When free agency began, Joe Mays admits he had doubts he would end up back in Denver.
“I wasn’t sure what was going to happen, just not knowing what to expect, not knowing what direction the team wanted to go in,” he said Thursday.
So the linebacker began visiting other teams. Fresh off a trip to New Orleans, he hopped on a plane headed to Washington before connecting to Indianapolis.
Mays, who typically turns off his phone as soon as he gets on a plane — “I usually do that and follow directions,” he smiled — kept it on this time.
And it rang.
“My agent…called me and just asked me how I was doing, just regular conversation,” Mays recalled. “I’m like, ‘Well, I’m on a flight — the flight that you booked for me.’”
“I was like, ‘What’s up?’ He just said, ‘Well, get off the flight, we just agreed to a deal.’”
The Broncos had agreed to terms to re-sign the veteran linebacker, who played all 16 games (12 starts) for the team in 2011 and ranked third on the club with 74 tackles.
So Mays spent the next few minutes figuring out what to do next before grabbing his bags and getting off the plane prior to its departure.
“At the end of the day it all worked out, because I was able to get off and we had a guy on standby that was able to get on,” Mays laughed. “I was excited. I knew he was excited to get to his destination, as well, but I was excited to hear that I’m coming back here. I couldn’t have asked for a better place to be.”
The standby passenger couldn’t have asked for a better place to be either, as he took over Mays’ first-class seat.
But all joking aside, Mays said he was thrilled to be able to rejoin the Broncos.
“They made me the offer, and I wanted to be here, my family wanted to be here — It was easy for me to say yes,” he said. “Just the fact that they offered me, they believe in me, they want me to come in and do better than I did last year, and you know what, I’m just going to make sure I keep my end of the bargain and do whatever it takes.”
-Gray Caldwell
Tags: 2012 Free Agency, Joe Mays
Nice article Gray. Its funny how things work out lol.
I was surprised to see he was third on tackles. I guess the resigning was ok after all.
He was the best LB run stopper in the league. Which makes it ok. Now if only he will become a better LB all the way around.
I know he hits hard but seemed to have trouble wrapping up on pass coverage. That maybe the area hes working on.
Pass coverage is where he needs the work at the most. No doubt about that.
Gray – love the article. Love Mays as a Bronco.
On the subject of religious discussion on the blog – directed respectfully at BFE.
I should begin with pointing out philosophically that it is impossible to have any discussion apart from religion and faith. If you look up the meaning of religion you will discover that our football fanaticism and the manner in which each of us participates – is in essence performing religious exercises. The manner in which we analyze and discuss our team is exactly parallel to the way a Christian ‘meditates’ on the Word of God. Sports are in fact one of the many prominent idolatries in our culture and sports keep many folk away from God.
This little tidbit of info should make you aware; that those of us whose lives are centered around the person, and the completed work of the real historical Jesus, feel compelled to respond and combat religious error with religious truth.
Therefore, if someone spouts some religious error as in, for example, a supposed evolutionary fact or opinion – these things will always illicit a response from myself and others.
If someone feels compelled to present some form of immoral / improper behavior as the norm or positive – then we necessarily must respond with what is moral. These practices must be seen as one religious practice opposing another. (The courts even recognize sexual immoralities as being the religious practices associated with atheism and agnosticism.)
As in the case of the last discussion: most of the time that there is some sort of mention of faith or Christian thought, it is because someone asked a question. I believe the response was respectful and it was not designed for proselytizing. (Though I would love to discuss faith and help anybody who is in the process of seeking God.) It is critically important for all who feel the need to belittle people of faith to have the opportunity to be exposed to thinking Christians that are able to discuss the issues apart from platitudinous sound bytes.
Therefore – every discussion on the blog is essentially religious in nature – and we must therefore work together to not disrespect any of the religious views except those that are universally harmful or without reasonable connection to reality.
Wow, are you a lawyer ?
With all due respect, DB, you do not know the religious truth, anymore than I do…or anyone else.
To me, there is only a universal truth: to love and be good to people. If a person bases that truth on an entity or a living person, that’s fine, but not necessary. IMO, we are all divine beings with the capacity within us to be good. Whether we tap into that or not is only within us and belongs to no one else, nor should it be judged or rebuked by anyone else…unless we do harm, and then it becomes a societal issue, legal or otherwise.
I am perfectly capable of thinking for myself, and do not want–EVER–to be preached to about my morals, idiosyncracies, failings or so-called sins. I am here on this earth to learn, and to love, to help and to be the best possible person I can be. That is my reality and not available to being scrutinized or doubted by your or anyone elses beliefs.
Well said Main. I wanted to respond but was lost for words.
Religion God and Jesus IMO should be kept off the blog for the most part because for all any of us know someone can be an atheist and take offence. Especially if it is brought up in a comment directed towards that person.
To everyone else on this blog, I apologize for responding to this, but I felt I had to. It will be the first and last time I do. That being said…
Go Broncos!!!
So, this morning I was pretty irritated, we lost our first calf of the year… Simple illness, and he went kind of slow.. :frown: Hopefully he’s with Jeebus!
Thats sad BT.
Sorry to hear that BT. I once raised a couple of bucket calves helping my son with a FFA project. One did great and we lost one. was devastating but also a good teaching experience for my young son.
I feel guilty… just cause you want them all to make it…
We had bucket calves Buck, for many years… and a Holstien milk cow to put bums on for several… We also use to catch the stray lambs from the flocks that would trail through… they left 3 or 4 every year!!!
You are into the business way more than I ever was but wouldn’t trade the opportunities raising livestock with my kids allowed.
royalbroncofan1,
Thank you for the nice words you wrote about me this morning!
It’s Bronco family like you that keeps me coming back here!
I LOVE ME SOME DENVER BRONCO FANS!!!!!!!!ILMSDBF!!!!
So Brady is making under a mil this year BT? Source? I find that hard to believe and it doesnt matter if Brady has 3 and our man PM has 1… The point is he has one…. How many does the most talented man in the league TT have? I dont care if he only has a couple years under his belt until he wins one, actually contributing to the outcome I will say we MAY have made the wrong move…. whats done is done you can be as bitter as you want but come on man!! These are exciting times in Bronco Country!!! Stay positive!
The so called “experts” are saying we may have the toughest schedule in NFL history!! If PM happens to struggle a bit this year could you really see TT leading us to the promised land playing the best of the best?? Im not trying to attack you at all, I just think its insane to be convinced 100% (as you seem to be) that PM is a guaranteed fail… The man had the most passing yards of his career his last healthy season. I am very optimistic!!! We have a successful draft there is no reason why we cant improve on the 8-8 record last year.
LETS GO!!!
GO BRONCOS!!!
p.s. I also am sorry to hear about your calf…
AB well if that happens (trade from last blog) I would be very very happy. Just seemed like quite a bit to give up!
Have I been missing all the draft entries or is everyone waiting till the last minute? I’m new to the drafting portion and am trying to learn all the tricks.
Scalp Brady is making what BT said. It was on NFL.com a few weeks ago that he restructured his deal to help the team. He went from 18 mil to just under 1 mil.
Also Scalp it does seem like a lot but if you go back and look at some past trades it really isnt a whole lot. (Look at what the Redskins gave up this year 3 1st round picks? That IS a lot and they will be screwed if it doesnt work out.
1 mil really?? Just giving him the rest when retired? lol well if thats true good on him. I think the Broncos will have a very competitive roster. Are Champ and/or Doom possibly restructuring?
buck yes i believe sndvl said there are about 15 entries so far… Youll have to do some backtracking lol
buck, I’m waiting to see who the guys the Broncos bring in for workouts and then make my pick on Wednesday…
But the skins were trading up to 2 not 43 to 25 lol I dont know like I said happily take that trade but I guess it really depends if the guy they really want is available at 25… ahhhhh I jus cant wait for the draft lol also means the start of my holidays
Thanks OC, I have been keeping track but just thought we’d have a lot more. I hate to win with no contestants. LOL
Scalp the Fish would be trying to move up 17 spots from 42 to 25. Thats going to raise the price. I also think there may be a couple other teams wanting to move up to around 25 which will also raise the price. It does seem like a lot but when you really think about it and look at past trades it really isnt.
I think the Dolphins will want to trade up to secure the QB they want if they dont get Tannehill (Or if Tannehill is still there at 25) or a WR. Rams if they dont go for Blackmon or Flloyd or dont get them they may want to trade up for a WR. Eagles may want to trade up for a DT. Ravens for a WR. Giants Chargers or Cowboys trade up for a pass rusher.
I do think that there will be 2 or 3 teams calling Denver about trading up if the certain player is there and I do think Miami will be one.
Scalp and BT this is for you.
Brady restructures deal to clear up 7.2 mil in cap space. HOWEVER in 2013 and 2014 he will make almost a whopping 22 mil.
http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/new-england-patriots/post/_/id/4719596/answering-why-on-bradys-pact
15. Seems to be an ominous # as of late…lol.
We’ll probably have 15 entries on the final day alone!!!
http://m.nfl.com/news/09000d5d828724df/mile-high-hurryup-manning-laying-foundation-for-broncos-o/
Since the draft is right around the corner…
So many questions for Mike Mayock.
The NFL Network draft guru held court Thursday on a 97-minute conference call with reporters from Miami to San Francisco and points in between.
Queries ranged from the obscure (“Mike, what’s the ceiling for Presbyterian safety Justin Bethel?”), to more hard-hitting topics, namely Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III.
Mayock was asked which of the two would encounter more success out of the gate. His response surprised a few listeners.
“On the surface, RG3 has a better chance to succeed from Day 1 because (the Washington Redskins ) signed high-level wide receivers,” Mayock said, before rolling to the next topic.
Here’s what else we learned:
• Pinpointing a quarterback in the later rounds comes with risk. Mayock dropped this stat: Of the last 23 quarterbacks taken in first round, 15 currently are starters. Among the 82 drafted from the second to seventh rounds? A grand total of seven became starters.
• Lots of chatter lately about quarterbacks Brock Osweiler of Arizona State and Kirk Cousins of Michigan State. Buzz-kill time: Mayock sees them falling to the third round.
• With Luck and RG3 essentially off the board, the spotlight falls to the Minnesota Vikings at No. 3: “I believe (USC offensive tackle Matt) Kalil is the choice, and if it’s not, it’s (LSU cornerback) Morris Claiborne,” said Mayock, who added he doesn’t see the Vikings taking Oklahoma State wide receiver Justin Blackmon.
• There are four first-round wide receivers in this draft, according to Mayock: Blackmon, Michael Floyd, Kendall Wright and Stephen Hill. “Hill’s a little bit of a wild card,” Mayock said. “… He’s really raw, he’s a developmental project, but boy is he gifted and athletic.”
• The three first-round cornerbacks will be Claiborne, South Carolina’s Stephon Gilmore and Alabama’s Dre Kirkpatrick, according to Mayock. Janoris Jenkins falls to the next wave because of his well-documented off-the-field issues, as chronicled by NFL Network’s Albert Breer earlier this month. Said Mayock: “The Jenkins kid is scaring a lot of people off.”
• Mayock isn’t as high on North Carolina linebacker Zach Brown: “Anytime anybody gets on him, his feet stop. He’s a run-and-chase linebacker who’s going to get enveloped.”
Thanks Sandvl for the article. If coaches aren’t allowed to coach yet, who is preparing the team for the no huddle? Must be PM. Gotta love his work ethic and his want to win.
I had a few minutes to check out come of the press confrences on the DB front page. I liked what Mays and Dreessen had to say, Tamme acted like he had just woke up and he was in Denver and Caldwell seemed like he had just smoked some crack while he was being prepped in ‘makeup’!
http://www.denverbroncos.com/multimedia/videos/Joe-Mays-Press-Conference/e58f8739-a1e2-48ad-84e0-7c12f7acea16#?id=9f431517-cbd2-49ba-aae1-b0756721b030
http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_20438104/broncos-now-chasing-cb-asante-samuel-sources-say
Main nice article. Dont know how we would be able to afford him with his current contract. Like I said befoe he would HAVE to agree to a new deal. I wonder who the player was Denver was offering up. The 5th or 6th pick wouldnt be to bad for Samuel.
Good Night Broncos Country long time no post I see you guys talking about a Draft Contest is it too late to enter and if not what are the rules
For those who like Chris Polk and were wondering why hist draft stock fell I just saw on NFLN that he has durability concerns.
MIB, wish I could figure out how to copy the posy from SNDVL with yhe rules but you may have to wait for ab or sndvl or someone who knows what they are doing.
(post)
1st entry counts. So make it count.
Choose the 4 players the Broncos will select with their first four picks. Also include at what number they will be selected. 25, 57, 74 etc…(these will be used for tie breaker scenarios), include the player position (DE, LB, WR) to avoid confusion if there is a player with the same name.
I will accept 3 names at each pick. With 7 points going to a correct name at the top of the list. 4 points for the correct second name. And 1 point for a correct 3rd name.
Example:
#25-
a) Worthy DT
b) Hightower LB
c) Martin RB
In all, you will have 12 names on your board, each group of 3 will be at the same draft #. No breaking them up. As I will not count that entry. If there are more than 3 names in any group, I will accept the first 3 names and drop any additional selections- this will count as your entry.
Choose wisely, double check your submission before sending and good luck to everyone who participates!
Heres the rules for you MIB
Thanks guys I have a feeling we go MLB or Corner and address DT later on
AB, how do you copy a post?
Buck highlight it right click then click copy. Then you right click in the comment box and select paste.
To highlight you just left click (hold it down and scroll till you get everything you want copied.
Hope it helps Buck.
Thanks AB, I tried that but who knows. Besides, may as well save the entry I have it in the bag.lol
Your welcome buck. Im not the best person at explaining things.
AB, I’m not the best at this computer stuff. Think I may be stuck in the abacus generation.
Isnt the abacus the thin with like the beads on the rods? I know what it is I just cant describe it lol
http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&hl=en&safe=off&sa=N&biw=1138&bih=535&tbm=isch&tbnid=9ZPdfFzfGxhuKM:&imgrefurl=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abacus&docid=Wc-W1gr2aIqsZM&imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Schoty_abacus.jpg/220px-Schoty_abacus.jpg&w=220&h=255&ei=49iQT4HVAeHQiALvu-H6Ag&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=634&sig=117983174909405195088&page=1&tbnh=143&tbnw=117&start=0&ndsp=11&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0,i:136&tx=78&ty=94
Isnt that an Abacus??? lol
Yeah AB that’s it.lol hard to type on though.
LOL Buck!!!!
I am so anxious for this draft to be here and preseason. I hope we’re ready for this shedule. Man, is it a tough one or what?