Peyton Manning's Signing Paves Way for Broncos' Future

Any true fan in Bronco Nation will tell you that today was a great day to be a Bronco.

We just got Peyton Manning.

The man that continually destroyed the Broncos defense on command in about any meaningful game played between the two is now on our side.

You should be thanking Mr. John Elway for being able to pull this one off. The only man in Denver sports who can never do any wrong—a man who sold cars to us for a decade, nonetheless—sold the city of Denver and the Broncos organization to the biggest free agent there has ever been.

No more Tim Tebow, or at least that's what it seems for now. It's obvious that Elway is looking to build himself a dynasty. Peyton Manning was the one player that could make everything fall into place.

His acquisition certainly makes things interesting: Where does Tim Tebow fall into the equation? Will his neck hold up? Can he still play at the level he used to play? The answers will come soon (Cleveland, a quick release of the ball says yes, and 4,000 passing yards as a season average indicates most definitely), but one thing is certain:

The Manning signing will bring in big name free agents that usually shy away from Denver.

Think about it: You've got a Hall of Fame quarterback running the offense. You've got a Hall of Fame quarterback running the team. Both have the singular goal to win as quick as possible. It's a formula for success.

Now, just throwing Manning into the backfield doesn't make you an annual Super Bowl favorite. You will become a perennial playoff contender, though. In a division where the Chargers choke once a year (beginning or end, pick your poison), the Raiders never have the same head coach past their bye week (Good luck Dennis Allen) and the Chiefs have Matt Cassel at the helm (by now it's obvious it was just McDaniels), it has to be obvious that this division is the Broncos' to lose.

What does make you a Super Bowl favorite, though, is all the acquisitions that will come to follow.

Reportedly, Jeff Saturday and Dallas Clark will follow Peyton to Denver. Brandon Stokley's name has been thrown out as a possible addition to the Broncos' WR core (might I mention he's a former Bronco AND a former Manning teammate?). It's also been rumored that the Broncos will try to trade their current first-round pick to Pittsburgh for WR Mike Wallace.

Imagine how hard it would be to stop that offense. Manning always made his teammates better than they were. It was obvious this past season that it was mostly his doing while watching Dan Orlovsky and Curtis Painter feebly attempt to do the same.

Now give him these weapons along with the already dangerous combo of Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas. With Willis McGahee pounding it up the middle and Knowshon Moreno finally making an impact catching the ball out of the backfield and you've got one heck of an all-around offense.

Plus there's the importance of the defense playing with a lead. Mentally it's a huge advantage knowing that one small mistake won't cost you the game and make it unreachable. The defense will be more relaxed. It's a point of emphasis that players such as Champ Bailey have expressed today on 104.3 The Fan.

All this means a great atmosphere at Dove Valley. A competitive team with a competitive front office will do whatever it takes to get wins. And in free agency that can be the key difference.

Now free agents will look to Denver in the next few years as a possible destination to win big fast. I hate to use this comparison, but think of the Miami Heat. As soon as LeBron came to Miami everybody wanted to go there and take pay cuts or do whatever it took to win there. You know the story by now.

Same thing can happen with the Denver Broncos.

The argument's been thrown around that Peyton Manning's not the quarterback of the future, but merely a quick solution.

However, by installing him into the Broncos organization, Elway has simply laid down the path for future free agents and draft picks alike to know that Denver is a place where winning is a priority.