Ah, the No Fly Zone.
The impenetrable force that was once the Denver Broncos secondary. Beloved by Broncos fans and feared throughout the league on their road to intercepting Cam Newton’s potential Super Bowl 50 victory. They were the new Orange Crush defense, T.J. Ward and the No Fly Zone were relentless and ruthless, right down to the chain snatching.
Wednesday, fans reminisced of 2015’s better days as former Broncos box safety and No Fly Zone star T.J. Ward formally announced his retirement via Twitter after four years away from the NFL.
“For everything this game has brought me I am forever grateful, to the fans I gave my all to, to the teams I gave my all to,’’ Ward wrote on his Twitter account. “To my family who gave their all to me through the ups and downs, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Blessed 8 years!”
Ward’s announcement came as a surprise considering he has not been active in the NFL since fulfilling his one-year, $5 million deal with Tampa Bay in 2017.
Ward had a final brief stint with the league in October 2020 when he was signed to the Arizona Cardinals practice squad with whom he spent just 20 days before being released.
Drafted out of Oregon in the second round by the Cleveland Browns, Ward reached his first Pro Bowl in 2013 which led him to a four-year, $22.5 million free-agent contract with the Broncos in 2014. This was the year of epic free agent grabs for Denver with the addition of Demarcus Ware, Emmanuel Sanders, and Aqib Talib, all of whom attended that year’s Pro Bowl.
Under first-year head coach Gary Kubiak and first-year defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, Peyton Manning, and the painfully underrated Broncos ended the regular season with the number one defense and an adequate 12-4 record.
They entered the post-season as the token underdog, gaining little to no recognition despite bulldozing their way right through Pittsburgh and the AFC Championship against the ever-favored Patriots (well, at least they used to be). Ward recorded four tackles against Pittsburgh and six tackles against New England before exiting with an ankle injury.
It’s Super Bowl 50, Santa Clara, California, the scene has been set for a ‘guaranteed’ epic performance by the Carolina Panthers, which unsurprisingly to those United in Orange, was literally and almost immediately smacked down by the Broncos defense.
Ward returned with a healed ankle and an MVP mindset to give one of the greatest performances of his career on the most prestigious stage in pro football. And that he did, amassing a team-high of seven tackles, a pass defended, a fumble recovery, and an interception.
The most notable of his contributions being the fumble recovery and stumble to the Carolina 4-yard line which ultimately led to C.J. Anderson barreling into the end zone.
The two time Pro Bowler rode the Mile High for two more years before he was released by the Broncos prior to the 2017 season. Leaving fans with a safety-sized hole in their heart that could have only been filled by the warmth of the shiny new Lombardi trophy he helped deliver to Broncos Country.
Ward officially departs the NFL with 607 tackles, 8.5 sacks, 44 passes defended, 10 forced fumbles, eight interceptions, and one fancy diamond ring.
Aqib Talib, Chris Harris Jr., Darian Stewart, Bradley Robey, and T.J. Ward combined with key front seven players including Von Miller, Malik Jackson, and Ware proved to be a concoction of unstoppable talent. One that truly legitimized the phrase “defense wins championships.”
Without T.J. Ward and the rest of the No Fly Zone, Peyton would have a ring on one less finger (and the best-looking one might I add).
From Denver to Mr. Ward, thank you and we salute you. A Mile High Salute, that is.
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