Reports are the Broncos are going to win the Peyton Manning sweepstakes, then look to trade Tim Tebow and Tebowmania.
I have a suggestion for John Elway and the Broncos, as well as for Jacksonville, who really should be interested in Tebow, who will help immediately fill the stands and bring needed media attention to the Jaguars: Tim Tebow for Blaine Gabbert.
The Broncos need a young backup to Manning, and I think Gabbert, a first-round pick from last season, would do well to learn behind Manning and under the tutelage of John Elway.
Both teams win.
So. Shake on it?
What do you understand as Manning’s decision driver?
No idea, sdferr. Bowlen is a steady, low-key, supportive owner. Elway won championships late in his career and was probably able to pitch to Manning a blueprint. And the Broncos, with Fox and now Del Rio, are an up and coming defense, with Dumervil and Miller on the edges. Meanwhile, Bud Adams is kinda a nutjob.
I never believed the SF hype: if Manning goes to SF and doesn’t get to a SuperBowl immediately, they paid big bucks to take them precisely to where Alex Smith took them. And they lost a guy who knows the system, looked very steady last year, and has another 10 years left or so barring injury.
But I’m just guessing.
Besides the money compensation, it occurred to me to wonder whether he preferred the looks of the Den. O-line. But I too, dunno.
I guess I messed up buying a Tebow Jersey last January…
It’s also the weakest division in football, so that probably helped nudge Manning in that direction.
Congrats, Jeff, and all broncos fans on the big pick up.
I’m friends with a couple who are rabid bronco fans, and to say they’re excited would be to wrap up the understatement of the week award early. I check in with them every hour or so to make sure they don’t injure themselves.
As to Tebow for Gabbert, I don’t see it.
Kinda surprised by his choice…..the Bronco’s WR’s are nothing to get excited about, and do they even have a TE?
Manning made Dallas Clark a fantasy stud, so I’d expect he’d want to see a solid TE in Denver too.
Jax is rumored to be the franchise the NFK league office is pushing to move to LA.
The Jags have the worst attendance in the league, and actually tarp over about 10,000 seats in the upper decks.
The Broncos have Demaryius Thomas — chosen before Dez Bryant — and Eric Decker as wideouts. Decker had a foot injury senior year at Minn or he’d have been a first rounder. Rumors persist that we may trade our first round pick to Pitt to land Mike Wallace.
But even without Wallace, I suspect those two young guys are going to look really, really good with Manning throwing them the ball.
As for TE, Daniel Fells just left for NE. Dallas Clark is a FA. We also have two project TEs we drafted last year who are freaks of nature, one, Julius Thomas, a former basketball player we’re hoping to turn into a Denver version of the Saints TE Jimmy Graham.
mc4ever —
I don’t really see it, either, but if you’ve brought in Chad Henne to compete with Gabbert to start, I suspect you’d do better, as a FL team, having Tebow compete with Henne to start.
I don’t have any reason to suspect Tebow would go anywhere as a back up, but what about Tebow to New England? Reunited with McDaniels who drafted him, backing up an HOF QB, and working for Bill Bellichick who is NEVER afraid to use versatile players in unconventional ways.
Doesn’t do much for Denver, of course, but an interesting thought if Tebow were willing to be a backup.
Tebow would put asses in EverBank Field seats. That’s gotta count for something.
What about that neck injury, playing at-elevation and potentially in the cold? What does that do for Manning?
The assumption was that he’d go to a dome or warm-weather team for those reasons, yet… Mile High?
Punts are long.
I can’t see Jacksonville trading Gabbert, though. He showed flashes last year in a difficult situation. Denver would have to do something Dan Snyder-stupid draft-pick wise to interest the Jaguars.
Tin Tebow to Miami?
Tim for Tin
I had the good fortune to visit Jacksonville in October a few years back — the year the Marlins beat the Yankees in the World Series — and from what I heard and read that was the best time of year for clear skies and pleasant temperatures there.
On the one hand I’d much rather sit in a football stadium in that kind of weather than what they usually have, but on the other hand I can think of all kinds of things I’d rather do on a day like that in Jacksonville than sit in a football stadium.
I forgot: the Pats have a talented backup with a checkered past in Ryan Mallett. Mallett for Tebow?
My wife and I watched one of the WS games in the hotel bar, not sure if the game was in New York or Miami…
People have serious misconceptions about weather in Colorado. We get snow, but it’ll be 70s the next day. Mile high is not terribly cold most times.
Manning’s neck is fine; the problem is a return of full nerve function.
Manning being told he’s washed up? Those who said that had better hope he is. Because otherwise we just got Manning with a chip on his shoulder.
Congrats. Peyton has had some really good games at Mile High. Decker has to be ecstatic. Ditto Thomas. Those project TE better be out practicing. 18 made Pollard a fortune. Ditto Dilger. Clark and 18 was lethal.
You got a HOFer the day he walks off the field, with a chip in his shoulder.
McGahee sure sounded excited. No more 8 or 9 in the box.
Ahhhhh! thank you, John Elway, thank YOU! One less mistake for Bud (Vince Young) Adams to albatross about.
We’ll take Tebow, for Chris (Gold Toofs) Johnson, if you don’t mind… )
Onion Sports Newswire: Peyton Manning Re-Injures Neck Saying No To Titans
Decker and Thomas will do very well with Manning, as would any good WR. The key to success is running good routes and being where you are supposed to be at the right time.
As to the Graham reference, the original basketball player as TE is Tony Gonzalez or Antonio Gates, depending on how you loook at it.
Sorry to see the Tebow experiement put on the shelf. I don’t see Tebow being given another team right now.
Jeff; do you think your broncos are considering spending a high draft pick for one of the ‘second tier’ QB’s in the draft to groom behind Peyton?
As to the neck surgeries; I’m a packer fan, and check in at packerchatters.com (a packer fan site), and several of the posters there have had Manning’s and Nick Collins surgery. They all say that it won’t be an issue for him at all. And all reports have Manning making all the throws and looking sharp. Just a matter of conditioning now.
Also, as for Tebow to the jags, I’d see it mostly as a way for a moribund franchise to jump start interest- and ticket sales. IMO, Tebow is not a legit NFL QB prospect.
Well, the downside of this is that the Broncos have been waiting and the rest of FA has nearly passed them by. Landing Manning might help them with what FAs are left, but they do need help at several positions. I wouldn’t be surprised to see them sign Saturday and Clark; then make a serious play for some help at linebacker, CB, and on the Dline.
NE is quietly bringing in a lot of quality. I would have liked to sign Robert Gallery to play G., for instance, and re-signed Brandon Lloyd to go along with Manning. Lloyd is a great route runner and he and Orton essential perfected the back shoulder pass when together.
As to a second tier QB, I wouldn’t mind the Broncos taking somebody like Cousins if he’s available late in the second round. They’d have to address other issues in FA though.
There’s nothing I can say or add to this whole discussion that is Broncos specific or even Manning centric, as Jeff et al have that covered.
I just want to say that I think that Peyton is a really, really good guy with what he does with his money. My son studies physics/math at UT and there are a whole bunch of endowed scholarships in those departments–engineering as well–that give the departments the ability to retain and recruit kids studying those subjects.
The word is that Peyton felt that while sports was well and good, the future of Tennessee would be more positively impacted if students were proficient in those subjects.
It’s not terribly well known but it is a material amount of money to a lot of kids.
Athletes do horrifically dumb things with their cash. It’s nice to see one doing something with unusually long term vision.
As a Minnesota Vikings fan, that’s the best news I’ve heard all day.
Moving the Vikings would be a huge mistake. People here like their sports.
People there don’t like to pay for stadiums.
As a Minnesota taxpayer, I’ll admit I’m kinda bummed. I was sorta hoping they’d go away before I found myself on the hook for another billion dollars.
A hockey arena, a toy train, a ballpark, another toy train, a football stadium — it starts to add up, y’know?
Besides, people in L.A. are already primed to root for the purple and gold. We started training them in 1960.
I can’t remember now. Do the Wild and the Timberwolves share Target Center?
I’ve always found it amusing that the Twins won more championships at the Humpty-Dumpty Dome than the Vikes.
That there is some funny shit, Pabs.
The Wild play in St Paul. I forget the sponsor’s name.
As far as the new football stadium goes, I really don’t think the taxpayers should be paying for it. How about our new governor coughs up the money? He can afford it. They can even name it after him.
While he’s at it, he can pay for that stupid light-rail extension running down the middle of one of the busiest streets in either city. Traffic on that street is going to suuuuuck forever, and people are going to get run over. Often.
Roddy – he also donated over $150,000,000 to a local children’s hospital, now the Peyton Manning Childrens Hospital.
I hope Manning does well for Denver. But Peyton’s neck is fragile and he could early be out if he is hit the wrong way. That is true for anyone in the NFL, but Peyton is especially vulnerable. Denver needs to have a back up plan in place. Even if everything goes well…how many more years does Peyton have in him?