The 1967 Denver Broncos season was the eighth season for the team in the American Football League (AFL). Led by first-year head coach and general manager Lou Saban, the Broncos posted a record of three wins and eleven losses, last in the AFL's Western division. Running back Floyd Little, a first round draft choice (sixth overall), was team captain in his rookie season.Sports Illustrated, July 26, 2010, The Unexpected Hero by Gary Smith, p.60, Published by Time Inc. After an opening win at home, the Broncos lost nine straight games, then split the last four.
Inter-league play between the AFL and NFL in the exhibition season began this year. In the first matchup on August 5, the Broncos defeated the Detroit Lions 13–7 and became the first AFL team to beat an NFL team.NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, NY, , p.283
Before the season, the Broncos changed from orange helmets to blue helmets.
This was the first season that the Broncos wore their now famous "Orange Crush" uniforms, but the famous D logo on the helmets was not introduced until the next season. The team made slight modifications to the uniforms until they were retired 30 years later, after the 1996 season. The Orange Crush uniforms returned in 2024, albeit in a slightly different design, retaining the helmet design from the 1997 uniforms (but retiring the '97 uniforms all together), along with the 1977 uniforms as a throwback.
Hired in December 1966, Saban left the University of Maryland after just one season; he had previously been an AFL head coach at Boston and Buffalo, where he won consecutive AFL titles.
Personnel Staff
Roster
Regular season
Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 3 Boston Patriots W 26–21 1–0 Bears Stadium 35,488 Recap 2 September 10 at Oakland Raiders L 0–51 1–1 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 25,423 Recap 3 September 17 at Miami Dolphins L 21–35 1–2 Orange Bowl 29,381 Recap 4 September 24 New York Jets L 24–38 1–3 Bears Stadium 35,365 Recap 5 October 1 at Houston Oilers L 6–10 1–4 Rice Stadium 21,798 Recap 6 October 8 Buffalo Bills L 16–17 1–5 Bears Stadium 35,188 Recap 7 Bye 8 October 22 San Diego Chargers L 21–38 1–6 Bears Stadium 34,464 Recap 9 October 29 at Kansas City Chiefs L 9–52 1–7 Municipal Stadium 44,002 Recap 10 November 5 Oakland Raiders L 17–21 1–8 Bears Stadium 29,043 Recap 11 November 12 Houston Oilers L 18–20 1–9 Bears Stadium 30,392 Recap 12 November 19 at Buffalo Bills W 21–20 2–9 War Memorial Stadium 30,891 Recap 13 November 23 at San Diego Chargers L 20–24 2–10 San Diego Stadium 34,586 Recap 14 December 3 at New York Jets W 33–24 3–10 Shea Stadium 61,615 Recap 15 Bye 16 December 17 Kansas City Chiefs L 24–38 3–11 Bears Stadium 31,660 Recap 17 Bye Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Thursday (November 23: Thanksgiving) With the expansion Miami Dolphins joining the AFL in 1966, there were an odd-number (9)of teams for two seasons, resulting in multiple bye weeks for each team.
Game summaries Week 14
Standings
References
External links Denver Broncos – 1967 media guide 1967 Denver Broncos at Pro-Football-Reference.com 1967 Denver Broncos at jt-sw.com