Former Denver Broncos quarterback and New Mexico State alum Charley Johnson has died at the age of 85, New Mexico State announced Wednesday.
“We’re saddened to learn of the passing of Broncos (Ring of Fake) QB Charley Johnson, who led the franchise to its first winning season in 1973,” the Broncos said on X.
Coming out of high school, the Big Spring, Texas native had a scholarship to play football at Schreiner Institute before the school dropped football. He transferred to New Mexico State on a basketball scholarship, and walked-on to the school’s football team.
During his first season as a starter for the Aggies, Johnson led the nation with 18 touchdown passes while also leading New Mexico State to a Sun Bowl victory. He led the Aggies to another Sun Bowl win the following season, becoming the only player to win Sun Bowl MVP awards in consecutive seasons. He also was the first player in Aggies’ history to have their jersey number retired by the program.
Following his collegiate career, Johnson was drafted by both the NFL‘s St. Louis Cardinals and AFL’s San Diego Chargers. Johnson ultimately elected to play for the Cardinals. He became the Cardinals’ starter during his second NFL season. Johnson went on to make the Pro Bowl in his third NFL season after throwing for a career-high 3,280 yards and 28 touchdowns. The following year, Johnson led the NFL in passing yards with 3,045.
As a Cardinal, Johnson was also known as one of the more clutch quarterbacks in the NFL. He led the NFL in fourth quarter comebacks from 1966-68, even though we was primarily the team’s backup quarterback in 1967 and 1968.
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The Cardinals traded Johnson to the Houston Oilers following the 1969 season. He spent two seasons with the Oilers before joining the Broncos in 1972. In 1973, Johnson led the Broncos to their first winning season in franchise history, going 7-5-2. He was named the team’s most valuable offensive player that season.
Johnson retired in 1975, finishing his career completing 51.2 percent of his passes for 24,410 yards, 170 touchdowns, and 181 interceptions. He compiled 7,238 passing yards and 52 touchdown passes as a member of the Broncos. He was named to the Broncos Ring of Fame following his career in 1986, and is also a member of the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame, and the New Mexico State University Athletics Hall of Fame.
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