"Every diamond is like one of my teammates": Broncos explain meaning of Super Bowl rings

The Denver Broncos received the crowning jewel of their Super Bowl championship on Sunday night, a massive, 5.05-carat, 212-stone ring with a meaning for every rock and symbol featured.

56 stones along the sides to represent the Broncos’ 56-year history, 15 stones along the top and bottom edges to represent the team’s 15 wins in 2015, eight stones crowning the player’s names to represent the team’s eight AFC Championships and so on.

But those are just the ideas of the ring designers, the true meaning of the ring lies in the eyes of the men who worked so hard to makes them possible. On Sunday night, some of the Broncos key cogs explained what they see when they look down at the shiny monstrosities.

“I see a lot of stuff. I see my teammates. I see the struggle to get here,” explained Super Bowl MVP Von Miller. “Eleven games won by seven points or less. Guys getting injured and guys stepping up. Guys writing us off and all the pregame speeches. Sitting on the sideline, wanting to get back in and make a play. I see the organization on here. The organization has done so much for all of us to put us in this position. It’s a culmination of a lot of things. It’s something that I’ll keep with me for the rest of my life.

“It just shows how beautiful life is. It just shows you to keep going and to keep working,” he added. “Don’t ever count anybody out. Life is so beautiful. It’s bigger than just this ring. Coming back from all of the adversity and sharing this moment with all of your teammates, it’s an incredible time. Every diamond is like one of my teammates or one of the guys in the organization from the cooks to the turf guys. It’s a beautiful ring. It took everyone to get this.”

C.J. Anderson, whose fourth-quarter touchdown run officially assured the Broncos would get these rings, sees his own, slightly different meaning when he looks down at the jewelry he put on his left hand.

“Missing guys earlier in the season; switching out O-Lineman; switching out running backs. Losing our Hall of Fame quarterback for seven weeks. It’s just amazing,” he remembered. “That’s what the ring shows. It shows the grind, the grit and then the last game, of course, playing the Panthers. A hell of a football club but just the grind we showed [by] getting to the quarterback, making tough catches.”

Of course, there’s The Sherrif, the man whose last ride made him into the only quarterback in the history of the NFL that has one of these rings with two different teams, Peyton Manning.

“This is a culmination of a lot of hard work and a lot of teamwork this year,” he told. “It obviously represents the great history of the Denver Broncos. It’s got their AFC Championship rings, it’s got their three Lombardi Trophies, and of course has the message that this one’s for [Owner] Mr. [Pat] Bowlen. So obviously—his health issues—it’s very special to win that championship for him and his family this year. It’s very special. These don’t go away.”

Appreciation for Mr. Bowlen was an overarching theme of the celebration. The ring features John Elway’s famous quote as he hoisted the Lombardi, “This one’s for Pat,” the same message was projected on the screen as the team waited to see their rings and Von Miller wore a “Mr. B” lapel pin on his suit.

“This one is for Pat,” Miller said. “He did a lot of stuff for all of us. To do something for someone else is an incredible feeling.”

Finally, DeMarcus Ware, who took more than 10 years in the league to achieve this milestone explained what it all means to him.

“I think this ring symbolizes winning the Super Bowl and being the champs,” he told. “But also what the word team means, everyone just coming together during the season and saying we have one standard and we have one goal, and that’s being champions. This is the jewel that you get at the end.”

Many meanings, one ring, one team and one everlasting legacy.