John Elway Reveals Which NFL Legends He Wants to See on 'The Masked Singer'

John Elway is used to leaving it all on the field, as a two-time Super Bowl winner and Pro Football Hall of Famer. The Masked Singer stage, though, is a different story. Despite being out of his comfort zone, the quarterback decided to throw himself in, personifying the "Leaf Sheep" and its corpulent costume to boot. And though it wasn't a long time, it was a good time before the former Bronco was told to buck off by the show, eliminated and unmasked.

After his reveal, John Elway spoke to Parade about his time on The Masked Singer.

Related: Everything to Know About The Masked Singer Season 12

How are you doing? It's nice to see you outside of that gargantuan costume!
Oh yeah. It was a unique costume. It looked great. It was a little difficult because I had to drive it. And so I had a lot of things going on when I was inside there. But I think the best thing was I really couldn't see out of it. I was driving off a monitor, and so therefore I couldn't see out of it. And so I was just singing to myself in that costume. And the good thing is, I couldn't see the audience. And so therefore, it made me less nervous, not knowing how many people were in the audience.

I did have some mechanical questions. You used the term "drive." So were you using a steering wheel to move the costume across the stage?
It wasn't a steering wheel. It was a little handle on the right that you push forward and then you twist it to turn, and those type of things. There was a lot going on with that, trying to get it in the right spot. And like I said, I couldn't see very well, just with the monitor. And the good thing is, they're in my ear telling me, "Okay, move forward a little bit. Okay, go to your left." And so it's driving by Braille. But it was fun. And like I said, I think all those things having to do with the costume kind of took my mind off of having to sing and having to hear myself. I just started singing, and I had other things going on, so therefore I could get through it.

Well, let's talk about what got you behind the handle in the first place. Had you watched The Masked Singer before you were asked to be on? What was your first reaction when the offer was made?
I'd watched it several times. I Was a fan of the show, and watching it, I knew that there was so many tremendous, talented people on that show that were great singers. And so they called me probably five days before we taped it, and I had to make a quick decision on it. And so I said, "Let me have a night and think about this." And so I was a little apprehensive doing it, just because I was so far out of my comfort zone. But I said, "Heck, I got 10 grandkids. You know what? Maybe they'll like seeing Poppy on the mass singer. And even though I can't sing, they'll enjoy seeing me on there." So that kind of was what got me over the edge to say, "You know what? I'm going to go ahead and do this." And it was nerve wracking while I was doing it. We were there for the day and the rehearsals and those type things, because, as I said, it's not something I was used to doing. But looking back on it, it was a great experience, and people were great, and so I really enjoyed it. 

What was your reaction when you were told what your costume would be?
I had no idea what a Leaf Sheep was was. I think it's a deep water dwelling animal or something like that; I kind of forgot now. But I wasn't sure what it was. I had to go online and figure out exactly what it was. And again, everything was kind of new to me. When we finally got out there and kind of going through it, I think the rehearsals helped me. We got to rehearse a couple times, and so that helped a lot. But then after that point in time, I was excited to get going. Because I was nervous the whole day. And I said, "I want to get out there and get this thing going." And when it was all said and done, I finally got out of the costume and being on stage with with everybody was fun. It was one of those things that, when you get out of your comfort zone and you don't feel comfortable doing it, and then you go ahead and do it, you kind of feel like there's a there's a nice feeling of accomplishment once it's all over.

We hear the judges guess you may be Tom Brady or Troy Aikman. Ken ends up guessing you correctly. How did you feel about that?
I was actually glad Kenny guessed. And I think that the other guys they guessed are great players. Especially with the clues that they gave, I can totally understand the guesses that they made. But Kenny got it, and it's nice to know. Because it's been a long time since I've played in the NFL. And so to be able to say, "Okay, at least somebody remembers me" is a nice feeling.

Has this opened up your interest at all to do other celebrity talent shows?
I'm not sure about that. [Laughs.] I've been asked to do Dancing with the Stars. I said there's no chance I'm going to do that. It was fun to do. I'm not sure I would do it again. And who knows what comes down the line coming forward? But I'm always looking for things to get me out of my comfort zone that I can't get hurt doing, and this is one of those things. So maybe we'll see what comes down the road.

Exactly, no defenders coming for Leaf Sheep! Finally, what other NFL legends would you want to follow in your footsteps and compete on The Masked Singer?
I mean, I think there's two guys that I think would be fun. Terrell Davis, I'm not she would do it, but it'd be fun. I think guys I played with, it'd be fun to see them doing it. Shannon Sharpe, he's on TV all the time now. I'm not sure what kind of singer he is. But I'd love to see guys that I had a chance to play with. It'd always be fun to see them and compare yourself to them.

Next, check out our interview with The Masked Singer Season 11 winner Vanessa Anne Hudgens.