Three picks after the Baltimore Colts selected John Elway with the 1st pick in the 1983 draft Youth Chris Harris Jr Jersey , the Broncos selected tackle Chris Hinton 4th overall. How on earth did the Broncos end up with the 4th overall pick? The 1982 season must have been just awful. The 1982 season was indeed awful in ways that challenge the traditional definition of terrible. First, there was the NFLPA strike that wiped out NFL football for over half the season. Imagine the third game of the season being played the weekend before Thanksgiving! Thankfully, I was only 3-years old at the time and don’t remember it. The 1982 Denver Broncos fielded holdovers from the Super Bowl XII team like Craig Morton, Rob Lytle, Riley Odoms, Tom Glassic, Rick Upchurch, and Randy Gradishar while featuring stars we’d all get to know during the tragic Super Bowl runs of late 1980’s like Denis Smith, Rich Karlis, Gerald Willhite, Keith Bishop, Sammy Winder, and Steve Watson. Managing this collision of eras was Dan Reeves in his first year as head coach of the Denver Broncos. Denver won just 2 games in 1982, none of them in division and none of them in conference. Before the hiatus http://www.thebroncosfootballauthentic.com/connor-mcgovern-jersey-authentic , the Broncos hosted Bill Walsh, Joe Montana, and their San Francisco 49ers at Mile High and eked out a victory with the aid of a barefoot Rich Karlis field goal.The other victory came against Ray Malavasi’s Los Angeles Rams. Broncos history honks will remember him as the Denver Broncos interim head coach that replaced Mac Speedie after he dropped the first two games of the 1966 season. Malavasi would notch just a 4-8 record as Broncos head coach before being replaced by Lou Saban for the 1967 season.After turning in a horrid performance in the first game of the season against the San Diego Chargers and getting off to a shaky start against the 49ers, Craig Morton was benched in favor of Steve DeBerg. After falling behind in Anaheim, 21-0 in the 2nd quarter, the Broncos finally found their groove with DeBerg hitting Rick Upchurch for a 51-yard touchdown pass. Running back Rick Parros added another touchdown when DeBerg found him to close out the 2nd quarter. Outside of a Rams field goal in the 4th quarter, the Broncos would own the rest of the game adding two Rich Karlis field goals and another Rick Parros touchdown. Broncos won, 27-24.Interesting side note, in Super Bowl XXXIII, the Broncos faced Dan Reeves, as coach, and Steve DeBerg, as backup quarterback for the Falcons. While everyone remembers that victory over Atlanta as John Elway’s last game, few remember that it was also the conclusion to Steve DeBerg’s 20-year career. So how did this game ‘help pave the way for the Broncos to acquire John Elway’?If you haven’t seen the ESPN’s 30 for 30: Elway to Marino you need to stop what you’re doing right now and seek it out. The documentary details the minutiae of the 1983 NFL draft and gets deeply into what happened between Denver and Baltimore in the historic trade that changed both franchises forever. The Rams and Broncos both finished 1982 with 2-7 records. Since the Broncos won the head-to-head Womens Jake Butt Jersey , the Rams got to pick 3rd overall in 1983, right before Denver. Had the Broncos lost to Los Angeles, the Rams trade with the Houston Oilers to get the 2nd overall pick and hall-of-famer Eric Dickerson would have been more difficult to make or wouldn’t have happened at all. Denver could have picked someone other than Chris Hinton and the 1983 draft would have been different. Chris Hinton, backup quarterback Mark Hermann, and the Broncos 1st round pick in the 1984 draft were traded to Baltimore for John Elway. Would Elway have come to Denver without Hinton?The 30 for 30 mentions that the trade was more a product of then-Broncos owner Edgar Kaiser’s relationship with Colts owner Robert Irsay than the elements that were actually exchanged. However, if things didn’t sit as they did on draft day in 1983 as a result of the 1982 season, you can’t say for sure that Elway becomes the cornerstone of Denver Broncos history. It’s crazy to think of the impact a single game can have on a franchise. With a rout of the Arizona Cardinals ten days ago, the Denver Broncos were optimistic about being able to build off their win and gain some much needed momentum. In order for that to happen, they had to travel on the road to face the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium this afternoon in a must-win game. After four quarters of fierce battle, the Broncos lost to the Chiefs 30-23 — effectively putting their postseason hopes to rest. Here are five things we learned from today’s game.1. The Broncos’ hopes at reviving their season are overWith today’s loss to the Chiefs, the Broncos are now 3-5 at the season’s halfway mark. You can kiss winning the AFC West goodbye and the chances of a wildcard birth are basically on life support. Perhaps last week’s win against the Cardinals gave Broncos Country a sense of false hope, because today’s outing reinforced what kind of team Denver has been all season long — a terrible one. Do you really think this team is going to win most every game in the second half of the season? Ha! It’s time to accept the fact that the season is over and that most importantly, that the franchise is far away from competing for postseason play and Super Bowls anytime soon. 2. The downfall of the Frequent Fly Zone continuesFor most of the season, the No Fly Zone has turned into the Frequent Fly Zone. Some games they are up Womens Justin Simmons Jersey , some games they are down — but it’s safe to say there have been far more downs than ups this season in respect to the Broncos’ secondary. That was certainly the case today as the Frequent Fly Zone was shredded by Patrick Mahomes and his arsenal of offensive weapons. That being said fifth-year cornerback Bradley Roby and back-up safety Will Parks (starting in place of Darian Stewart) were the primary culprits in the unit’s struggles this afternoon.My biggest issue was with Roby, who gave up several big plays in today’s game, in particular a 41-yard reception by Tyreek Hill and the drive-completing touchdown to Travis Kelce in the second quarter. Moreover, he had a rough third quarter allowing multiple first down catches. It wasn’t a particularly good look for a player who is in the final year of his contract and hoping to get a big-time payday on the free agent market. Nothing he has done this year should signal any remote interest in the franchise retaining him long-term. Expect the Broncos to use a high draft selection next April to replace him.3. The Broncos’ penchant for penalties killed multiple drivesBill Musgrave had a great offensive game plan and was quite creative in the way he decided to attack the Chiefs’ defense. Unfortunately, the Broncos’ penchant for penalties (especially in the second half) killed multiple drives and wiped out a handful of 20-plus yard plays that should have led to points on the board. In fact, every offensive lineman for the Broncos registered a penalty this afternoon.Self-inflicted woes have been the overarching narrative for the team’s offense this season and today’s issues were consistent with that. It’s hard to win games when you continuously shoot yourself in the foot. Alas, that has been about the only thing fans have come to accept from the offense this season — the Broncos routinely shitting the bed and being their own worst enemies.4. Case Keenum proves once again that he is a journeyman quarterbackFans who were hoping Case Keenum would replicate his success with the Minnesota Vikings this year would have had better luck playing the Powerball. The only ‘perfect’ thing for the Broncos this season is the unfortunate fact that Keenum has thrown a pick in every single game. It’s crystal clear that he isn’t the long-term savior for the franchise, but what is unclear is what John Elway and the Broncos’ brass will do this coming offseason to improve the position. Until that problem is solved fans should only expect mediocrity. Unfortunately, that might be a problem that can’t be solved this offseason.5. The Broncos’ rushing attack was strong despite Royce Freeman’s absenceThe Chiefs aren’t known for their quality run defense and rank among the league’s worst in that regard. However, the prospect of the Broncos’ having success on the ground was questionable with rookie Royce Freeman sidelined from today’s game due to injury. Even with him being out of the lineup, Denver had no issue running the ball. Undrafted rookie standout Phillip Lindsay continued to impress while third-year pro Devontae Booker had several quality runs of his own. The two combined for 173 yards on 27 carries. If there has been one continued bright spot in a lackluster season for the Broncos, the production from their youthful running back stable has certainly been it.So Broncos Country, what were your five big observations from today’s game? Sound off in the comments section and make your voice heard!