Quarterback Peyton Manning of Denver Broncos calls the play during Super Bowl 50 against the Carolina Panthers at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California, on February 7, 2016. / AFP / TIMOTHY A. CLARY (Photo credit should read TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)
Peyton Manning is very bullish on the Broncos this year
While Peyton Manning will always be thought of as an Indianapolis Colt, his stint with the Denver Broncos brought the franchise their first period of extended success since the retirement of John Elway. After Manning won an MVP and made two Super Bowls, winning one, during his four seasons as a Bronco, he’s still stayed close to the team.
Manning has very high expectations for his former club, as he told Hall of Fame Broncos safety Steve Atwater that he expects Denver to have “a heck of a team” under Drew Lock’s leadership in 2020.
The Broncos added tons of new weapons for Drew Lock.
Lock impressed during his first five starts last year, and he did so with Courtland Sutton and Noah Fant standing out as the two lone bastions of competence among his potential targets. Denver remedied that by picking Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler in the 2020 NFL Draft and hiring Pat Shurmur as offensive coordinator. With Melvin Gordon and Philip Lindsay in the backfield, Denver’s offense just went from average to excellent in one offseason.
Vic Fangio’s defense will once again be among the league’s most aggressive, as Von Miller and Bradley Chubb will be quite the nasty tandem roaring off the edge. There is a lot of responsibility being placed on Lock’s shoulders this year, but the solid infrastructure around him should help him compete with the best in the AFC West.
This Broncos team features easily the best roster they’ve had since Manning won them a Super Bowl in 2015. Chasing a Lombardi might be a lofty goal for a team with so many young players starting for the first time, but this new-look offense combined with Fangio’s defense should be enough to put the Broncos into the postseason.