Remembering John Beake, the Broncos GM Behind Two Super Bowl Titles

Broncos Country lost one of the architects of its greatest era on Saturday.

John Beake, the former Broncos general manager who helped guide Denver to five Super Bowl appearances and back-to-back world championships, has died. The team announced his passing on Saturday afternoon. He was 87.

"The Broncos are saddened by the passing of longtime executive John Beake, who made an enduring impact on our organization during more than two decades with the team," the Broncos said in a statement. "John helped guide the Broncos to five Super Bowl appearances, including back-to-back World Championships, and was a respected leader throughout one of the most successful eras in franchise history."

Twenty-two years in Denver

Beake joined the Broncos in 1979 and worked his way up through the personnel side, serving as director of pro personnel and director of player personnel before he became general manager. He was with the organization from 1979 to 2000. According to the team, he helped Denver trade for John Elway in 1983, a deal that brought the franchise the quarterback who would become its winningest ever.

As general manager for 14 years, Beake ran the front office through the three Super Bowl trips of the 1980s and the Super Bowl XXXII and XXXIII titles that finally brought the Lombardi Trophy to Denver. Per the Broncos, the teams he helped build won seven division titles and made 12 playoff appearances.

A champion on both sides

Before he came to Denver, Beake coached. He was an offensive assistant to Hall of Famer Hank Stram with the Kansas City Chiefs from 1968 to 1974, winning a ring in Super Bowl IV, and later worked under Stram again in New Orleans. When the Broncos won Super Bowl XXXII, the NFL recognized him as the first upper-level administrator to win Super Bowl titles as both an administrator and a coach.

After his Broncos run, Beake moved to the NFL league office, where he was vice president of player development and managing director of NFL Europe's football operations, and later vice president of football development and operations. He stayed close to the team for years afterward as a longtime member of the Broncos Ring of Fame committee, helping choose the players who earn the franchise's highest honor.

Our Take: Most fans remember the players and coaches from those Super Bowl teams. Beake was one of the people who put those rosters together and kept them together, and he did it for a long time. Denver doesn't get the Elway era and those two titles without the work done in that front office.

Our thoughts are with his wife, Marcia, his sons, Chip and Chris, and the entire Beake family. Thank you, John.

Sources: Denver Broncos, Broncos on X, Broncos statement on X, Yahoo Sports on X, TCNJ Athletics