Read more: Denver Broncos, Rod Smith, Smith in Ring of Fame, Broncos Ring of Fame, Smith Elected to Denver Ring of Fame, Pro, NFL

(AP) — Former Denver Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith has been elected into the team’s Ring of Fame.

Smith, who set every major receiving record in franchise history, becomes the 23rd member of the Broncos to have his name etched into the inner facade encircling Sports Authority Field at Mile High. He will be inducted during a halftime ceremony on Sept. 23.

An undrafted player out of Missouri Southern, Smith finished his career with 849 catches for 11,389 yards receiving and 68 TDs.

Smith helped the Broncos to two Super Bowls and was a three-time Pro Bowl selection.

Said owner Pat Bowlen: “Players like Rod don’t come through your door very often, but he came through ours every day with a purpose and hunger to be great.”

(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

They aren’t brothers, but in many ways they learned life from the same man.

And when the newest member of the Broncos Ring of Fame, former wide receiver Rod Smith, celebrated Thursday with a series of text messages with Brian Heimerdinger, the topic was Mike Heimerdinger, Brian’s father and former Broncos assistant coach who died of cancer last year.

“I told him (the honor) was his fault, he shared his dad with me, his family with me,” Smith said on a conference call. “If it wasn’t for Mike Heimerdinger, I can promise you we wouldn’t be on the phone right now.”

Smith said many people, from his earliest days in football, have played a part in his journey from undrafted free agent to the player who holds every significant Broncos receiving record, but that it was Heimerdinger who probably had the most significant role in what his athletic career became.

Heimerdinger was the team’s wide receivers coach from 1995-99. Smith’s first year on the active roster was 1995 after spending 1994 on the team’s practice squad. Heimerdinger returned to the team in 2006, the last year Smith played in a game.

“He saw more in me than I saw in me at the time,” Smith said. “And sometimes that’s all you need is somebody to believe in you more than you believe in yourself. He told me I had the talent, I had the skills. He spoke those things into my life every day, and then I went out there and had to go to work for him.

“Every tool I had in my toolbox, I borrowed from him. He kept saying it, and I couldn’t help but believe it because it’s all I heard.”

Brian Heimerdinger, who works in the personnel department of the St. Louis Rams, was one of the first to send along congratulations to Smith after the Broncos’ announcement.

Smith retired after the 2007 season, which he spent on injured reserve after hip surgery. He finished with more receptions (849), receiving yards (11,389) and receiving touchdowns (68) than any other player in franchise history.

Smith is only the second undrafted player to surpass 10,000 career yards receiving. Former Redskins wide receiver Gary Clark was the first. Smith’s career totals in catches, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns are the highest in NFL history for any undrafted wide receiver.

He is the 23rd former player, coach or team official the Broncos have honored in their Ring of Fame. Smith will be inducted in a halftime ceremony Sept. 23 when the Broncos face the Houston Texans at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.

In a statement, Broncos owner Pat Bowlen said, “Players like Rod don’t come through your door very often, but he came through ours every day with a purpose and hunger to be great.”

“I’m really an emotional person,” Smith said. “It’s a steppingstone in your life. It means you did something right. They don’t put you in there if you didn’t go out there and represent yourself a certain way and played with a certain passion for the game.

“All I ever wanted to do is win. At the end of the day, the W’s were all I cared about.”

Smith was a part of 126 wins (including playoffs) for the Broncos. He played on both of the Broncos’ Super Bowl winners to close out the 1997 and 1998 seasons.

In the team’s 34-19 victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl XXXIII, Smith finished with five receptions for 152 yards, including an 80-yard touchdown catch.

After he signed with the Broncos in 1994 out of Missouri Southern, he spent his first year as a professional on the team’s practice squad.

He shoved his foot in the NFL door the next season when his first career catch was a 43-yard touchdown reception from Hall of Famer John Elway in the Broncos’ 38-31 victory over the Washington Redskins.

Asked Thursday if he could have foreseen all he eventually accomplished in football, Smith invoked some of his current business philosophies, saying: “The problem with most people is they aim low and they hit. I’ve aimed high and I hit. You want to be part of history. If you never think about it, it will never happen.”

Jeff Legwold: 303-954-2359 or jlegwold@denverpost.com

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — He’s a big, raw Denver Broncos quarterback with throwing issues who worked with UCLA offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone on his own time to fix flaws.

Sound familiar?

While Tim Tebow’s messy mechanics needed tons of work, Brock Osweiler needs more tweaks than anything, and he worked this offseason with Mazzone, who was his offensive coordinator at Arizona State and also served as Tebow’s throwing coach.

The Broncos’ second-round draft pick took the field at Dove Valley for the first time Friday, participating in the team’s three-day rookie minicamp.

Although his right elbow at times dropped below his shoulder and winged out a bit, the 6-foot-7 quarterback showed he’s making plenty of progress in capitalizing on his superior size. Some of his throws were so quick, it looked like he was flicking the ball to his receivers.

“This is my first practice with this new throwing motion. I felt very comfortable with it,” Osweiler said. “I felt more consistent with my accuracy. Where I was trying to put the ball, for the most part the ball ended up there. So I was very happy with it; now I’ve just got to keep building upon that.”

At times, Osweiler reverted to his old habits, and quarterbacks coach Adam Gase let him know it.

Broncos coach John Fox said Osweiler’s work with Mazzone is paying off.

“I think when we went there to Arizona State for a private workout, you could tell that he’d worked on his delivery,” Fox said. “It used to be a little bit lower. Guys tweak stuff, whether it’s golfers with golf swings or you know players with motions and whatnot. It’s not radical. He needs to use his height advantage a little bit better with that higher delivery. He was an accurate passer. I think he became more accurate.”

Osweiler’s old throwing motion at times negated his height advantage over pass-rushers.

“I would say the main thing would be getting my elbow raised up. A lot of times in college, my elbow would drop below my shoulder, and when you do that, you lose velocity, you lose accuracy, you’re less consistent with your throws,” Osweiler said. “So, we basically made a huge point to bring that elbow up to a more traditional throwing motion and get it above my shoulder.”

Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press

 The newest Broncos boarded planes at airports across the country Thursday, heading to Denver for the official start of their NFL careers.

Cornerback Omar Bolden posted a picture of his boarding pass for his Denver-bound plane on his Twitter page. Quarterback Brock Osweiler, also writing on Twitter, thanked his trainers in Arizona as he embarked on the next stage in his career. Offensive lineman Philip Blake tweeted play-by-play of his travels from Waco, Texas, including taking a picture immediately upon landing at Denver International Airport.

Yes, the new guys are excited to be here.

Denver’s seven rookie draft picks and 13 undrafted free agents reported to Dove Valley on Thursday for their first meetings, and today will take the field for the first time as professionals on the first day of a three-day rookie minicamp.

Other Broncos who don’t have a year’s experience also will participate in the camp, bringing the total number of participants to about 30 players.

Here’s how it will work for the Broncos’ new crop of players:

Coaches will lead the players through two “walk-through” practices, one in the morning and another in the afternoon. In between will be an hour-long practice.

Players also will attend meetings and watch film with position coaches.

It won’t be an easy weekend for the Broncos’ rookies but it will be a chance for them to learn their way around Dove Valley and learn the team’s practice routine and meeting habits without the pressure of being surrounded by NFL veterans.

But without the veterans, the practices will be somewhat limited. The session will include only five offensive linemen and two quarterbacks throwing to five wide receivers. The defense will practice with six linemen but only three defensive backs. Undrafted rookie long snapper Aaron Brewer can snap, but there won’t be a punter or kicker to snap to.

The new Broncos will remain in Denver after the three-day minicamp to join their veteran teammates in the offseason program at Dove Valley. The full squad will hold its first set of organized team activities May 22-24.

Lindsay H. Jones: 303-954-1262 or ljones@denverpost.com

The newest Broncos boarded planes at airports across the country Thursday, heading to Denver for the official start of their NFL careers.

Cornerback Omar Bolden posted a picture of his boarding pass for his Denver-bound plane on his Twitter page. Quarterback Brock Osweiler, also writing on Twitter, thanked his trainers in Arizona as he embarked on the next stage in his career in Colorado. Offensive lineman Philip Blake tweeted play-by-play of his travels from Waco, Texas, including taking a picture immediately upon landing at Denver International Airport.

Yes, the new guys are excited to be here.

Denver’s seven rookie draft picks and 13 other undrafted free agents reported to Dove Valley on Thursday for their first meetings, and today, will take the field for the first time as professionals on the first day of a three-day rookie minicamp.

To continue reading this story go to DenverPost.com/Sports.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) A crowded field of cornerbacks didn’t deter veteran free agent Drayton Florence from picking the Denver Broncos as his new team.

”In the National Football League, very rarely do you see just two wide receivers line up. Now with the bigger tight ends that are more athletic, you need more defensive backs to match up,” Florence said Thursday after signing a two-year deal with the Broncos following his release last week from the Buffalo Bills.

The Broncos have strengthened their defensive backfield this offseason, also bringing aboard veteran Tracy Porter to play with perennial Pro Bowler Champ Bailey. And they drafted Arizona State cornerback Omar Bolden in the fourth round to compete with holdovers Chris Harris, Tony Carter, Syd’Quan Thompson and Cassius Vaughn.

”Competition is always great for a team. That’s what I’ve come here to do, compete for a job, whether that be a starting job or a nickel role,” Florence said. ”Just come in and help this team in as many ways as I can, not only on defense but special teams, also. Whatever I’m asked to do, just coming out and competing and helping some of the young guys develop.”

Florence is a 10th-year pro whose release from the Bills was regarded as a mild surprise. He had 45 starts in 46 games during his three-year stint with Buffalo. But the versatile veteran was slated to make $4 million in base salary this season and the Bills took South Carolina cornerback Stephon Gilmore and LSU cornerback Ron Brooks in the draft.

”It was a surprise. But being in this business for as long as I’ve been, nothing really surprises you anymore,” Florence said. ”I thought I’d be competing with one of the young guys that they brought in, but they decided to let me go and go in a different direction. I respected that. When one door closes, another one opens and the Denver Broncos are a great place for me to be right now.”

Florence had seven of his 17 career interceptions with Buffalo. He spent his first five NFL seasons with San Diego, followed by a year in Jacksonville before signing with the Bills in 2009.

Florence is the first player signed by the Broncos since general manager Brian Xanders was let go earlier in the week as boss John Elway continues to reorganize the front office. But he’s just the latest free agent lured to Denver by the chance to play with four-time MVP Peyton Manning.

”Coming to Denver, meeting with Coach (John) Fox, just knowing the history about the Broncos, I thought it was a great fit,” Florence said. ”The offseason additions with Peyton Manning, obviously when you have a guy like that playing the quarterback position, it gives your team a great opportunity to go out and win ballgames. Then with the defense they already had in place here, I just thought it was a great fit.

”Champ Bailey, obviously, being one of the better corners in this league for a while, being able to play with him is something that’s going to be special. Tracy Porter is a guy that’s here also that is going to contribute to this defense. I just thought it would be a good fit for me to come in here and bring my physical attributes and playmaking abilities to this team, try to get into the playoffs and make a run at a ring.”

Florence said he didn’t speak with any Broncos players before choosing to sign a two-year deal, but ”I know a few of the guys on the team. I like what they’re doing here. I like the direction they’re going.”

Another factor that helped Denver land Florence is that he played for Broncos defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio his one season in Jacksonville, where Del Rio was the head coach.

”Yes, the familiarity always is good when you’ve played for somebody and you know how they work,” Florence said. ”The system, the language is going to be familiar.”

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Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton

The Denver Broncos and general manager Brian Xanders and the team have mutually decided to part ways, the Denver Post reported.

The team later confirmed the report.

“This is the worst part of this business,” said John Elway, Denver’s executive vice-president of football operations.

Xanders, 41, spent four years in the organization, three as the team’s general manager. He had one year left on his contract.

“John and I had a lengthy conversation today and we mutually decided to part ways for the best interest of my career aspirations,” Xanders said.

“I appreciated everything that (owner) Pat Bowlen has done for the Broncos and for bringing me here in 2008. It was great working coach John Fox. I’m telling you, he’s a great coach to work with. And it was great working with John Elway.”

The move comes following a Monday morning meeting with Elway.

“It was tough because I have a great deal of respect for Brian as a football man but also as a person,” Elway said. “Even more so as a person. He was very helpful to me in this first year getting acclimated back to the NFL. I owe him a lot. Just from the conversation we had, we just thought for his career and for the Broncos, we felt that now was the best time to go a different way.”

“Brian deserves a tremendous amount of credit and recognition for the contributions he made to the Broncos during his four years with the organization. His hard work and dedication played a major role in the recent success of our team, most notably last season’s division title and playoff win,” Elway said.

The Broncos had successful drafts in 2010 and 2011. Tim Tebow, Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker were selected in the 2010 draft. In 2011, the team’s first-round pick, Von Miller, was named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year and rookie Orlando Franklin started 16-games.

Xanders spent 14 years with the Atlanta Falcons in a variety of capacities before being hired by the Broncos in 2008 as assistant general manager by Mike Shanahan, head of football operations at the time. The next year, Xanders was promoted to general manager by then head coach and head of ootball operations, Josh McDaniels.