The 1971 Denver Broncos season was the team's twelfth season in professional football and second in the National Football League (NFL). Led by fifth-year head coach and general manager Lou Saban, the Broncos finished the season with four wins, nine losses, and one tie, again fourth in the AFC West. Fifth-year running back Floyd Little became the thirteenth in professional football history to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season;[1] the future Hall of Famer ran for 1,133 yards, averaging four yards per carry.
| 1971 Denver Broncos season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Gerald Phipps |
| General manager | Lou Saban |
| Head coach | Lou Saban (first 9 games, 2–6–1) Jerry Smith (last 5 games, 2–3) |
| Home field | Mile High Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 4–9–1 |
| Division place | 4th AFC West |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
On Wednesday, November 17, Saban stepped down as head coach but remained as general manager; offensive line coach Jerry Smith led the team for the final five games, with two wins.[2][3] Several days after the season finale, Saban was hired as head coach of the Buffalo Bills, who had just one victory in 1971.[4][5] The Bills improved to 9–5 in 1973 and made the playoffs in 1974.
In early January 1972, the Broncos hired John Ralston as head coach and general manager; he was previously the head coach for nine years at Stanford University, upset winners of the last two Rose Bowls.[6][7]
Offseason
editNFL draft
edit| 1971 Denver Broncos draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Marv Montgomery | OT | USC | From Green Bay |
| 2 | 35 | Dwight Harrison | WR | Texas A&I | |
| 4 | 79 | Lyle Alzado * | DE | Yankton | |
| 4 | 87 | Cleo Johnson | DB | Alcorn A&M | |
| 6 | 139 | Harold Phillips | DB | Michigan State | |
| 7 | 165 | Doug Adams | LB | Ohio State | |
| 8 | 187 | Tom Beard | C | Michigan State | |
| 9 | 217 | John Handy | LB | Purdue | |
| 10 | 243 | Carlis Harris | WR | Idaho State | |
| 11 | 269 | Roger Roitsch | DT | Rice | |
| 12 | 295 | Floyd Franks | WR | Ole Miss | |
| 13 | 321 | Craig Blackford | QB | Evansville | |
| 14 | 350 | Tommy Lyons | C | Georgia | |
| 15 | 373 | Larry James | RB | Norfork State | |
| 16 | 399 | Steve Thompson | DT | Minnesota | |
| 17 | 425 | Jack Simcsak | K | Virginia Tech | |
| 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
|
Roster
editQuarterbacks (QB)
Running backs (RB)
Wide receivers (WR)
Tight ends (TE)
|
Offensive linemen (OL)
Defensive linemen (DL)
|
Linebackers (LB)
Defensive backs (DB)
|
|
- Source:
Regular season
editSchedule
edit| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 19 | Miami Dolphins | T 10–10 | 0–0–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,228 | |
| 2 | September 26 | at Green Bay Packers | L 13–34 | 0–1–1 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 47,957 | |
| 3 | October 3 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 3–16 | 0–2–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,200 | |
| 4 | October 10 | Oakland Raiders | L 16–27 | 0–3–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,200 | |
| 5 | October 17 | San Diego Chargers | W 20–16 | 1–3–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,200 | |
| 6 | October 24 | at Cleveland Browns | W 27–0 | 2–3–1 | Cleveland Stadium | 75,674 | |
| 7 | October 31 | at Philadelphia Eagles | L 16–17 | 2–4–1 | Veterans Stadium | 65,358 | |
| 8 | November 7 | Detroit Lions | L 20–24 | 2–5–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,200 | |
| 9 | November 14 | Cincinnati Bengals | L 10–24 | 2–6–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,200 | |
| 10 | November 21 | at Kansas City Chiefs | L 10–28 | 2–7–1 | Municipal Stadium | 49,945 | |
| 11 | November 28 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | W 22–10 | 3–7–1 | Three Rivers Stadium | 39,710 | |
| 12 | December 5 | Chicago Bears | W 6–3 | 4–7–1 | Mile High Stadium | 51,200 | |
| 13 | December 12 | at San Diego Chargers | L 17–45 | 4–8–1 | San Diego Stadium | 44,347 | |
| 14 | December 19 | at Oakland Raiders | L 13–21 | 4–9–1 | Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum | 54,651 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
- The sites of the two games with the Oakland Raiders were switched.[8]
Standings
edit| AFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 10 | 3 | 1 | .769 | 4–1–1 | 8–2–1 | 302 | 208 | W3 |
| Oakland Raiders | 8 | 4 | 2 | .667 | 4–1–1 | 7–3–1 | 344 | 278 | W1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 311 | 341 | L1 |
| Denver Broncos | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 1–5 | 3–6–1 | 203 | 275 | L2 |
- Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.
References
edit- ^ Sports Illustrated, July 26, 2010, The Unexpected Hero by Gary Smith, p.63, Published by Time Inc.
- ^ "Saban quits Denver job". Youngstown Vindicator. (Ohio). UPI. November 17, 1971. p. 42.
- ^ "Smith takes Bronco reins from Saban". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. November 18, 1971. p. 4D.
- ^ "NFL clubs, Baylor hire new coaches". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). Associated Press. December 24, 1971. p. 3B.
- ^ "Saban promises shakeup in ranks". Daily Sentinel. (Middleport-Pomeroy, Ohio). UPI. December 24, 1971. p. 4.
- ^ "Five-year pro deal to Ralston". Spokesman-Review. (Spokane, Washington). Associated Press. January 6, 1972. p. 23.
- ^ King, Errol (January 6, 1972). "Ralston's talking Super Bowl". Deseret News. (Salt Lake City, Utah). UPI. p. C1.
- ^ "Raiders may have to move games if A's gain Series". Lewiston Morning Tribune. (Idaho). Associated Press. August 13, 1971. p. 22.
External links
edit- Denver Broncos – 1971 media guide
- 1971 Denver Broncos at Pro-Football-Reference.com
 | This article relating to an American football season is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |