The 1974 Denver Broncos season was the team's 15th year in professional football and its fifth with the National Football League (NFL). Led by third-year head coach and general manager John Ralston, the Broncos had a winning record for the second straight season with seven wins, six losses, and one tie, which was fifth-best in the conference.
1974 Denver Broncos season | |
---|---|
Owner | Gerald Phipps |
General manager | John Ralston |
Head coach | John Ralston |
Home field | Mile High Stadium |
Results | |
Record | 7–6–1 |
Division place | 2nd AFC West |
Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
Denver finished second in the AFC West, but 4½ games behind the Oakland Raiders, who clinched in mid-November,[1] and 1½ games behind the wild card Buffalo Bills. In their fifteen years of existence, the Broncos had yet to reach the postseason.
The team played at Detroit on Thanksgiving and won in the final NFL game at Tiger Stadium;[2] the Lions moved north to the Pontiac Silverdome in 1975.
Offseason
editNFL Draft
edit1974 Denver Broncos draft | |||||
Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 14 | Randy Gradishar * | LB | Ohio State | |
2 | 42 | Carl Wafer | DT | Tennessee State | |
3 | 68 | Claudie Minor | T | San Diego State | |
4 | 92 | Ozell Collie | DB | Colorado | |
6 | 145 | John Winesberry | WR | Stanford | |
10 | 248 | Charlie Johnson | DB | Southern | |
11 | 276 | Steve Buchanan | RB | Holy Cross | |
12 | 301 | Larry Cameron | LB | Alcorn A&M | |
13 | 326 | John Clerkley | DT | Fort Valley State | |
14 | 354 | Rich Marks | DB | Northern Illinois | |
15 | 379 | Peil Pennington | QB | Massachusetts | |
16 | 404 | Darrell Austin | T | South Carolina | |
17 | 432 | Boyd Brown | TE | Alcorn A&M | |
Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career |
Personnel
editStaff
edit
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
|
- Source:[3]
Roster
editQuarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Reserve lists
Practice squad
|
- Source:
Regular season
editSchedule
editWeek | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | Recap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | September 15 | Los Angeles Rams | L 10–17 | 0–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,121 | Recap |
2 | September 22 | Pittsburgh Steelers | T 35–35 (OT) | 0–1–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,068 | Recap |
3 | September 30 | at Washington Redskins | L 3–30 | 0–2–1 | RFK Stadium | 54,395 | Recap |
4 | October 6 | at Kansas City Chiefs | W 17–14 | 1–2–1 | Arrowhead Stadium | 67,298 | Recap |
5 | October 13 | New Orleans Saints | W 33–17 | 2–2–1 | Mile High Stadium | 50,881 | Recap |
6 | October 20 | San Diego Chargers | W 27–7 | 3–2–1 | Mile High Stadium | 50,928 | Recap |
7 | October 27 | at Cleveland Browns | L 21–23 | 3–3–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 60,478 | Recap |
8 | November 3 | Oakland Raiders | L 17–28 | 3–4–1 | Mile High Stadium | 45,946 | Recap |
9 | November 10 | at Baltimore Colts | W 17–6 | 4–4–1 | Memorial Stadium | 33,244 | Recap |
10 | November 18 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 34–42 | 4–5–1 | Mile High Stadium | 50,236 | Recap |
11 | November 24 | at Oakland Raiders | W 20–17 | 5–5–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 51,224 | Recap |
12 | November 28 | at Detroit Lions | W 31–27 | 6–5–1 | Tiger Stadium | 51,157 | Recap |
13 | December 8 | Houston Oilers | W 37–14 | 7–5–1 | Mile High Stadium | 46,942 | Recap |
14 | December 15 | at San Diego Chargers | L 0–17 | 7–6–1 | San Diego Stadium | 36,571 | Recap |
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |
[1][4] Thursday (November 28: Thanksgiving)[2]
Standings
editAFC West | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
Oakland Raiders | 12 | 2 | 0 | .857 | 5–1 | 9–2 | 355 | 228 | W3 |
Denver Broncos | 7 | 6 | 1 | .536 | 3–3 | 5–4–1 | 302 | 294 | L1 |
Kansas City Chiefs | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 233 | 293 | L2 |
San Diego Chargers | 5 | 9 | 0 | .357 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 212 | 285 | W2 |
References
edit- ^ a b "Third-period blitz spurs Chiefs, 42-34". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 19, 1974. p. 3C.
- ^ a b "Broncs boot Lions with onside kick". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. November 29, 1974. p. 20.
- ^ 1974 Denver Broncos Media Guide. p. 4. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
- ^ "'The Redskins are back' – Allen". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 1, 1974. p. 1B.
External links
edit- Denver Broncos – 1974 media guide
- Broncos at Pro-Football-Reference.com