According to unconfirmed reports, the Jacksonville Jaguars and Chicago Bears will wear a commemorative Denver Broncos patch in 2016…
According to sources close to Predominantly Orange, the NFL has approved a request from the Chicago Bears and Jacksonville Jaguars to wear a commemorative Broncos 50 patch, a concept that was agreed upon by both franchises at the annual owner meetings in Florida in March.
Nike has not yet released the official images yet, but concept art has leaked and Predominantly Orange has received what’s believed to be a very accurate first look at the uniform alteration for 2016.
The apparent reasoning behind the commemorative patch was a thank you from the Jaguars and Bears to John Elway, who has helped them build their rosters and coaching staffs where they are today. The coaches for each team spoke briefly on Friday about the opportunity to wear the patch in 2016, and what it means for their respective franchises.
“I think it’s a great opportunity,” Bears head coach John Fox exclaimed. “It’s really just a way that we can say ‘thank you’ to the Denver Broncos organization for helping us piece together our rosters. I owe John Elway a great deal, I have nothing but respect for that guy. He’s probably the best executive in pro sports today.”
Jacksonville Jaguars head coach Gus Bradley spoke highly of Elway, saying he’s ‘one of the best’ in pro sports when it comes to drafting players and identifying talent, but he spoke to the level of talent the Broncos have at every level of the front office.
“I mean, you look at their regional scouts, their capologist Matt Sullivan — everything from top to bottom is just the cream of the crop. Without these guys working hard at scouting and finding this elite talent late in drafts, I have no idea how [GM David] Caldwell would be able to put together our roster and hit the cap floor. We’re very thankful for Mr. Elway, and what he’s meant to this game, but also to the staff he’s assembled there in Denver.”
And he added, “We can’t wait for Emmanuel Sanders to hit free agency in 2017.”
The NFL is working on a deal with the Broncos to hopefully have the city of Denver host a home game for each the Bears and Jaguars at some point in the future. Broncos fans have obviously not been the most pleased with all of their players leaving for other franchises, but to be able to put these guys back on the field at Mile High would bring a level of nostalgia and allow fans to see guys they got to watch grow up in the NFL, guys who would have been great mainstays in blue and orange if it weren’t for other teams with huge cap space.
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“We respect the fans,” Jaguars TE Julius Thomas said. “Denver has the best football fans on the planet. It would be an honor to play one of our home games there every year.”
The Broncos are obviously open to the idea, but have yet to confirm any of these rumors or statements being thrown about.
“I think the greatest thing in all of this is, we get to relive the glory days in a way,” John Fox added later. “After we mutually parted ways, I knew there was still a piece of me left in Denver. What do we have, seven former Broncos on the roster now? It’s still not enough. We want as much of that culture from a championship team in Denver here in Chicago, and I’ll see to it that we get it here.”
The Jaguars and Bears each issued a statement Friday, thanking John Elway and the Broncos organization for all of their hard work since he came aboard in 2011.
“This is a really exciting day for our respective franchises. The rich history of football in the city of Denver is something we long for desperately.”
And if you haven’t figured it out already, April Fool’s.