| 1982 Denver Broncos season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Edgar Kaiser |
| General manager | Grady Alderman |
| Head coach | Dan Reeves |
| Home field | Mile High Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 2–7 |
| Division place | 12th AFC |
| Playoff finish | Did not qualify |
The 1982 Denver Broncos season was the team's 23rd year in professional football and its 13th with the National Football League (NFL). The Broncos played only nine games this season, owing to the strike imposed by the National Football League Players Association (NFLPA). The Broncos were looking to improve on their 10-6 record from 1981. But due to many injuries plus the strike, the Broncos only won 2 games, while losing 7, their worst record since 1971 as well as their first losing season since 1975. This was also their first season with below 3 wins since 1964. Both of the Broncos wins came against interconference teams; the Broncos only won 1 home game the entire year, against the reigning Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers, and their only other win was against the Los Angeles Rams. The Broncos went winless against AFC foes in 1982. All of their AFC foes were their own division rivals.
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Main article: 1982 NFL Draft |
| 1982 Denver Broncos draft | |||||
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 | Gerald Willhite | RB | San Jose State | |
| 2 | 50 | Orlando McDaniel | WR | LSU | |
| 4 | 106 | Dan Plater | WR | BYU | |
| 5 | 131 | Sammy Winder * | RB | Southern Mississippi | |
| 7 | 189 | Alvin Ruben | DE | Houston | |
| 9 | 243 | Keith Uecker | OT | Auburn | |
| 10 | 274 | Ken Woodard | LB | Tuskegee | |
| 11 | 300 | Stuart Yatsko | G | Oregon | |
| 12 | 327 | Brian Clark | G | Clemson | |
| Made roster † Pro Football Hall of Fame * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career | |||||
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Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
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Defensive coaches
Special teams coaches
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Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
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Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
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Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
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Reserve lists
Practice squad
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| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 12 | San Diego Chargers | L 3–23 | 0–1 | Mile High Stadium | 73,564 | |
| 2 | September 19 | San Francisco 49ers | W 24–21 | 1–1 | Mile High Stadium | 73,899 | |
| Players' strike | |||||||
| 10 | November 21 | Seattle Seahawks | L 10–17 | 1–2 | Mile High Stadium | 73,996 | |
| 11 | November 28 | at San Diego Chargers | L 20–30 | 1–3 | Jack Murphy Stadium | 47,629 | |
| 12 | December 5 | Atlanta Falcons | L 27–34 | 1–4 | Mile High Stadium | 73,984 | |
| 13 | December 12 | at Los Angeles Rams | W 27–24 | 2–4 | Anaheim Stadium | 48,112 | |
| 14 | December 19 | Kansas City Chiefs | L 16–37 | 2–5 | Mile High Stadium | 74,192 | |
| 15 | December 26 | at Los Angeles Raiders | L 10–27 | 2–6 | Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum | 44,160 | |
| 16 | January 2, 1983 | at Seattle Seahawks | L 11–13 | 2–7 | Kingdome | 43,145 | |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. | |||||||
| AFC West | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK | |
| Los Angeles Raiders(1) | 8 | 1 | 0 | .889 | 5–0 | 5–1 | 260 | 200 | W5 |
| San Diego Chargers(5) | 6 | 3 | 0 | .667 | 2–3 | 5–3 | 288 | 221 | L1 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 4 | 5 | 0 | .444 | 2–1 | 3–5 | 127 | 147 | W1 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 3 | 6 | 0 | .333 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 176 | 184 | W1 |
| Denver Broncos | 2 | 7 | 0 | .222 | 0–6 | 0–6 | 148 | 226 | L3 |
| American Football Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |||
| Los Angeles Raiders(1) | 8 | 1 | 0 | .889 | 260 | 200 | W5 | ||
| Miami Dolphins(2) | 7 | 2 | 0 | .778 | 198 | 131 | W3 | ||
| Cincinnati Bengals(3) | 7 | 2 | 0 | .778 | 232 | 177 | W2 | ||
| Pittsburgh Steelers(4) | 6 | 3 | 0 | .667 | 204 | 146 | W2 | ||
| San Diego Chargers(5) | 6 | 3 | 0 | .667 | 288 | 221 | L1 | ||
| New York Jets(6) | 6 | 3 | 0 | .667 | 245 | 166 | L1 | ||
| New England Patriots(7) | 5 | 4 | 0 | .556 | 143 | 157 | W1 | ||
| Cleveland Browns(8) | 4 | 5 | 0 | .444 | 140 | 182 | L1 | ||
| Buffalo Bills | 4 | 5 | 0 | .444 | 150 | 154 | L3 | ||
| Seattle Seahawks | 4 | 5 | 0 | .444 | 127 | 147 | W1 | ||
| Kansas City Chiefs | 3 | 6 | 0 | .333 | 176 | 184 | W1 | ||
| Denver Broncos | 2 | 7 | 0 | .222 | 148 | 226 | L3 | ||
| Houston Oilers | 1 | 8 | 0 | .111 | 136 | 245 | L7 | ||
| Baltimore Colts | 0 | 8 | 1 | .056 | 113 | 236 | L2 | ||