When star free safety Justin Simmons couldn’t play in the Broncos’ Week 2 matchup against the Houston Texans, Caden Sterns had a chance to step up and start in his place. “It was fun, man,” Sterns said. “It’s a learning experience, as well. It felt pretty good out there but obviously, there’s some things to work on.” Beyond being one...

Football is beautiful. Super Bowl teams look like hot garbage. The Jags look like a real football team. Tu’a Tagovailoa, Carson Wentz and Joe Flacco are leading the league in passing. Anything is possible. I’ve got some thoughts backed up about what we’ve seen so far. I’ve narrowed them down to my favorites. And there’s a lot of them. The Broncos played on Monday last week, which meant Game Grades and The Ride were due out on the same day. Something had to give. But we’re back now and we’ve got two weeks of football to talk about. Let’s Ride. The Big Questions Is Trevor Lawrence a stud? Trevor Lawrence isn’t playing at an All-Pro level, but I think he’s…

DENVER, Colo. — A win is a win. It wasn’t always pretty but the Broncos beat the Texans 16-9 on Sunday at Empower Field in Denver. The game was a grind from start to finish and the Broncos had to overcome a deficit heading into the fourth quarter. Here’s how the team graded out: Offense Russell Wilson – C+ The stats are bad but there’s at least a little more to the story. Wilson was put in some bad positions. For example, he threw five passes deep in the red zone. Those are tough throws and three had bad breaks otherwise they could have been touchdowns. He was without his second, third and fourth receivers, too. And don’t forget about…

DENVER, Colo. — The Broncos are winless no more. One week after losing the season-opener on Monday Night Football, the Denver Broncos bounced back with a 16-9 home win over the Houston Texans. The game was close throughout, with the Texans carrying a lead into the fourth quarter. The win is what’s most important but it wasn’t the cleanest performance...

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Andrew Beck’s season debut got off to a rough start. The fullback-tight end hybrid was targeted out of the backfield on the first play of the game. The ball was a little bit high. Beck was able to get his hands on it, but he wasn’t able to corral it. The pass was the 13th time in...

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — When Jerry Jeudy won the Broncos’ weekly Uno tournament, he realized his prize had disappeared. “They stole the damn belt,” running back Melvin Gordon told DNVR. “They hid the belt, man.” Uno became the game of choice in the locker room during training camp, after being part of a rotation of card games played last season. The battles became more heated as camp wore on, so a weekly Uno tournament was implemented after the preseason ended. “Everybody got serious about it,” Gordon, one of the ringleaders, said. “I went and got a belt made.” The wrestling-style belt has “Uno Champion of the Week” etched into the gold plate on the front of the orange belt. “It’s a…

The Broncos fell 17-16 to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday Night Football in the season-opener. Penalties and turnovers killed Denver but there was plenty to like about the first game of the Russell Wilson Era… assuming you’re willing to put aside the result. Here’s how the Broncos graded out: Offense Russell Wilson – B For the most part, Russell Wilson...

Week 1 is in the books and the Broncos are winless. Denver traveled to Seattle to take on the Seahawks in Monday Night Football but lost 17-16 after a controversial decision to kick a 64-yard field goal. The game was both teams’ first since the blockbuster trade this offseason that sent star quarterback Russell Wilson from the Seahawks to the Broncos. Here’s what you need to know: Brandon McManus shoots his shot Before the Broncos’ final drive kicker Brandon McManus was asked where he could make a field goal from. “He said 46, left hash,” Russell Wilson told reporters. As fate would have it, the Broncos wound up with a 4th & 5 at the 46-yard line on the left…

Kickoff is just around the corner. The Denver Broncos are headed to Seattle to take on the Seahawks in the 2022 season-opener. The game will be broadcast on ESPN’s Monday Night Football, with kickoff scheduled for 6:15 p.m. The Broncos are 6.5-point favorites. Here are the key matchups: Russell Wilson vs. Seattle An intriguing storyline is flying under the radar: Russell Wilson is headed back to Seattle after a decade as the team’s starting quarterback. Seahawk head coach Pete Carroll all but asked the Seattle fans attending the game to boo Wilson when he returns to his former home. All signs are pointing toward him getting his wish. How well can Wilson compose himself against the loudest fans in the…

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Brett Rypien attended one of the first football games ever held at Lumen Field. In 2002, starting Seahawks quarterback Trent Dilfer sprained his knee in a preseason game against the Colts and the team needed depth. They called on Mark Rypien, Brett’s uncle, who already had 16 years of NFL experience under his belt. “He was close to 40 at that point,” Brett said. “He was up there in age.” A 6-year-old Brett lived in Spokane at the time, about four hours from Seattle. His family made the trip to the coast to watch his uncle play. The game just happened to be the second game ever played at the stadium. Nobody knew at the time, but…

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Damarri Mathis spent Thursday night like the rest of us: watching the Buffalo Bills take on the Los Angeles Rams. He had a personal connection, though: Dane Jackson, his former teammate at Pitt, was playing for the Bills. Halfway through the first quarter, while the Rams were driving into Buffalo territory, Jackson picked off Matt Stafford. A...

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Emmanuel Sanders knew he made the right decision to come to Denver after a monster performance in his preseason debut with the Broncos. “I remember going in the locker room, and I went straight to the bathroom,” Sanders said. “I remember sitting there crying in a stall, thanking God because I knew that this was the place,...

We’re 48 hours from NFL football. I’ve got two things for you this week: 1… I ran through my power rankings for the league. I know that makes this one of hundreds of power rankings floating around the internet, but: mine are right. 2… I have a lot of bets I’m really proud of. There are futures bets, prop bets,...

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Let’s Ride! The Broncos announced a new contract extension for star quarterback Russell Wilson on Thursday. The contract will last five years and is worth $245 million, with $165 million guaranteed. It will take effect after he plays the final two seasons on his current deal, and run through the 2028 season. In light of the news, DNVR asked the most important questions about the deal. Can you imagine a quarter-billion dollars? Russell Wilson’s contract is a few dollars shy of a quarter-billion dollars. He’s guaranteed $165 million, or enough for a $4,520 daily budget for 100 years. He took home a $50 million check up front on Thursday. “It’s a lot of money, a lot of…

DENVER, Colo. — Russell Wilson just broke the bank. The Broncos’ star quarterback signed a five-year, $245 million contract extension with the Broncos, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported early Thursday morning. He has two seasons remaining on his current contract. He will make $296 million over the next seven years in Denver. The Broncos acquired Wilson this offseason in a blockbuster trade that sent three players to Seattle, plus two first- and two second-round picks. Wilson is now under contract through the 2028 season. He will turn 40 in November of that year. The deal reportedly includes $165 million in guaranteed money. The Broncos will likely be able to get out of the contract ahead of the final season at a…

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Jalen Virgil was sitting in his hotel room when he learned he was still a Denver Bronco. Tuesdays deadline for NFL teams to cut their roster to 53 players passed at 2 p.m. and he still hadn’t heard from the coaching staff. Then, 25 minutes after the deadline, the team tweeted a link to its official roster....

Cutdown day is in the books. The Broncos made some surprise moves. They cut Kendall Hinton, who was a virtual lock to land on the roster spot for most of the season. They cut McTelvin Agim, who was coming off a massive performance in the final preseason game. They kept Brett Rypien over Josh Johnson, which nobody expected when the...

DENVER, Colo. — The preseason is (finally) over. The Broncos knocked off the Minnesota Vikings at Empower Field 23-13 on Saturday in the preseason finale. Neither team played its starters. Denver finished the preaseaon with a 2-1 record. Here’s how the offense graded out: (And here’s where you can find the defensive grades.) QB Brett Rypien – B- The most...

DENVER, Colo. — The preseason is (finally) over. The Broncos knocked off the Minnesota Vikings at Empower Field 23-13 on Saturday in the preseason finale. Neither team played its starters. Denver finished the preaseaon with a 2-1 record. Here’s how the defense and special teams graded out: (And here’s where you can find the offensive grades.) Defense DL McTelvin Agim – A The third-year defensive lineman has a solid case for player of the game. Agim ripped the ball out of the running back’s hands on the first defensive play of the game. The Broncos couldn’t recover. He blasted the quarterback in the back on a stunt with Baron Browning and knocked the ball out, which Browning picked up and…