5 Best Quarterbacks in Denver Broncos History

Over the past six decades, the Denver Broncos have practically called Super Bowl Sunday their home away from home. With eight Super Bowl appearances and three Super Bowl wins, the Orange and Blue are inarguably one of the NFL's premier franchises.

In addition to being one of the NFL's elite teams, they've found a knack for developing and scouting incredible quarterbacks. With Bo Nix in the fold, the Broncos have yet another big name commandeering their offense.

While Tim Tebow and Russell Wilson don't make this list, here is our ranking of the top five quarterbacks in Broncos history.

5. Craig Morton (1977-1982)

Yes, there is a very strong argument for Charley Johnson at this pick, seeing as Johnson taught the Broncos how to win (according to the famous quote by wide receiver Haven Moses) but we're going with Morton here.

Morton joined the Broncos at the tail end of his career after 12 years in the NFC with the Cowboys and Giants, and put together quite a strong encore in the Mile High City.

Morton finished second in the AP NFL MVP award race in his first year in Denver, leading the Broncos to a 12-2 record after throwing for 1,929 yards and 14 touchdowns with a receiving core led by Moses, Jack Dolbin and tight end Riley Odom. This solid offense, along with the 'Orange Crush Defense' helped solidify the Broncos' first Super Bowl appearance (a 27-10 loss to Morton's former Cowboys team).

Morton wouldn't make another Super Bowl, but his age-38 season in 1981 was a complete renaissance, returning to his near-MVP form, finishing fourth, and throwing for a career-high 3,195 yards and 21 touchdowns, which tied a career-high.

4. Brian Griese (1998-2002)

Broncos diehards could debate this pick, as Griese would take the spot of inaugural quarterback Frank Tripucka, who first captained the team and was the original Broncos #18 before Peyton Manning.

Still, Griese performed remarkably well succeeding John Elway in a competitive era of football, collecting a Super Bowl ring as Elway's backup in 1998.

Evidently, the Michigan product drafted as Elway's successor took ample notes on the Hall of Famer, because while he failed to deliver a third straight Super Bowl ring in 2000, he led the NFL in passer rating, threw 19 touchdowns to just four interceptions and threw for 2,688 yards.

Griese threw for 12,000 yards and 71 touchdowns during his time in Denver, and averaged 221.6 yards per game, which is still sixth best in franchise history.

3. Jake Plummer (2003-2006)

Immediately succeeding Griese was Plummer, who was acquired in free agency from the Arizona Cardinals in 2003.

In Mike Shanahan's offense, Plummer thrived, posting a 40-18 record, making the playoffs three times in four years, and handing Tom Brady his first playoff loss (a 27-13 defeat in the 2005 AFC Divisional Playoff).

That 2005 season was undoubtedly his career peak; he had only posted one season above .500 prior to coming to Denver, but his 13-3 record and 18:7 touchdown/interception ratio would put all of that to bed.

Plummer walked away from the NFL immediately after his time with the Broncos, and it's easy to see why he preferred to end his career on a high.

2. Peyton Manning (2012-2015)