2002 Denver Broncos season

2002 Denver Broncos season
Head coach	Mike Shanahan
Home field	Invesco Field at Mile High
Results
Record	9–7
Division place	2nd AFC West
Playoff finish	did not qualify

The 2002 Denver Broncos season was the team's 43rd year in professional football and its 33rd with the National Football League.

With the sudden retirement of Terrell Davis in the preseason, Denver had to rely on rookie Clinton Portis, who provided an instant spark to the Broncos running game. Despite his presence, however, the Broncos finished with a 9-7 record, and narrowly missing the postseason.

Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 2002 NFL Draft

2002 Denver Broncos draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	19	Ashley Lelie	Wide receiver	Hawaii
2	51	Clinton Portis *	Running back	Miami
3	96	Dorsett Davis	Defensive tackle	Mississippi State
4	131	Sam Brandon	Safety	UNLV
5	144	Herb Haygood	Wide receiver	Michigan State
6	191	Jeb Putzier	Tight End	Boise State
7	228	Chris Young	Safety	Georgia Tech
7	231	Monsanto Pope	Defensive tackle	Virginia
Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Undrafted free agents

2002 Undrafted Free Agents of note

Player	Position	College
Charlie Adams	Wide Receiver	Hofstra
Lenny Walls	Cornerback	Boston College

Staff

2002 Denver Broncos staff

Front office President and Chief Executive Officer – Pat Bowlen Executive Vice President of Football Operations – Mike Shanahan General Manager – Ted Sundquist Director of Football Administration – Neal Dahlen Director of Pro Personnel – Rick Smith Director of College Scouting – Jim Goodman Head coaches Head Coach – Mike Shanahan Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Line – Alex Gibbs Assistant to the Head Coach – George Dyer Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks – Gary Kubiak Running Backs – Bobby Turner Wide Receivers – Karl Dorrell Tight Ends – Brian Pariani Offensive Line – Rick Dennison Offensive Assistant – Pat McPherson

Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator – Ray Rhodes Defensive Line – Jacob Burney Linebackers – Larry Coyer Defensive Assistant – Steve Watson Pass Rush Specialist – Keith Millard Defensive Backs – Ron Milus Defensive Backs – David Gibbs Special teams coaches Special Teams – Frank Bush Assistant Special Teams/Offensive Assistant – Anthony Lynn Strength and conditioning Strength and Conditioning – Rich Tuten Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Greg Saporta Assistant Strength and Conditioning – Cedric Smith

Roster

2002 Denver Broncos final roster

	Quarterbacks 11 Steve Beuerlein 14 Brian Griese 17 Jarious Jackson Running backs 38 Mike Anderson 34 Reuben Droughns 22 Olandis Gary 86 Patrick Hape TE/FB 26 Clinton Portis Wide receivers 82 Herb Haygood 85 Ashley Lelie 87 Ed McCaffrey 83 Scottie Montgomery 80 Rod Smith Tight ends 89 Dwayne Carswell 88 Jeb Putzier 84 Shannon Sharpe		Offensive linemen 71 Blake Brockermeyer T 65 Cooper Carlisle G 50 Ben Hamilton C 79 Steve Herndon G 78 Matt Lepsis T 74 Ephraim Salaam T 62 Dan Neil G Defensive linemen 92 Bertrand Berry DE 91 Lional Dalton DT 98 Reggie Hayward DE 91 Chester McGlockton DT 75 Monsanto Pope DT 95 Kavika Pittman DE 93 Trevor Pryce DT 99 Montae Reagor DT 97 Keith Washington DE		Linebackers 55 Keith Burns 52 Ian Gold 51 John Mobley 59 Donnie Spragan OLB 56 Al Wilson MLB Defensive backs 42 Sam Brandon 31 Kelly Herndon 28 Kenoy Kennedy SS 24 Deltha O'Neal CB 33 Jimmy Spencer CB 37 Tyrone Poole CB 43 Izell Reese FS 25 Denard Walker CB 35 Lenny Walls CB Special teams  1 Jason Elam K  4 Micah Knorr P		Reserve lists 64 Lennie Friedman G (IR) 66 Tom Nalen C (IR) Practice squad 12 Charlie Adams WR 15 Frank Rice WR Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Network	Kickoff (MT)	Attendance
1	September 8, 2002	St. Louis Rams	W 23–16	FOX	2:15pm	75,710
2	September 15, 2002	at San Francisco 49ers	W 24–14	CBS	2:15pm	67,685
3	September 22, 2002	Buffalo Bills	W 28–23	CBS	2:15pm	75,359
4	September 30, 2002	at Baltimore Ravens	L 34–23	ABC	7:00pm	69,538
5	October 6, 2002	San Diego Chargers	W 26–9	CBS	2:15pm	75,065
6	October 13, 2002	Miami Dolphins	L 24–22	ESPN	6:30pm	75,941
7	October 20, 2002	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 37–34	CBS	11:00am	78,446
8	October 27, 2002	at New England Patriots	W 24–16	CBS	2:15pm	68,436
9	Bye
10	November 11, 2002	Oakland Raiders	L 34–10	ABC	7:00pm	76,643
11	November 17, 2002	at Seattle Seahawks	W 31–9	CBS	2:15pm	65,495
12	November 24, 2002	Indianapolis Colts	L 23–20	ESPN	6:30pm	75,075
13	December 1, 2002	at San Diego Chargers	L 30–27	CBS	2:15pm	66,357
14	December 8, 2002	at New York Jets	L 19–13	CBS	2:15pm	78,521
15	December 15, 2002	Kansas City Chiefs	W 31–24	CBS	2:15pm	75,947
16	December 22, 2002	at Oakland Raiders	L 28–16	CBS	2:15pm	62,592
17	December 29, 2002	Arizona Cardinals	W 37–7	FOX	2:15pm	75,164

Standings

AFC West
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(1) Oakland Raiders	11	5	0	.688	4–2	9–3	450	304	W2
Denver Broncos	9	7	0	.563	3–3	5–7	392	344	W1
San Diego Chargers	8	8	0	.500	3–3	6–6	333	367	L4
Kansas City Chiefs	8	8	0	.500	2–4	6–6	467	399	L1

References

• Broncos on Pro Football Reference
• Broncos Schedule on jt-sw.com