The Denver Broncos experienced a loss in the family last week when former wide receiver Lionel Taylor passed away. He was 89 years old.
Taylor was the first great wide receiver in Broncos history. Playing for the team in the old AFL from 1960-66, he still ranks fourth in team history in receptions (543), receiving yards (6,872) and fifth in touchdown receptions (44). Taylor was part of the first group of players ever put in the Broncos’ Ring of Fame in 1984 and is one of just five receivers in team history to earn that honor.
Taylor went undrafted but began his playing career with the Chicago Bears as a linebacker in 1959. He played just eight games in the Windy City before going to the Broncos in 1960. There, he would switch positions and become one of the best wide receivers of his era.
RIP Lionel Taylor ???️#Broncos Legend
The AFL’s All-Time Leading Receiver
• The first player in pro football history with 100 receptions in a season• Four-Time AFL All-Star• Five-Time All-AFL selection• Led the AFL in receptions in five of the league’s first six… pic.twitter.com/RCPnYZ4vW4
— Kevin Gallagher (@KevG163) August 13, 2025
In 1961, he became the first receiver in professional football history to post 100 catches in a season. That was a rare feat. Charley Hennigan of the Houston Oilers accomplished it in 1964, but the league would not see another 100-catch season until Art Monk did it with Washington in 1984, 20 years later.
Following his playing career, Taylor went into coaching, starting with the Pittsburgh Steelers as their wide receivers coach, helping them win Super Bowls IX and X. He also held positions with the Los Angeles Rams, Oregon State and Texas Southern in college, and the Cleveland Browns.
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He was head coach at Texas Southern from 1984-88 but finished with a record of 13-41-1. He finished his coaching career in 1998 as the head coach of the England Monarchs of the World Football League.
Born in Kansas City, Missouri, in August 1935, Taylor was well-traveled. He grew up in West Virginia before going to college at New Mexico Highlands. He resided in New Mexico and passed away in Rio Rancho on August 6.
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