Osweiler ready for prime time

Denver Broncos quarterback and Flathead high school graduate Brock Osweiler got his pro career kicked off this week, opening rookie minicamp in Denver on Friday.

The 6-foot-7 gunslinger was picked in the second round by the Broncos in last month’s NFL draft after a couple days of anxiously waiting to hear his name called.

“As far as draft night on Thursday, I wasn’t really expecting to get picked on Thursday. I knew there was an outside chance, but I wasn’t getting my hopes up. It was real casual. People were playing horseshoes in the yard, people were playing by the pool. I really wasn’t watching the draft until the later picks.

“As things got closer (on Friday), I can’t really hide it, things got really anxious. ESPN showed up. When they started setting up their cameras I realized how close we were getting. Then a couple minutes away from the draft they mic’d me up, I’m like OK we’re getting closer.

“I really only watched the first 5-6 picks (of the second round) then I walked away from the TV and hung out in the yard with some friends and just visited. I was kinda watching the picks go on my cell phone. I was kinda expecting Denver to potentially do something with that 57th pick and as it got closer my stomach kept tightening up more and more and I would get more and more anxious to the point where I could barely breathe. Next thing I know my phone starts vibrating and I look down and it’s a 303 number and I just jumped up and yelled: It’s the Broncos! I could not have been any happier in that moment.”

With the Broncos, Osweiler will be joining a franchise managed by an NFL Hall of Fame quarterback in John Elway and led on the field by a sure first-ballot Hall of Famer in 14-year pro Peyton Manning. The opportunity wasn’t lost on the rookie signal caller.

“I’m very fortunate to be able to sit behind one of the best, if not the best, quarterbacks to ever play the game,” Osweiler said.

“My job sitting behind Peyton is to not only push him and get him prepared for each game, each week, but also to learn from him on a daily basis. It’s not his job to babysit me and pass the torch and look after me each day. It’s my job to be looking over his shoulder and observe him and find out why he’s so great.”

Having Elway in his corner has also been a big motivator, he said.

“Mr. Elway’s been great. He has full confidence in myself and you know that’s why he said he drafted me. He sees a bright future for myself ... He basically told me to embrace the situation, have fun with it, but work your tail off. If you continue the work ethic you showed at ASU, you’ll be just fine. Have fun with the situation and just try to learn as much as you possibly can.

“I can only thank him for putting me in the situation that I am. To be able to sit behind a future Hall of Fame quarterback and pick his brain everyday and observe what he does. Not only him, we have a backup in Caleb Hanie who’s been around the league for a while. You have John Elway right down the hallway any time you have a question, and he’ll pop into meetings and put his two cents in as well.”

Osweiler said the toughest part of adjusting to the NFL will be the mental approach in getting down the offense favored by Manning, a notoriously complex system filled with on-field adjustments.

“The offense is a little bit different than ASU — the way they word pass concepts, the way they number their pass protections and all their code words they use up in Denver,” Osweiler said.

“I think I’ll be able to adjust to it rather quickly. I just need to dive in to that playbook as soon as I get up there and try to pick up everything as quick as possible.

“As a rookie quarterback, especially going into a complex offense like Denver runs, it’s not going to be anything physical, it’s all mental. It’s going to be picking up the playbook. Peyton, one thing that’s made him great over the years is his ability to change plays and formations and protections at the line of scrimmage. Because of that, there’s a lot that goes into studying the playbook and understanding what the offense is trying to do at the line of scrimmage.”

One of the early adjustments he’s made this offseason is to try and fix a few quirks in his throwing motion, where he has a tendency to drop his arm slot and lose velocity.

“That was one of our primary areas of focus going into this pre-draft process. I was really able to focus on my throwing mechanics. Because of that, Coach (Noel) Mazzone, Marc Trestman and Terry Shea, the quarterback coaches I worked with, they were all able to improve upon my delivery and my throwing motion. What we did is we brought my elbow up ... We brought it up to where it’s somewhere behind my ear. It’s allowed me to have a more consistent delivery and release to where the ball has constant velocity, constant accuracy and I’ve been a better quarterback since then.”

Osweiler said he would be staying in the team hotel for a few weeks while his former roommate, a Denver native, and his family helped him get settled in the area. He said he would be getting back to Montana for a few weeks this summer, after minicamps and training sessions die down.

“I cannot be any happier with the situation I’m going to, the city I’m going to. It’s such a special opportunity.”