Former Broncos defenseman Brison Manor, who played in Denver’s ‘Orange Crush’ defense and helped the franchise reach its first Super Bowl, dies at age 70
- He played eight seasons and recorded 22 of a career 23 with the Broncos
- Manor was inducted into the University of Arkansas Hall of Honor & Hall of Fame
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Former Denver Broncos defenseman Brison Manor has passed away at the age of 70, according to an announcement from the team on Wednesday.
Manor helped the Denver to their first Super Bowl appearance in 1977 before suffering a loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
He appeared in 13 games that season while recording four sacks in the regular season and recovered a fumble in the AFC Championship victory over the Raiders.
Manor played eight seasons with the Broncos in the NFL from 1976-84 before being traded to the Buccaneers during his final season in the league.
“We are considered one of the best defenses ever in the NFL,” Manor said in 2018 of Denver’s “Orange Crush defense.”
Former Denver Broncos defenseman Brison Manor has died at the age of 70
He played eight seasons in Denver, recording 22 of a career 23 with the Broncos
“When your defense has a nickname, you know you were good. … Teams couldn’t compete with us at all. We played recklessly. We didn’t really care about our bodies. We flew all over the field. It was a good time, because people were afraid of us.’
Manor’s most productive season of his career came in 1979, when he started all 16 of the Broncos’ games, recording 6.5 sacks and a fumble.
Throughout his career, Manor appeared in 113 games, starting 36, and sacked a total of 23. 22 of those 23 career sacks came during his time in Denver.
Before embarking on his NFL journey, Manor played for then-Arkansas Razorbacks defensive line coach and future Hall of Famer Jimmy Johnson.
Manor posted a total of 173 tackles in his junior and senior seasons before being drafted by the New York Jets in the 15th round of the NFL Draft.
He was released by New York before signing with the Broncos the following season.
Manor was eventually inducted into the University of Arkansas Hall of Honor in 2011 and the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2018 following his stellar career.