Legendary Broncos HC Mike Shanahan Snubbed By HoF Voters Again
Mike Shanahan, the winningest head coach in Denver Broncos history, was yet again snubbed for the honor of being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It was yet another example of deserving Broncos being excluded from the prestigious club.
Frankly, it's a slap in the face when you look at the voters ushering in Bill Cowher in 2020, a Pittsburgh Steelers coach whose resume is less convincing than Shanahan's by a lot.
The Hall of Fame selectors decided to go with Buddy Parker for the 2024 coach/contributor category over Shanahan. Parker was a solid coach, and it's good to see that the voters are reconsidering those from the pre-modern era, but it doesn’t quell the sting of Shanahan still being made to wait for that gold jacket.
The recently combined category of coach/contributor fits Shanahan to a 'T.' His coaching record speaks for itself.
Shanahan's 170 wins are only bested by other coaches (except one) who coached more seasons, and he has two Super Bowl championships,w which were back-to-back. Shanahan has a winning percentage of .552 in the regular season and .571 in the postseason.
That includes his time in Washington post-Denver, which has a history of good coaches being saddled with poor ownership. Looking at his Broncos years, Shanahan's winning percentage is .616 and .615, respectively. He was inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame in 2021.
Shanahan has been to five Super Bowls as either a head coach or coordinator, winning three. That's quite a coaching resume. When compared side by side with Cowher, Shanahan is the better coach.
Furthermore, Shanahan's offensive system revolutionized the NFL. The concepts of his version of the West Coast Offense changed how teams approached schemes, and the zone blocking scheme is a mainstay in the league to this day.
The ZBS that Shanahan implemented produced 1,000-yard rushers like they were coming from an assembly line and helped Terrell Davis become the fourth member of the 2,000-yard club in 1998. Davis' 2,000-yard campaign was likely the best season of any in that club.
Shanahan's coaching lineage is alive and well in the game today. Several head coaches learned from him and have had considerable success, including longtime Shanahan assistant Gary Kubiak, who won a Super Bowl in Denver seven years ago. Shanahan has had a lasting impact on football in the NFL.
If a head coach has incredible success and revolutionized the game of football, he should be recognized in this new coach/contributor category. Shanahan fits both without a doubt, yet he was passed over in this round of selections. It's a shame.
Shanahan deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His absence from those hallowed halls is an injustice, and Canton will not be complete until he is inducted.
Former Broncos head coach Dan Reeves was also a semi-finalist in this category. He, too, wasn't selected.
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