Broncos' Week in Review: A new season creeps closer

Don’t look now, but we’re at the midpoint of May, meaning there are fewer than four months until the regular season is upon us.

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, though, here’s a look at back at the eventful week that was in Broncos Country:

Headline: Broncos’ minicamp enters Phase II

Bottom line: Valuable, much-needed work for the rooks, who must take advantage of every minute they get under the constrictions of the modern-day league labor agreement. Of course, coordinators Wade Phillips, Rick Dennison and Joe DeCamillis all say they like the looks of this year’s crop of first-year players, but keep in mind that’s a line being regurgitated at 32 rookie camps across NFL Nation where it’s tough to give a poor impression in shorts and jerseys.

Headline: T.J. Ward says Denver defense could be even better in 2016

Bottom line: Some of the numbers may improve, and some of the younger players should take steps forward, but in just watching the Orange & Blue’s NFL Films 2015 season highlights DVD, it’s immediately striking how many big plays and clutch performances the Broncos are going to need just to begin to approach that level again.

Headline: Six Broncos ranked in Pro Football Focus’ top-101 player list from 2015

Bottom line: Von Miller, naturally, tops the list at No. 7 and five more teammates – Chris Harris Jr. (36), Emmanuel Sanders (69), Malik Jackson (75), Evan Mathis (76) and Derek Wolfe (90) – round out the contingent from the from the Super Bowl 50 champs. Some big names (DeMarcus Ware, Aqib Talib) didn’t make the cut, and the six total representatives put the Broncos short of the Panthers (nine total on the list), Patriots (seven) and Seahawks (seven), but then again the 2015 Broncos weren’t as much about individual standouts as they were a championship-level team. And in the end, which would you rather have?

Headline: Mark Sanchez attends prom with children’s hospital patients

Bottom line: The QB that a fair chunk of Broncos Country desperately wants not to be the answer keeps doing and saying all the right things this offseason. Now, whether that’s going to matter come a tight fourth-quarter tussle in Week 1 is another matter entirely.

Headline: Rob Gronkowski – and not Miller – to appear on the Madden 17 cover

Bottom line: Any curses, real or urban legend, aside, we’re of the opinion that a MVP designation from the most recent Super Bowl is a bit more prestigious.