ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Grouching that the Denver Broncos hadn't gone out "kicking and screaming" in the playoffs the last three seasons, John Elway set out to toughen up a team that featured 11 Pro Bowlers but went out with a whimper.
—Tulane cornerbacks Lorenzo Doss (fifth round) and Taurean Nixon (seventh) both were sprinters on the Green Wave's track and field team,Cheap Jerseys From China.
So do the other eight picks,Cheap Jerseys Wholesale, suggested coach Gary Kubiak.
"I would get a lot faster just running with fast people,Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys," he said. "To play corner you need speed."
Heuerman was an outstanding hockey player on the junior circuit and even moved to Detroit in the eighth grade to play for an elite team. But rather than continue on to Canada's NHL-feeder leagues, the homesick teenager returned to Naples, Florida,cheap jerseys, and took up football when his father told him to hit the field or get a job.
—Fourth-rounder Max Garcia, an O-lineman from Florida, threw the shot put and discus in high school.
In introducing the former youth hockey prodigy Saturday, Elway said Heuerman, who helped Ohio State win the national championship, "brings in the right mentality and is tough and is a great competitor — oh, and he knows how to be a champion."
He's still incredibly flexible for a 315-pounder.
After changing coaches and shaking up the roster,Wholesale Jerseys, he fashioned a draft class thick on toughness and athleticism.
"I have two younger brothers, and they were going to grow up without me, so I chose to go home and be with them during their childhood," Heuerman said. "I went home, tried out for football and it all worked out."
A day after selecting a right tackle (Ty Sambrailo) who was a top junior skier and a tight end (Jeff Heuerman) who was an elite youth hockey player, Elway — himself a two-sport athlete growing up — selected several more multi-sport athletes Saturday.
Sambrailo, who packs 315 pounds on his 6-foot-5 frame, was a competitive ski racer as a youngster, winning USSA titles in the slalom, giant slalom and super-G and also becoming adept at freestyle flips and tricks.
The Broncos boss said the common denominators in this nine-member class were "the competitiveness that they bring,Wholesale NFL Jerseys, the toughness and the love of the game. I think that was really something that we concentrated on, trying to find those types of players."
Doss competed in the 100 meters along with the 4x100 and 4x400 relays, which he said helped him when he had to cover receivers.
Elway said his first-round draft choice, Missouri pass-rusher Ray Shane "plays with his hair on fire."
He says he likes guys who play multiple sports because it shows they're athletic and tough.
—And sixth-rounder Darius Kilgo, a nose tackle from Maryland, played high school hoops.
"I can still do a backflip," Sambrailo said. "I won't. But I still could if you really wanted me to."
When he gathered his team together for his first minicamp last week, Kubiak said he harped on "the personality of our football team and the first thing I talked about was how hard we play. I want people to talk about how hard the Denver Broncos play and if you look at this group of guys, we've come out of this draft with, that's a common theme among all of them."
He said hockey's lessons stuck with him, however. Having to get to the rink at 4 or 5 in the morning and traveling all over the country "teaches you hard work, dedication and what it takes to succeed in a sport," Heuerman said. "It teaches you toughness."
No other current Broncos player won a NCAA title, and only two — Peyton Manning and newcomer Gino Gradkowski — own Super Bowl rings.
Notes: The Broncos' other seventh rounders were Northwestern QB Trevor Siemian and Oklahoma State safety Josh Furman. Siemian said he needs another month to recover from a torn ACL he sustained in November. He called the chance to play with Manning "an unreal opportunity."
