John Madden spoke of Broncos cornerback Louis Wright the way rangers describe rattlesnakes on the Devil’s Backbone trail. Tread lightly. Tread carefully. Give space, give respect, or you risk getting bit. Better yet, go the other way.
“One time, we’re in Oakland, playing the Raiders, and (Wright) intercepted a ball and we ran down the Oakland sideline,” Broncos legend Randy Gradishar told me with a chuckle.
“And then, along with that, while celebrating Louis’ touchdown, (ex-Broncos linebacker) Tom Jackson was running over to the Raiders bench. Right in front of Madden, he said, ‘How do you like that, Fat Man?’ So that was a pretty good deal.”
Gradishar will be the first member of that iconic ’77 Orange Crush defense inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, at the age of 72.
On this we agreed Tuesday: He shouldn’t be the last.
“You look at the Steel Curtain, you look at the Purple People Eaters and you look at the other defenses (of that era), and they’re getting recognition,” Gradishar sighed. “And it’s been 35 years or longer since the Orange Crush name has come up — that’s crazy in itself.
“We started a heritage, the lineage for the Broncos with our defense, and then (were followed by) the John Elway Era and all that. But it’s been quite a long time. And (good) to finally get a little bit of attention.”
Don’t stop now, Canton. Gradishar was the spine and soul of coordinator Joe Collier’s hellacious 3-4 defense, a wild bunch that dragged the Broncos, kicking and screaming, out of NFL obscurity in 1977 and into the franchise’s first Super Bowl. The former Ohio State star was one of just 10 linebackers — a club that includes Ted Hendricks, Brian Urlacher and Ray Lewis — to collect at least seven Pro Bowl invites, 10 career fumble recoveries and 20 career interceptions.
“The whole defense is not going in the Hall,” Gradishar continued. “But now, again, hopefully, the conversations (about them) will begin with some of the other names that come up each year.”
The next talking point? That’s obvious. Now that Gradishar’s in, Wright ought to be the next member of the Orange Crush fitted for a gold jacket.
“He was a shutdown cornerback,” Gradishar said. “And the reality of it is, you never hear his name being considered for that.”
You should. Wright was the Deion Sanders, Champ Bailey and Pat Surtain II of his day, the defender who erased half the field, the blanket who took an offense’s WR1 out of the equation.
“I wouldn’t let Louis Wright beat me,” Madden said once. “I didn’t mess with him.”
Drafted in 1975, Wright’s arrival coincided with the Broncos’ rise as a franchise, a bridge between the Orange Crush’s heyday and the Elway Era. The Broncos posted a winning record nine times in his 12 NFL seasons. The team had managed just two winning ledgers in the previous 15 seasons combined. He was named to the NFL’s All-1970s team. He was tapped for five Pro Bowls and made the All-Pro team twice.
And Lord, was he fast. Not just “football” fast. Fast fast. As a collegian at San Jose State, Wright, who ran track with the Spartans, was once clocked at 9.6 seconds in the 100-meter dash.
If you don’t believe Gradishar, believe the tape. Grainy footage of Wright is all over YouTube. One of the more interesting videos is from a 1978 showdown between the Bears and Broncos at old Mile High.
On one play, the great Walter Payton takes off up the right hashmark on a 76-yard gain. Wright, a fuzzy No. 20 in the clip, comes crashing into the frame after Payton crosses midfield, managing to somehow outrun both his Chicago blocker and Sweetness in the process. Once Payton sees Wright waiting for him, the NFL icon has to stop completely and cut back inside.
Context: Payton allegedly ran a 4.2 in the 40 at Jackson State.
That fast.
“Louis is definitely being overlooked, for sure,” Gradishar said. “He’s not getting the recognition he deserves.”
One of the oldest, and most tired, arguments against Wright in Canton was 26 career interceptions, and never more than six in a season. As we’ve learned from watching the Broncos’ current shutdown corner, there was a dang good reason for that, too.
“People didn’t go his way very often,” Gradishar said. “And that in and of itself should lead to media and other people saying, ‘This guy must be pretty good.'”
Just ask the Fat Man, who learned to tread carefully. The hard way.
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