John Elway is a Denver Broncos legend as a quarterback but it was his decision to pass on another quarterback that haunts him.
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That would be none other than Josh Allen, the Buffalo Bills' QB who Elway passed over in the 2018 NFL Draft. Elway was serving as Broncos general manager at the time. He stepped down from the position in 2020.
"Last year I played [golf] with him and I'm wondering, 'How long is it going to take him to realize that I passed on him and took Bradley Chubb instead?' And it took him two and a half holes," Elway said during a recent appearance on Barstool Sports' "Pardon my Take" podcast, via ESPN.
"And I loved him. But it just didn't work out. He was my type. That was probably my biggest mistake of my GM days, was not taking Josh."
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The Broncos haven't been the same since Peyton Manning left. Part of that has to do with some of Elway's decisions.
"Elway had just signed Case Keenum, coming off a breakout season in Minnesota, and he was still smarting over his selection of another tall, strong quarterback from a small school in the first round two years earlier," wrote the Associated Press.
"Not long after celebrating the franchise's third Super Bowl title, Elway drafted Paxton Lynch out of Memphis with the 26th pick in the 2016 NFL draft — which proved the worst decision of his decade in charge of the Broncos' roster."
"Lynch was twice beaten out by seventh-rounder Trevor Siemian and started just four games before the Broncos jettisoned him in 2018.
"Elway's double whammy of selecting Lynch and bypassing Allen set in motion a long slide for the once-proud franchise, which has failed to reach the playoffs since its Super Bowl triumph following the 2015 season."
