(Photo: Albert Dickson/TSN/Icon SMI)

Peyton Manning will once again don orange on the football field, but it won’t be the first time he’s been clad in carrot. He was once a Tennessee Volunteer, after all.

More to the point, he was once a freshman.

Check out this archived article from The Tennesseean, written during Manning’s freshman year with the Vols. It portrays Manning as an up-and-comer, showing all the signs of the hard-working leader we’re just getting to know as Broncos fans today, but with a fun anecdote or two.

Sometime you gotta skip the theatrics and just play football, kid.

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After a crazy trade up, we return to something a little more normal.

Get all of look of the whole schedule and previously selected players here.

Last three picks

4.  Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M

5.  Trent Richardson, RB, Alabama

6.  Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma

Today’s GM is S10Bronco.

With the seventh pick of 2012 Interactive Mock Draft, the Jacksonville Jaguars select…

7.   Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Win a custom commissioned sports athlete portrait – valued at $300!

Top Stories

There Will Be No Jake Plummer Comeback – DeadSpin
Jake Plummer joined KKFN in Denver to talk about him throwing the football around in Denver earlier this week, on the fans reaction to him throwing the other day, what kind of shape he is in, whether he gets an inkling where there is some percentage of him that wants to return to the NFL, if he is over the issues in the past with Mike Shanahan, and what bugs him about Tim Tebow.

PLAY BALL by Tony Villiotti – Draft Metrics
With the opening of baseball season upon us, DRAFTMETRICS got to thinking about the NFL draft in baseball terms. In this article the first three rounds of the drafts from 2002 through 2011 were reviewed and each player was placed into one of six categories (Home Run, Triple, Double, Single, Out, Too Soon to Tell). The focus was on the first three rounds because draftees from those rounds started 58% of NFL games from 2002-2011.
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LSU defensive lineman Michael Brockers looks on at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis on Monday, Feb. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Two of the Denver Broncos‘ biggest needs heading into the 2012 NFL Draft are widely considered to be defensive tackle and running back, and that’s exactly how one of ESPN’s draft gurus sees the Broncos picking in Rounds One and Two.

Todd McShay’s latest two-round mock draft dropped today, and he has the Broncos selecting LSU defensive tackle Michael Brockers in the first round and Virginia Tech running back David Wilson in the second.

25. Denver Broncos – Michael Brockers, DT, LSU
The interior defensive line is clearly the Broncos’ biggest need, and Brockers could prove to be a steal at this point. He has a big (6-5, 323), well-proportioned frame and better mobility than his production indicates, and, with some coaching and time in the weight room, Brockers could become a force.

BT Analysis: Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Denver Broncos Executive Vice President of Football Operations John Elway was interviewed by ESPN’s Adam Schefter to talk Peyton Manning and Tim Tebow in this latest video.

(Image courtesy of Rick Wilking/Reuters Pictures)

It’s no secret that quarterback Peyton Manning makes everyone around him better, just look at how the Colts fared without him in 2011.  With Manning now under center in Denver, his new teammates, especially the receivers and tight ends, are primed to have potent seasons.

Among the players expected to benefit from Manning’s presence is third-year receiver Eric Decker.  Decker, whom Manning has already started working out with, is looking to build off of his eight-touchdown season.

Four weeks into last season with Kyle Orton leading the offense, Decker had recorded 20 catches for 270 yards and four touchdowns.  Towards the second-half of the season, Decker’s overall production slipped as the Broncos focused more on running the ball.  With Manning leading the charge this season, Decker and fellow explosive receiver Demaryius Thomas have seen their value in fantasy football leagues skyrocket, and for good reason.

Manning is not a has-been quarterback in this league; he still has a reliable arm and has remained a productive offensive weapon.  Over his past two seasons (32 games from 2009 and 2010 — he missed the 2011 season with an injury), Manning threw for 9,200 yards, 66 touchdowns and was sacked 26 times and lost one fumble.   Click here to read the rest of this entry »

The NFL approved five rule changes on Wednesday, a day after they were proposed.  In order for a rule change, the proposed changes have to be approved by at least 24 of the league’s 32 owners.

Courtesy of the team’s official blog, here are the five changes for the 2012 season:

• All games that go into overtime will use what had been the postseason overtime rules. This means that both teams will get at least one possession – unless the first team to possess the ball scores a touchdown on its initial drive.

• Instant replay reviews of all turnovers will now be automatic – just as all scoring plays are now automatically reviewed.

• Penalties for having too many men lined up on the field prior to a snap will now be enforced as dead ball penalties, rather than allowing the play to proceed. The Giants took advantage of the previous rule by using 12 defenders during the Patriots’ last-minute drive in Super Bowl XLVI.

• Crack-back blocks on defensive players that are lined up more than two yards outside the offensive tackle at the snap are now illegal. This is designed to help improve player safety.

• Illegally kicking a loose football is now a loss-of-down penalty.

What are your thoughts on the new/adjusted rules?

Things are getting a little interesting today. One of our general managers sees a prospect he needs to have and makes a huge move for it.

Like I stated before, I never said this thing was going to be realistic.

Hold on to your seats, because here comes pick number six.

With the sixth overall pick of the 2012 Interactive Mock Draft… the Philadelphia Eagles select…

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Stokley seen during a training camp practice session in August of 2010. (Image courtesy of Andrew Mason/MaxDenver.com)

We’ve been speculating for several weeks that Denver may sign free agent wide receiver Brandon Stokley as a “camp target,” bringing him in for training camp.  Having experience with quarterback Peyton Manning, Stokley may come back to Denver to “compete” for a roster spot this summer.

If nothing else, Stokley could give some tips to the younger receivers on Denver’s roster and provide a familiar target for Manning at practice.  At age 35, Stokley still has some gas left in the tank and recently ran routes for Manning several weeks ago, obviously showing he is still capable of doing so.

Another former Bronco that the team may be interested in bringing to training camp is quarterback Jake Plummer, who was in Denver on Monday throwing to draft prospects and NFL free agents.  Plummer, 37, hasn’t played football in six years but has stayed in good shape and could provide the Broncos a “camp arm,” giving Manning a break from all the reps.

It’s an interesting subject to think about, and certainly a possibility — although unlikely to happen — that two players who played in Denver from ’07-09 (Stokley) and ’03-06 (Plummer) could re-sign with the team nine combined years after moving on.

Both players left Denver a few years earlier than we would have preferred.  Would you be in favor of Stokley and/or Plummer coming back?

Here come some more of your daily link juice, but first, don’t forget to participate in our contest to win a custom painting of a player of your choosing.  So get your picks in!

I’ve got the top stories from yesterday above the fold, but you may find a few gems further down the list.  I loved Tim Tebow, but I certainly don’t miss the sheer volume of media coverage the Denver Broncos had while he was the starting quarterback!

Peyton Manning’s Long Game – Peter King
This doesn’t happen to legends with time left on the clock. Legends who can play—and Peyton Manning can still play, if his neck holds up—don’t jet across the country from one city to the next in a two-week span to showcase themselves. And let teams showcase themselves to him. Manning, the highest profile free agent in NFL history, interviewed the teams that wanted him as much as they asked questions of him.

Elway Guiding Broncos to Greatest Comeback Ever – Yahoo! Sports
When John Elway was hired by Pat Bowlen to be the Vice President of Football Operations in early January of 2011, the Denver Broncos were at a low spot. Barely 14 months later, the team is coming off an improbable playoff berth and the signing of perhaps the biggest free agent in NFL history, Peyton Manning.

Denver Broncos still have holes to fill at defensive tackle – Denver Post
Peyton Manning may be unreal. He may be a Hall of Famer in waiting. He may be in the discussion for greatest NFL quarterback of all time. But Peyton Manning can’t play defensive tackle.
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