Sometimes, the old record holder is more remembered when his record is broken than if it sits idly unnoticed in the record book. The same may very well be true of Denver #18.

If you had told me that there were three players who had their numbers retired by the Denver Broncos, I’m not sure how far I would have gotten down the list before I would have gotten all of them, but it would have been quite aways. Elway, sure, that #7 is easy. Floyd Little would have been near the top. I would have probably guessed Randy Gradishar or Karl Mecklenburg, maybe Tom Jackson, Shannon Sharpe, or Terrell Davis. Perhaps Steve Atwater. If pressed for an early AFL guy, I might have guessed Lionel Taylor. I’m not sure I would have gotten to Frank Tripucka.

Tripucka was the team’s first ever quarterback in 1960. He had played sparingly in the NFL, then went on to play several years in Canada for the Saskatchewan Roughriders. By 1960, he was already 33 years old and thought he was done. He went to Denver to coach with his former head coach Frankie Filchock, who took the Denver job in the fledgling AFL.

Then he became the quarterback after injuries, and went on to start for three seasons in Denver. He made one pro bowl in the AFL, which meant he was judged to be behind Len Dawson but ahead of everyone else in 1962 in an eight team league. In 1961, he completed 48.5% of his passes for 4.9 yards per attempt–the kind of thing that would get you replaced in 2012. He threw a lot of passes in those first three years in Denver for a hapless Broncos team, and finished with 51 touchdowns to 85 interceptions.

In modern terms, he would be like Jon Kitna, if Kitna had happened to be the first starter and had his number retired as a result.

Still, I love to study the old NFL for the stories of guys like Frank Tripucka. Everyone will remember Peyton Manning or Jerry Rice or Jim Brown. It’s the stories like Tripucka that give the game its depth. The guys who were told no, or had moved on, but got a second chance.

For most sports fans between 30 and 45, Frank Tripucka is probably most notable for being the father of former Notre Dame basketball star and NBA player Kelly Tripucka. Few probably remember his days in Denver. Frank is now 84 years old, lives in New Jersey with his wife of 63 years, and suffers from memory lapses associated with Alzheimer’s. According to this story from the Washington Post last week, he’s also fine with having his number 18 Broncos jersey unretired for Peyton Manning.

“That was a pretty nice honor,” said Tripucka, who was added to the team’s Ring of Fame in 1986. “But if Peyton wants the number, they should give it to him. They definitely should.”

In case you were wondering whether the family approves, his wife is also thoroughly behind it.

“He really would be very proud to have Manning wear his number,” Randy Tripucka said. “He’d have no problem at all. We’d be very proud for Manning to use it.”

Sometimes, the greatest remembrance happens when the record falls, or when the number comes back to life. Denver’s #18, long dormant, could be back if Manning and the Broncos’ organization accepts Tripucka’s offer.

[US Presswire]