1968 Denver Broncos season
| 1968 Denver Broncos season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Gerald Phipps |
| General manager | Lou Saban |
| Head coach | Lou Saban |
| Home field | Mile High Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 5–9 |
| Division place | 4th AFL Western |
| Playoff finish | Did 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.
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
[edit]NFL/AFL Draft
[edit]| 1968 Denver Broncos draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 31 | Curley Culp * † | Defensive tackle | Arizona State | |
| 3 | 58 | Garrett Ford | Running back | West Virginia | |
| 3 | 75 | Bob Vaughn | Tackle | Ole Miss | |
| 4 | 91 | Gordon Lambert | Linebacker | Tennessee-Martins | |
| 4 | 102 | Drake Garrett | Defensive back | Michigan State | |
| 4 | 111 | Gus Hollomon | Defensive back | Houston | |
| 8 | 196 | Steve Holloway | Defensive back | Weber State | |
| 9 | 222 | Paul Smith * | Defensive end | New Mexico | |
| 10 | 252 | Bob Langford | Tackle | Middle Tennessee | |
| 12 | 304 | Bobby Hendrix | Tackle | Ole Miss | |
| 13 | 330 | Charlie Greer | Defensive back | Colorado | |
| 14 | 357 | Marlin Briscoe * | Quarterback | Nebraska-Omaha | |
| 15 | 386 | Jeff Kuhman | Linebacker | Vermont | |
| 16 | 412 | Adin Brown | Linebacker | William & Mary | |
| 17 | 438 | Steve Grady | Running back | USC | |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
Personnel
[edit]Staff
[edit]|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
|
Roster
[edit]Quarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
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Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
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Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB)
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- Source:
Regular season
[edit]Schedule
[edit]| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bye | ||||||
| 2 | September 15 | at Cincinnati Bengals | L 10–24 | 0–1 | Nippert Stadium | 25,049 | Recap |
| 3 | September 22 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 2–34 | 0–2 | Municipal Stadium | 45,821 | Recap |
| 4 | September 29 | Boston Patriots | L 17–20 | 0–3 | Mile High Stadium | 37,024 | Recap |
| 5 | October 6 | Cincinnati Bengals | W 10–7 | 1–3 | Mile High Stadium | 41,257 | Recap |
| 6 | October 13 | at New York Jets | W 21–13 | 2–3 | Shea Stadium | 62,052 | Recap |
| 7 | October 20 | at San Diego Chargers | L 24–55 | 2–4 | San Diego Stadium | 42,953 | Recap |
| 8 | October 27 | Miami Dolphins | W 21–14 | 3–4 | Mile High Stadium | 44,115 | Recap |
| 9 | November 3 | at Boston Patriots | W 35–14 | 4–4 | Fenway Park | 18,304 | Recap |
| 10 | November 10 | Oakland Raiders | L 7–43 | 4–5 | Mile High Stadium | 50,002 | Recap |
| 11 | November 17 | at Houston Oilers | L 17–38 | 4–6 | Astrodome | 36,075 | Recap |
| 12 | November 24 | Buffalo Bills | W 34–32 | 5–6 | Mile High Stadium | 35,201 | Recap |
| 13 | December 1 | San Diego Chargers | L 23–47 | 5–7 | Mile High Stadium | 35,212 | Recap |
| 14 | December 8 | at Oakland Raiders | L 27–33 | 5–8 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 47,754 | Recap |
| 15 | December 14 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 7–30 | 5–9 | Mile High Stadium | 38,463 | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
Standings
[edit]| AFL Western Division | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | PF | PA | STK | ||
| Oakland Raiders | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 6–2 | 453 | 233 | W8 | |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 7–1 | 371 | 170 | W5 | |
| San Diego Chargers | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 5–3 | 382 | 310 | L2 | |
| Denver Broncos | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 1–7 | 275 | 404 | L3 | |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 3 | 11 | 0 | .214 | 1–7 | 215 | 329 | L3 | |
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings in the AFL.
References
[edit]- ^ Sports Illustrated, July 26, 2010, The Unexpected Hero by Gary Smith, p.60, Published by Time Inc.
- ^ Saccomano, Jim (August 7, 2022). "Sacco Sez: How the orange and blue began". DenverBroncos.com. Retrieved January 29, 2024.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on September 23, 2015. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Chiefs top Denver, clinch Western tie". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 15, 1968. p. 2B.
External links
[edit]- Denver Broncos – 1968 media guide
- 1968 Denver Broncos at Pro-Football-Reference.com
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