DENVER (KDVR) \u2014 The careers of some athletes and coaches become so famous that a team\u2019s name can\u2019t be uttered without the thought of them.<\/p>\n
Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls<\/p>\n
Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots<\/p>\n
Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees<\/p>\n
Mike Krzyzewski \u201cCoach K\u201d and the Duke Blue Devils<\/p>\n
Joe Sakic and the Colorado Avalanche<\/p>\n
NFL history revisited as ex-Denver Broncos kicker Matt Prater leads Bills to victory <\/a><\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n For a generation of Denver Broncos fans, the name Mike Shanahan can\u2019t be mentioned without memories flooding back from the team\u2019s first era of dominance.<\/p>\n John Elway was the face of the team, but Shanahan was the brain of the operation.<\/p>\n He took the reins of the Broncos in 1995, going 8-8 in his debut season. What would happen in the next couple of years would cement his status as a legend of Denver football.<\/p>\n In his sophomore season, he was in first place in the AFC West before losing to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the AFC Divisional Game. For the next two years after that loss \u2014 the NFL became his, with the dynamo Broncos led by Elway.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n The team won back-to-back Super Bowls in 1997 and 1998.<\/p>\n Shanahan coached the Broncos for over a decade, leaving in 2008. In 13 years, he had only posted two losing seasons, with an overall record of 138-86, a .616% win rate.<\/p>\n For his entire coaching career, which spanned 20 seasons, he won 178 games with the Los Angeles Raiders, now known as the Las Vegas Raiders, Denver Broncos and Washington Redskins, now known as the Washington Commanders.<\/p>\n He was the coach with the 19th most regular-season wins in NFL history, until Sunday, when the current Broncos coach Sean Payton overtook him with his 171st victory against the Tennessee Titans.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n The two aren\u2019t only close on the all-time wins list \u2014 they have a history that nearly aligns with one another. They both played quarterback at Eastern Illinois University, they both have a Super Bowl ring and they both have coached the Broncos.<\/p>\n