Yet another triumphant return of KNOW YOUR 1980s DENVER BRONCOS.

This week, #73, Simon Fletcher.

Simon joined the Broncos in 1985 after being drafted in the second round.  He played for the Broncos for the duration of his 11-year NFL career.  Simon was an unusually-built linebacker, even for his time, being relatively tall, lanky, and speedy.  But his unusual traits gave him his edge: he remains the team’s all-time leader in sacks by a very large margin, with 97.5.  (Previous KNOW YOUR 1980s DENVER BRONCOS featured player Karl Mecklenburg is a distant second at 79.  Further, 97.5 is good enough for 25th all-time in the league).   He additionally shares the NFL record for consecutive games with a sack (10).  Outrageously, he was never named to a Pro Bowl despite being among the league’s most disruptive defensive players on a strong team for years.  However, he was named a member of the Broncos’ 50th Anniversary Team and was named the Broncos’ NFL Man of the Year in 1995 for his work with at-risk young people in the club’s “Wise Up” program.  This coincides with Simon’s general reputation as an underrated, soft-spoken, highly professional player who is fondly remembered by fans.

He played in Super Bowl XXI, in which the Broncos were pummeled by the New York Giants 39-20, Super Bowl XXII, in which the Broncos were pummeled by the Washington Native Americans 42-10, and Super Bowl XXIV, in which the Broncos were pummeled by the San Francisco 49ers 55-10.

So what makes Simon Fletcher so awesome?  Aside from his important place in Broncos’ history, Simon is the no-argument choice for defensive player to control when playing as the Broncos in Tecmo Super Bowl.  And as my favorite team, I was doing this quite often.  His speed was effectively captured in the game, so he was the fastest defensive player Denver had, so a standard choice.

I couldn’t find any recent information on Simon Fletcher, but did read a 1995 Denver Post article written about his impending retirement.  At the time he was mostly interested in his three daughters and ownership of a few restaurants in Colorado and seemed well-prepared for life after football.