For a player as legendary as John Elway, he sure hasn’t been talked about much. Reason? He turned down every offer to bring his life story to the big screen. To him, opening up just wasn’t in his nature. However, a new Netflix documentary titled Elway has finally broken that silence. The secret behind this change of heart wasn’t a great pitch from the director, but a push from his own successor, Peyton Manning.

“Peyton Manning was very important in the trust factor,” revealed director Ken Rodgers in an exclusive interview with Essentiallysports. The trust factor of someone who has been where he is. As a Super Bowl-winning quarterback, as a Denver quarterback, as an icon, as someone who doesn’t need more attention because they’ve gotten it their entire life. Peyton was able to give assurances to Elway that this was worth it, that people need to hear this.”

Furthermore, Rodgers admitted that as a director, he lacked the lived experience to truly persuade Elway. “I couldn’t say to him, ‘You should allow us to tell your full story,’ because I don’t know what it’s like to be him. When Peyton Manning knows exactly how you feel, but here’s why you should do it. He knows Peyton’s not lying. He’s been through everything,” he shared. 

Coming from the same level of fame, Manning told the Duke of Denver that the project was worth it, and Elway knew he wasn’t being lied to.  But, Manning didn’t just convince Elway; his Omaha Production was one of the production houses involved in the making of Elway alongside Skydance Sports, NFL Films, and Netflix. 

Manning and Elway’s connection runs deep. In 2012, it was Elway, the then Executive Vice President of Football Operations in Denver, who was heavily instrumental in bringing Manning to the Broncos. In fact, not many within the Broncos organization knew Elway was chasing Manning. There, Manning spent four glorious years, including winning Super Bowl 50 in 2016. 

But more than that, Manning was proven as the true heir to Elway’s legacy. The Broncos already had Tim Tebow as a starter, but he couldn’t win the heart of Denver as Elway did. That’s why Manning coming to the Mile High City was a big deal. While Elway’s career number sits with a 57% completion rate and 220 yards per game, Manning had a 65.3% completion rate and 270.45 yards per game.  

Though Manning was the ‘trust factor’ to convince the Hall of Famer for the documentary, his family also played a factor. In an interview with Netflix’s Tudum, he revealed why now felt like the perfect time to share his story. 

“I had the opportunity to do this and put my legacy on tape rather than in a book,” Elway said. “I thought, with 10 grandkids and four kids, that to be able to show them what their poppy was all about when he played football, that it was the right time. Plus, I knew I was done in football. I was no longer with the Broncos as a GM or as a player. My career was complete in football, so I thought the timing was perfect.”

That legacy is undeniable. He truly transformed the Broncos, leading them to five Super Bowl appearances and winning two back-to-back XXXII, XXXIII. After retiring in 1999, he transitioned into the front office and became the reason the franchise got another legend like Manning. Yet, even for a legend like him, there were some parts of the documentary challenging to revisit. 

What were the hardest parts to share for John Elway?

John Elway’s NFL career may have been spent under the spotlight, but he’s a notoriously private person. Even after he was convinced, it was hard for him to open up. But he still did:

“The loss of my dad [Jack in 2001] as well as the loss of my twin [Jana in 2002], those are very difficult times,” Elway told Tudum. “I think sometimes you kind of run away from it, but it’s still very emotional. It’s good to show that everybody goes through trials and tribulations. NFL players are put on pedestals, but they go through the same tough things in life that everybody else does.”

Revisiting his victory in the Super Bowl XXXII after fifteen years of his NFL career also made Elway emotional. He never realized how great it was until he watched the documentary. “It brought back a lot of tremendous memories, but also brought back that pain. I think it was a great exercise for me to revisit that and realize how great it was,” he said.

But he did it in hopes that by finally sharing his story, filled with hardships and triumph, he hopes it will play a role in humanizing the pedestal that NFL players are often placed upon.