Peyton Manning has wasted no time meeting and greeting his new teammates in Denver since he was signed by the Broncos three weeks ago. Since he arrived in Denver, Manning has apparently spent most of his time in the Denver area working with several wide receivers and offensive lineman.

Of course, the fact that one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time is here in Denver and working hard on his game with the rest of the offense in the off-season still isn’t good enough for that subset of Broncos fans that may never get over the fact that Tebow is no longer here. They still have two criticisms of the situation. One is that they believe that Manning is still not totally healthy (and may never be). The second issue they bring up is that they believe that he’s going to get hurt the first time he gets hit next season.

Now, while Manning may not still be up to the physical standards that he holds himself to, it seems that many others think he’s ready to go. Wide receiver Eric Decker, who apparently has been working with Manning constantly for the past three weeks, has gone on record saying that Manning can make all the throws already. Now given who used to throw to Decker, the wide receiver’s comments may not 100% represent the situation, but it’s certainly highly encouraging.

As to the idea that Manning is now a china doll, I’m getting a little sick of this particular argument. When the statement comes from someone who maintains that he is a Tebow fan, it sounds petty. Manning didn’t get “injured.” It wasn’t as if he got hurt in a game or practice from a tackle or a sack. One prominent neurosurgeon has come out and said that the area in his neck that had the neck fusion may be stronger than the rest of his neck. The only concern from the doctors is if his arm strength can come back fully, and it sounds (from Decker) like that has come along very well and we’re still five months away from Week 1.

Manning isn’t giving these Tebow fans anything that they can criticize in a rational way (then again, Tebow fans are not terribly well-known for their rational thinking). He’s kept his head down, stayed out of the news, and has been working hard. In his three weeks here, I’ve only heard him on the local radio once, but I have heard several Broncos on the radio discuss Manning come to town and how excited that they are. Even today, long snapper Lonnie Paxton was on the Les and JoJo show on today discussing how most of the team are reporting early for the beginning of the off-season program (due to start next week) and are showing an excitement that they haven’t had in a while. He also talked about how Manning is constantly talking football to the receivers and lineman in the locker room.

For fans like me that want football players to be all about football, Manning is a dream come true. In contrast to the circus that surrounded Tebow (even now he’s making more waves because of his religious beliefs rather than working on his football skills), Manning makes everything about football. From everything I’ve heard and read, Manning’s recovery already puts him close to where he used to be. Give him another five months, and he will come in better and stronger.

Julie has been an avid NFL fan her entire life, and became a Broncos fan when she moved to Denver in 2001. She reluctantly embraced Tebow when he found some success, but was happy to kick him to the curb when Manning signed. She is eagerly awaiting the regular season.

Read More: Peyton Manning (QB – DEN), Denver Broncos

ESPN’s Mel Kiper projects the Denver Broncos to select LSU defensive tackle Michael Brockers with the No. 25 overall pick in his latest mock draft. With the acquisition of Peyton Manning giving Denver new life on offense, it seems likely that defense will be the team’s focus early in the 2012 NFL Draft.

The LSU defense in 2011 was the kind of unit that makes you rewind the tape a lot. So many guys made so many plays, you have to go back and look at where it started. In many instances, it was with the disruptive Brockers, who can create havoc from the inside, blowing up the run and penetrating against the pass. Denver needs to strengthen the inside to complement a solid group of pass-rushers.

Kiper also projected the second round of the upcoming draft in his latest mock. He sees the Broncos taking Oregon running back LaMichael James with the No. 57 overall pick in the draft, citing his receiving skills out of the backfield as a good fit for a Manning-led offense.

For more on the Broncos, check out Mile High Report. For more on the NFL Draft, stick with SB Nation NFL and Mocking the Draft.

Read More: Peyton Manning (QB – DEN), Brady Quinn (QB – DEN), Caleb Hanie (QB – CHI), Tim Tebow (QB – NYJ), Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos

This week, the Denver Broncos signed Peyton Manning and traded Tim Tebow. Brady Quinn had departed Denver earlier in the offseason. As John Elway put it, they do not have a ‘Plan B.’ Well, now they do. A former Chicago Bears backup quarterback will be joining Denver to back up Manning.

The former Colorado State QB is best known for his performance in the 2010 NFC Championship Game. When both Jay Cutler and Todd Collins came out of the game injured, Hanie performed well to keep the Bears in the game against the Green Bay Packers. Otherwise, Hanie has struggled. He started three games last season after Jay Cutler broke his thumb, but was replaced by Josh McCown in Week 16. Hanie currently has three touchdown passes and 10 interceptions in his NFL career.

For more on the decision, visit SB Nation’s Broncos blog, Mile High Report. And for more on Denver sports, check out SB Nation Denver.

Denver’s fondest Super Bowl memories came in 1998 and 1999 when John Elway led the Broncos to back-to-back NFL titles.

For more than a decade, there has been faint hope in these parts that the team would ever return to those heights.

Prospects of winning another championship got a Mile High boost on Tuesday when, for the second time in just over a year, team owner Pat Bowlen turned to a Hall of Fame quarterback to help lead the franchise.

Manning’s signing is demonstrative of the lengths to which Bowlen is willing to go to provide this city with a championship. For that, we should be grateful (ask fans in, oh, Cleveland and Detroit).

Doubters need only look back at Bowlen’s reaction in the wake of the team’s loss to the

New England Patriots in the AFC playoffs earlier this year. While there was much to celebrate in the season, including the arrival of quarterback Tim Tebow, it was not enough in Bowlen’s eyes. “Not a bad season, but not a great season, either. I want a great season,” he said.

Tebow performed admirably last year, but when the goal is Super Bowls in a passing era, we understand why the team went all-in for Manning. If the Colts’ legend, who has had several surgeries on his neck, returns to form, he gives them a better chance at the ultimate prize.

The move marks a bold turnaround from the position the franchise found itself in just over a year ago.

In the wake of the Josh McDaniels debacle, Bowlen turned to Elway to restore the

franchise. No. 7 is well on the way, given his role in helping land No. 18 — arguably the biggest free-agent signing in NFL history.

“He is one of the greatest to ever play, and his knowledge and respect for the game is evident in everything he does,” Manning said of his new boss.

“This guarantees us nothing,” Elway said. “It guarantees us a chance to work hard.”

The team’s owner — and Broncos fans — expect as much.

Denver now has two Hall of Fame quarterbacks on the payroll.

Their goal, and the only measure of their success, will be if they deliver a third Lombardi trophy to Broncos Country.

– The Denver Post

All that’s needed is Peyton Manning’s autograph.

The Denver Broncos have tentatively scheduled a news conference for Tuesday afternoon, ostensibly to introduce the four-time MVP. There was no announcement that a deal was finally completed, but the last details were expected to be a formality.

After being pursued by teams around the NFL, the quarterback with four MVP awards is headed to the land of John Elway and Tim Tebow, agreeing to a contract with Denver that could make the Broncos an instant Super Bowl contender. It could also send one of the NFL’s most intriguing young players packing.

So much for Tebowmania.

Manning called Elway on Monday and told the Broncos executive that he had chosen Denver over the Tennessee Titans and San Francisco 49ers in the wildest free-agent chase of the offseason.

The Broncos and Manning’s agent then hashed out details of a deal that’s expected to be worth about $95 million over five years.

Manning was wooed to Denver by Elway, the Hall of Fame quarterback who led the Broncos to two Super Bowl titles in the late 1990s and now serves as their vice president of football operations. Elway never sounded all that convinced Tebow was the answer at the league’s most important position, and could trade the hugely popular quarterback who energized the Broncos in a run to the playoffs last season but was plagued by erratic play.

Manning turns 36 on Saturday and missed the 2011 season because of multiple neck operations, which made him expendable to the rebuilding Indianapolis Colts. They cut him March 7 rather than pay a $28 million bonus.

But Manning’s success in the past made him a prize that teams from San Francisco to Miami felt they couldn’t pass up.

“There’s a lot to be excited about,” Broncos defensive end Robert Ayers said outside the team’s complex. “Just being on his team is going to make you want to play better.”

By luring Manning to Denver, Elway has delivered his biggest victory for the Broncos since he led them to their second straight Super Bowl title in 1999. He retired shortly after that 34-19 win over Atlanta and the Broncos have won just two playoff games since.

Manning won the NFL championship in 2007. No starting quarterback has earned a Super Bowl ring for two different teams,. But when Manning when he arrives at the Broncos’ headquarters to sign his new deal, he at least can see the two Lombardi Trophies in the lobby that Elway won when he was 37 and 38.

Elway returned to the Broncos last year after the franchise hit rock bottom amid scandal — the team was caught videotaping a 49ers practice — and a four-win season that cost coach Josh McDaniels his job. It was McDaniels who drafted Tebow with the 25th pick of the 2010 draft.

The big question now facing Elway is what to do about Tebow, who has three years left on his contract.

Tebow took over a 1-4 team from Kyle Orton last year and led the Broncos to an 8-8 finish and the AFC West crown with a series of stirring comebacks that captured the attention of the NFL and beyond.

Tebowmania reached its apex in the playoffs, when he threw an 80-yard touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas on the very first play of overtime to beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. The next week, though, Tebow was smothered by the New England Patriots, who routed the Broncos, 45-10.