After bringing the Lombardi Trophy back home to Denver, the Broncos definitely got to celebrate. However, with the NFL Combine nearly underway, the Broncos have some decisions to make. Contracts are up, free agents are about to cloud the market, prospects will need to be evaluated, and of course the big elephant in the room: Peyton Manning must make a decision.
Some of the key players from the Broncos’ championship team are in jeopardy, and John Elway is set on finding a way to make things work. What he isn’t set on, however, is rushing into anything and making rash decisions.
On Thursday afternoon, Elway spoke with the media from the NFL Scouting Combine about his offseason plans to sign big names like Von Miller and Brock Osweiler.
Elway on Peyton Manning’s future:
“I met with Peyton a couple of nights ago. We had a good talk. As I said after the game, we’re going to give him as much time as he needs, and he still needs some more time. We’re going to afford him that time. He’s deserved that after 18 years in this league. To be able to afford him that time to figure out what he wants to do, we’ll continue to do that. That’s where we left it. We’ll stay in touch and in the next week or two we’ll get back together. It’s still in his court. We’re still going to give him that time. Let him enjoy the win. It’s only two and a half weeks since we won. We really want him to be able to enjoy that and give him that time. He’s deserved that. We’ll continue to respect that.”
Elway on Brock Osweiler’s status:
“We’re really not in a hurry. Everything is still real fluid. We know where Brock is. Brock knows what we have to offer. We still have a great deal of interest in Brock. We’d like to do something with Brock. We’ll start down those tracks and we’ll start talking to Brock about a new contract and see what we can do there. With that in mind, also affording Peyton the time that he deserves, we’re not in any rush. Like you said, there are 12 days. We don’t feel like we’re in a rush there. We’ll continue to give Peyton that time and continue to work with Brock and try to get something done with Brock.”
Elway on contract negotiations with Von Miller:
“We’re in discussions with Von. We’ve exchanged some offers. We continue to be able to meet with his representatives. We feel good about it. Obviously with the career that he’s had already and the way that he played this year, we’re very hopeful that we’ll be able to get something done.”
Elway on his confidence in Osweiler:
“I think that with the sample size that we got from Brock, we were excited about what we saw. I think when you look at the seven games that he started and the way that he played, he made some good strides. You never know what a quarterback can do until he gets in there, gets underneath the gun. I think he proved a lot to us. He’s a guy that is a tough guy. He’s a guy that will stand in there. He can make all the throws. Obviously you always like to have a little bit more consistency, but that’s what young guys continue to get better and better [at] and usually it’s their consistency that gets better. I was really excited with the way Brock played. We wouldn’t have been World Champs without Brock. We needed both quarterbacks to play like they played. It allowed us to be World Champions. I was excited about where Brock is and his process.”
Elway on the potential for a Peyton Manning return:
“Peyton is the same old Peyton that he was. He’s 18 years into it and again it’s going to come down to what Peyton wants to do. If he wants to go through that grind and wants to [do it] again—we’ll have those discussions. Peyton led us to a World Championship and showed you the championship quarterback that he is.”
Elway on if Osweiler will consider Manning’s contract before signing:
“I haven’t talked to Brock yet. I would think that’s probably something Brock would want to know. At this point in time, we’ll talk to Brock, but I’m not going to be able to give him that answer.”
Elway on hand-size when considering quarterbacks:
“As a player you never look at that and as a GM you always look at that, right? Actually, I measured my hand probably three months ago to kind of figure out what we were looking at so I could compare. I think it was like 10 1/8 [inches] is what it was. I don’t even know if that’s right but I [just wanted to use that] so I could compare. The only time hand size is important is if you get a bad [weather] day. If you get a wet day or a sloppy day, that’s when hand size really matters because the balls are in such good shape when you get them. To me, when I look at hand size on a quarterback, it’s how well can you throw a wet ball? Usually, the bigger your hand is, the easier it is to throw it in tougher conditions.”
