Sports Watch
WHO would have thought during the Pro Bowl at Aloha Stadium last February that it'd be the final time we'd see John Elway in a football uniform. Nobody knew. Not even Elway. Pro Bowl
turned out to be
Elway’s final fling
He said at the time that he'd think about it and come up with a decision in a couple of months.Well, D-Day is here. On Sunday, Elway will officially announce his retirement after 16 years in the National Football League.
With his announcement, he will break the hearts of Denver Broncos fans everywhere. With Hawaii's Jason Elam and Maa Tanuvasa also playing for Denver, the Broncos have become Hawaii's Team to many fans here.
No more game-winning drives for the NFL's all-time comeback king.
No more miracles for "Magnificent 7," the NFL's winningest quarterback, who threw for 51,475 yards, ranking him second all-time only to Miami's Dan Marino.
With back-to-back victories in the Super Bowl, Elway is leaving on a winning note. Like Michael Jordan, he is going out with championship rings on his fingers.
No hanging around as skills erode like so many great athletes who just don't know when to quit.
Obviously, his physical well-being was a major concern.
Having missed six games last season because of back, rib and hamstring injuries, Elway knew that his 38-year-old bod had had enough.
Going for an unprecedented Super Bowl three-peat proved tempting. But it wouldn't have been worth the pain he would have had to endure, trying to achieve that most difficult of goals.
But there were clues along the way that Elway was thinking of hanging it up.
The first came after the AFC championship game, when he circled the field at Mile High Stadium after the Broncos defeated the New York Jets. You had a feeling that it was his "aloha" salute to the Denver faithful.
The second hint occurred during the Pro Bowl.
Prior to the kickoff, Elway saw Eric Dickerson being introduced as one of the 1999 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees.
Seeing Dickerson, who entered the NFL the same year (1983) as he did made him suddenly feel old, Elway said.
SO, in retrospect, Hawaii fans got the rare opportunity to see both Elway and Reggie White -- two guaranteed future Hall of Famers -- playing in their final football game that Sunday afternoon on Feb. 7.
What a fortuitous turn of events.
For the record, that day Elway completed 4 of 5 passes for 55 yards and a touchdown, playing only the first series in the American Conference's 23-10 victory over the National Conference.
I'm sure Buffalo's Sam Gash, who caught the final TD pass thrown by Elway, kept the football, maybe even having Elway sign it.
Broncos' owner Pat Bowlen said that Elway's No. 7 jersey will be retired. "Nobody's going to wear No. 7 as long as I'm alive," he said.
Which recalls a funny anecdote about Elam when he was drafted by the Broncos in 1993.
Elam wore No. 7 when he kicked for the Rainbows. "I guess there's no way I'm going to get that number," he said at the time.
No, Jason. Especially not now.
"Miss him? Oh my goodness, of course," Elam said from his off-season home in Atlanta.
"I'm glad I had a chance to play with him for six years. I feel fortunate I had a chance to play with one of the best. It's something I can tell my kids."