John Elway's Career in Football Continued With the Broncos After He Stopped Playing

Former Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway had a long career in the NFL that was spent solely with the Broncos. It might have been a controversial decision at the start of John's career to be so, well, picky, in not wanting to play with the Indianapolis Colts, but in the end, it all worked out in his favor. He even went on to become a general manager for the Broncos, but does he still work for the team?

John never coached professionally, but after he retired as a player in 1999, he never stayed far from the game in other roles. According to the NFL, though, most general manager contracts last three to five years, so John's career in that field as an executive was never meant to be one to last as long as his 16-season career as a player did.

After John played for the Broncos, he returned to the team as the general manager and executive vice president of football operations in the front office for the team. However, in 2023, his time as an executive for the Broncos came to an end. At the time, the NFL reported that John's contract was up and he was moving on.

He worked with the Broncos under a consultant's contract from 2011 until 2020. During his time as an executive with the team he once played for, the Broncos got to the Super Bowl twice, won a Super Bowl, and made it to five playoffs. After he left his position in 2023, it marked the first time in quite a while that John no longer had professional ties to the team.

Still, John told 9NEWS at the time of his exit, he was willing to stick around if he was needed for anything else on an executive level with the Broncos.

"I've enjoyed the relationship with the Broncos for a long, long time,'' Elway said. "I told Greg [Penner, CEO] I'd be happy to be a resource for him and help in any way that I can. I just wanted the flexibility. They're in great hands. I still plan on being around to watch and be a resource for Greg or George [Paton, general manager] if I can.''

The circumstances that led to John's retirement didn't involve an injury or diagnosis that left him unable to play. However, well after he retired, he shared publicly that he was diagnosed with Dupuytren's contracture, a condition with the hand tissue that can, over time, cause one or more fingers to bend inward, rendering the hand unable to fully straighten, according to Mayo Clinic.

In 2024, John told People that he was diagnosed in his fifties. Once it became difficult to hold a football, even for fun, John sought medical help. In place of surgery, John began to undergo injection treatments to help manage Dupuytren's contracture. He said at the time that he hoped to help other people who had a similar diagnosis.

"The earlier you get on it, the better chances of success you have," he told the outlet. "So even though I waited longer than I probably should have, I'm encouraging people that if they're experiencing the constriction in their hands to go see a hand specialist and stay on top of it."