denver Broncos draft
RoundPickPlayerPositionCollegeNotes
231 Curley Culp  * †  Defensive tackle Arizona State
358 Garrett Ford   Running back West Virginia
375 Bob Vaughn   Tackle Ole Miss
491 Gordon Lambert   Linebacker Tennessee-Martins
4102 Drake Garrett   Defensive back Michigan State
4111 Gus Hollomon   Defensive back Houston
8196Steve Holloway  Defensive back Weber State
9222 Paul Smith  *  Defensive end New Mexico
10252Bob Langford  Tackle Middle Tennessee
12304Bobby Hendrix  Tackle Ole Miss
13330 Charlie Greer   Defensive back Colorado
14357 Marlin Briscoe  *  Quarterback Nebraska-Omaha
15386Jeff Kuhman  Linebacker Vermont
16412Adin Brown  Linebacker William & Mary
17438Steve Grady  Running back USC
      Made roster    †    Pro Football Hall of Fame     *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff

1968 Denver Broncos staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches




Roster

1968 Denver Broncos roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

 Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

 Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams


Rookies in italics

Source:

Regular season

Schedule

WeekDateOpponentResultRecordVenueAttendanceRecap
1 Bye
2September 15at Cincinnati Bengals L 10–240–1 Nippert Stadium 25,049 Recap
3September 22at Kansas City Chiefs L 2–340–2 Municipal Stadium 45,821 Recap
4September 29 Boston Patriots L 17–200–3 Mile High Stadium 37,024 Recap
5October 6 Cincinnati Bengals W 10–71–3Mile High Stadium41,257 Recap
6October 13at New York Jets W 21–132–3 Shea Stadium 62,052 Recap
7October 20at San Diego Chargers L 24–552–4 San Diego Stadium 42,953 Recap
8October 27 Miami Dolphins W 21–143–4Mile High Stadium44,115 Recap
9November 3at Boston Patriots W 35–144–4 Fenway Park 18,304 Recap
10November 10 Oakland Raiders L 7–434–5Mile High Stadium50,002 Recap
11November 17at Houston Oilers L 17–384–6 Astrodome 36,075 Recap
12November 24 Buffalo Bills W 34–325–6Mile High Stadium35,201 Recap
13December 1 San Diego Chargers L 23–475–7Mile High Stadium35,212 Recap
14December 8at Oakland Raiders L 27–335–8 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 47,754 Recap
15December 14 Kansas City Chiefs L 7–305–9Mile High Stadium38,463 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

[4]

Standings

AFL Western Division
WLTPCTDIVPFPASTK
Oakland Raiders 1220.8576–2453233W8
Kansas City Chiefs 1220.8577–1371170W5
San Diego Chargers 950.6435–3382310L2
Denver Broncos 590.3571–7275404L3
Cincinnati Bengals 3110.2141–7215329L3

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings in the AFL.

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References

  1. ↑ Sports Illustrated, July 26, 2010, The Unexpected Hero by Gary Smith, p.60, Published by Time Inc.
  2. ↑ Saccomano, Jim (August 7, 2022). "Sacco Sez: How the orange and blue began". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved January 29, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ↑ "Chiefs top Denver, clinch Western tie". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 15, 1968. p. 2B.
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