Is John Elway still an elite GM?

[lomaxgrUK]

15 hours ago, wwhickok said:

This "elite" defense he supposedly built has 2-3 names worth mentioning and the offense is terrible.  Outside of Peyton Manning who had 1 1/2 good seasons there and leaned on the defense to win a SB, this team has never been very good and he hasn't gotten a single QB pick right yet.   If it weren't for that SB victory he would've been fired already.

There's just so much here that I don't know where to start ...

Who is calling Denver's current defense elite? You're basically making up a quote there. Nobody in the media was saying it prior to the season, nobody on this forum was either. Unless you're referring to the defense of the Superbowl winning team which, without any doubt whatsoever, is one of the best Defense's ever. That is 100% indisputable. 

"and leaned on the defense to win a SB" - ok, so who built that Defense? Exactly. Oh, and FYI - Peyton Manning did a little better than "1 1/2 good seasons" (GOOD - hilarious). That Offense set all time NFL records; "good" doesn't cut it, I am afraid.

The team was plenty good enough in 2014 and evidently, plenty good enough in 2015. Love the fact we can just toss in a Superbowl victory as if it is nothing as well. "Oh, if it wasn't for the fact he won the thing he was hired to do, he would be fired already". Pretty ridiculous statement to make.

Right now, this team isn't good. It isn't even average and Elway shoulders a lot of the blame. But let's not ignore the fact this happens to a lot of teams that win a Superbowl with a (long term) Franchise QB, so it all stems back to Elway's inability to obtain one of those.

[Buckweath]

Elway has had bad drafts after bad drafts and completely missed on several QBs.

And just recently he picked Chubb instead of making a move for a QB prospect in a strong class. Settling for Keenum when Cousins and Smith were available also is a blemish on him.

Sure, he won a SB a few years ago and he deserves some credit for that but I believe just having Manning helped attract some top FA (Talib, Ware, Sanders, Ward, etc.) who contributed a lot to that SB.

Overall, he is just not good though. I just don't get how he didn't make any move for a QB this offseason, is he thinking that a star QB will fall from the sky for his team or what? It was the time to make a move.

 

 

[MikeT14]

"Still"?

[Danger]

Can't still be if you never were.

[7DnBrnc53]

On 10/25/2018 at 4:07 PM, Broncofan said:

You just put forth a theory that John Fox was the brains behind a successful team.   His firing was one of the key steps to get us to the big stage.  Step away from the keyboard, man.

Fox was the right guy his first year when expectations were low (to start the season). He is a pleasant guy, and his presence may have lightened up a locker room that was toxic under McDummy. However, the Tebow run raised expectations, and when Manning walked in the door, Fox ceased to be the right man for the job. Elway should have fired him after SB 48.

[thedorchannel]

Elway was NEVER an elite GM.  The Bronco's success from 2011-2014 was because of two people:Tim Tebow and Peyton Manning.

 

Yes, the Bronco's defense was elite, but there is only so much an elite defense can do when there is no viable quarterback at the helm, which shows why they haven't made the playoffs since Manning left. 

 

I don't understand all of the hatred for Tim Tebow.  He just plays the QB position in a different way.    His best qualities don't show up on the stat sheet, so people assume he's one of the worst QBs ever.  He's a poor passer for the most part, but his strong running ability makes it so that he's able to wear down a defense and eventually make crucial throws at the end of a game.  Not to mention his leadership abilities gave the Broncos an identity and inspired everyone on the field to rally behind him.

 

And its really sad to see how everyone disrespected Payton Manning his last year with the Broncos.  Yes, his stats were down and he was nowhere near where he used to be, but he was much older and not physically able to do much.  He was able to win games with his amazing football IQ, making the plays that were needed rather than running up the score like he used to.