Remembering “the Boz”
“Remembering “the Boz” brings back colorful memories of the days when the Broncos were always contenders but never brought home the trophy.”
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A decade before the Broncos won a Super Bowl, back when Seattle was still in the AFC West, a former Oklahoma Sooner entered the NFL through the supplemental draft. His name was Brian Bosworth and they called him “the Boz”.
Before he ever played a snap at linebacker in the NFL, the Box sued the NFL. He wanted to wear number 44 but the league didn’t allow linebackers to wear numbers in the forties. He lost that battle and settled for number 55.
Bosworth also sent letters to five NFL teams warning them not to draft him and putting them on notice that if they did he would never suit up.
The guy had that kind of gravitas. As a College player he had been named to Sports Illustrated’s “All Century Team”. His NFL career held enormous promise – but it turned out to be short lived.
Bosworth was a player that Broncos fans loved to hate and he fed on it. I remember the Seahawks coming to Denver in 1987 and Broncos fans snapping up tee-shirts that said “Ban the Boz”. I also remember learning that Bozworth himself was printing them. Broncos Country purchased over 10,000 of those tees.
John Elway was Bozworth’s greatest rival. He trash talked Elway at every turn but the quarterback always seemed to get the better of him.
Remembering “the Boz” brings back colorful memories of the days when the Broncos were always contenders but never brought home the trophy.
Bozworth was as colorful as he was powerful but he was also severely flawed. Most folks believe that he did mounds of steroids. Whatever the case, Bosworth’s body could not handle the strain of the NFL. His shoulders gave out and he only played two seasons for the Seahawks.
