In the thirteenth of Thin Air’s series on considerations for the Broncos Ring of Fame is Ryan Clady (2008-2015).
Loading ...In the Al Wilson consideration thread, it was mentioned that Ryan Clady had some similarities. Since Wilson was received positively, on a slow Memorial Day I thought I’d kick out a quick consideration for Clady.
Ryan Clady came to the Broncos at a precarious time in their history. They had just lost Matt Lepsis to retirement when he was at his lowest, and decided to take a chance on a rookie in the first round as their immediate left tackle of the future. (Sound familiar?)
Clady met those very high expectations that were placed upon him. Despite playing for a revolving door of head coaches (Mike Shanahan, Josh McDaniels, John Fox, Gary Kubiak) and quarterbacks (Jay Cutler, Kyle Orton, Tim Tebow, Peyton Manning), Clady quickly racked up Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors.
Unfortunately, injuries sapped another great player from so much potential. He only played 2 games in 2013, and missed all of 2015. Sadly for Clady, these were the two years the Broncos made the Super Bowl. Still, you get a ring even if you’re on IR, and it’s good that Clady got a well-deserved ring before his departure. Von Miller acknowledged just as much.