2014 Denver Broncos season

The 2014 season was the Denver Broncos' 45th in the National Football League and their 55th overall. It also marked the third season with Peyton Manning as the team's starting quarterback.
The Broncos entered the 2014 season as the defending AFC champions, hoping to compete for another Super Bowl run, following a 43–8 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII. The offseason was dominated by numerous roster changes, including the retirement of longtime cornerback Champ Bailey. One day before the start of the team's training camp, the Broncos announced that owner Pat Bowlen relinquished control of the team due to his battle with Alzheimer's disease.
Like the previous two seasons, the Broncos set numerous individual, league and franchise records, including wide receiver Demaryius Thomas setting a new franchise record for receiving yards in a single season, despite the team's offensive philosophy changing toward a run-oriented offense in the second half of the season. Manning threw a total of 39 touchdown passes, but only four came in the last four games of the regular season and the playoffs. In addition, Manning achieved only one 300-yard passing game within the team's last seven games, courtesy of the emergence of running back C. J. Anderson, who achieved 1,282 all-purpose yards, the majority of which came in the second half of the regular season and the playoffs. One day after the Broncos' 24–13 playoff loss to the Indianapolis Colts in the Divisional round of the playoffs, media reports indicated that Manning had been playing with a strained quadriceps since a Week 15 game against the San Diego Chargers.
The Broncos swept their division, went undefeated at home, clinched their fourth consecutive AFC West division title, secured a first-round bye and the AFC's No. 2 seed, but lost in the Divisional round of the playoffs for the third time in four seasons.
This was also John Fox's final year as the Broncos' head coach after four seasons, as he mutually agreed to part ways with the team on January 12, 2015, due to poor playoff performances during his tenure, including no playoff wins in 2012 and 2014, as well as suffering a blowout loss in Super Bowl XLVIII, as general manager John Elway felt the Broncos hadn't shown enough fight at critical times in the postseason.

Coaching and front office changes

March 11: James Cregg was hired as the team's offensive line assistant coach, while Bo Hardegree was hired as the offensive quality control coach. The team also announced that offensive line consultant Alex Gibbs will not return to the team.
July 21: The Broncos announced that Adam Peters would replace Lenny McGill as the team's assistant director of college scouting. John Spytek, the team's director of college scouting, became a national scout.
Owner Pat Bowlen steps down

On July 23, one day before the start of the Broncos' training camp, owner Pat Bowlen relinquished control of the team due to his battle with Alzheimer's disease. Bowlen, who has served as the team's owner since 1984, had been privately battling the disease since 2009 after experiencing short-term memory loss, and had since taken a reduced role with the team, resulting in team president Joe Ellis and executive vice president/general manager John Elway making team decisions. Ellis and Elway assumed full control of the team, though Bowlen's long term plan is for one of his seven children to run the team in the future, preventing a sale of the team.

Roster changes

Free agents

Signings

Departures

Trades

On August 26, the Broncos acquired placekicker Brandon McManus in a trade that sent a conditional 2015 seventh-round draft selection to the New York Giants; the trade became official on October 3 when original placekicker Matt Prater was released three days before his four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy would have ended. However, McManus was waived on November 25 due to his inconsistency, and replaced by former Tampa Bay Buccaneers' placekicker Connor Barth. McManus was later re-signed to the Broncos' practice squad on December 4 due to concerns regarding Barth's kickoff lengths. Two days later, McManus was promoted to the active roster.

Draft

Draft trades

Trade partner	Broncos give	Broncos receive	Source
Chicago Bears	2014 fourth-round selection original 2014 seventh-round selection	2014 fifth-round selection 2015 fifth-round selection
San Francisco 49ers	original 2014 second-round selection original 2014 fifth-round selection 2015 fourth-round selection	2014 second-round selection 2014 seventh-round selection

Undrafted free agents

All undrafted free agents were signed after the 2014 NFL draft concluded on May 10, unless noted otherwise.

Player	Position	College	Notes
DE	Kenny Anunike	Duke	placed on injured reserve August 30
LB	Shaquil Barrett	Colorado State	waived August 30, assigned to the practice squad on August 31, promoted to the active roster on October 15, waived October 20, assigned to the practice squad on October 22, promoted to the active roster on January 10, 2015, on [\|final roster]
RB	Kapri Bibbs	Colorado State	waived August 30, assigned to the practice squad on August 31, promoted to the active roster on October 20, waived November 22, assigned to the practice squad on November 25
WR	Isaiah Burse	Fresno State	made the [\|53-man roster], waived December 6, assigned to the practice squad on December 8
P	Steven Clark	Auburn	waived May 19
RB	Brennan Clay	Oklahoma	waived August 24
DT	Mister Cobble	Kentucky	waived May 19
PK	Mitch Ewald	Indiana	signed July 23, waived August 26
WR	Bennie Fowler	Michigan State	waived August 30, assigned to the practice squad on August 31
WR	Greg Hardin	North Dakota	signed May 19, waived August 24
DE	Greg Latta	Purdue	waived August 20
QB	Bryn Renner	North Carolina	waived August 24
OT	Aslam Sterling	Kansas	waived July 28
CB	Jordan Sullen	Tulane	waived August 30
RB	Juwan Thompson	Duke	on final roster
LB	Chase Vaughn	CSU–Pueblo	signed May 19, designated as waived/injured on August 24
CB	Louis Young	Georgia Tech	waived August 30

Suspensions

Matt Prater

On August 23, placekicker Matt Prater was suspended for the first four games of the season for violating the league's substance-abuse policy. Prater had been charged with drunk driving on two previous occasions – January 2008 in Orlando, Florida, and August 2011 in Denver, Colorado. Following the latter transgression, Prater was placed in the league's alcohol program, and Prater acknowledged that he consumed three beers while on vacation during the off-season – a violation of the league's alcohol program. The NFL initially threatened a one-year suspension, but with the aid of Prater's attorney, Harvey Steinberg, his suspension was negotiated to four games. Undrafted rookie Mitch Ewald was expected to fill in placekicker duties while Prater served his suspension, however, on August 26, Ewald was waived and the Broncos acquired Brandon McManus in a trade that sent a 2015 seventh-round draft selection to the New York Giants. The trade was contingent upon McManus remaining on the Broncos' active roster after the end of Prater's suspension. On October 3, the Broncos decided to stick with McManus and released Prater three days before his suspension would have ended. On October 7, Prater signed with the Detroit Lions.

Wes Welker

On September 2, wide receiver Wes Welker was initially suspended for the first four games of the season for testing positive for the amphetamine Adderall, a violation of the league's substance-abuse policy. Welker denied reports that he took MDMA that had been laced with amphetamines, while attending a Kentucky Derby race during the off-season. However, on September 17, after missing the first two games of the season, Welker's suspension was overturned after the NFL and the NFL Player's Association came to an agreement on a new drug policy. Under the revised policy, Welker's violation places him on a probationary period for first-time violators.

Injuries

August 28: Undrafted rookie defensive end Kenny Anunike injured his elbow during the team's final preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys, and was placed on injured reserve two days later.
September 14: Linebacker Lerentee McCray missed three games after suffering a sprained knee ligament during the team's Week 2 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.
November 2: Linebacker Nate Irving suffered a serious knee injury during the Broncos' Week 9 loss to the New England Patriots. An MRI test on November 3 determined that Irving suffered ligament damage, and the team placed him on the season-ending injured reserve ten days later.
November 9: Running back Ronnie Hillman suffered a sprained foot during the Broncos' Week 10 win over the Oakland Raiders, and missed the team's next six games.
November 16: Tight end Julius Thomas suffered a sprained ankle during the Broncos' Week 11 loss to the St. Louis Rams, and missed the team's next three games.
November 23: Cornerback Aqib Talib suffered a strained hamstring during the Broncos' Week 12 win over the Miami Dolphins, and missed the team's Week 13 win over the Kansas City Chiefs.
December 13: Safety Quinton Carter was placed on injured reserve, after experiencing pain in his knee. Carter played in 11 of the team's first 12 games this season, after missing the 2012 and 2013 seasons with a knee injury.
December 14: Linebacker Brandon Marshall suffered a Lisfranc sprain in his right foot during the team's Week 15 win over the San Diego Chargers, and missed the Broncos last two regular season games, but returned for the team's Divisional playoff game vs. the Indianapolis Colts on January 11, 2015.
December 23: Safety T. J. Ward suffered a sprained neck during the team's Week 16 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, and missed the Week 17 regular season finale against the Oakland Raiders.
January 10: Defensive end Quanterus Smith was placed on Injured reserve due to a knee injury, one day prior to the Broncos' Divisional playoff game vs. the Indianapolis Colts.

;Montee Ball
Running back Montee Ball was twice sidelined with a groin injury. On October 5, Ball suffered a strained groin during the team's Week 5 win over the Arizona Cardinals, and missed the team's next five games. On November 16, during the Broncos' Week 11 loss to the St. Louis Rams, Ball re-aggravated the injury, and was placed on injured reserve on December 13.
;Danny Trevathan
Linebacker Danny Trevathan was sidelined with injuries to his left kneecap on three different occasions. On August 12, prior to the Broncos' second preseason game, Trevathan suffered a fractured left kneecap during practice, and missed the first three games of the regular season. On October 12, during the Broncos' Week 6 win over the New York Jets, Trevathan suffered the same injury to his left knee. Two days later, Trevathan was placed on the injured reserve list with a designation to return, in which he missed eight weeks, and was moved to the active roster on December 13, one day before the team's Week 15 game against the San Diego Chargers. However, Trevathan suffered a dislocation of his kneecap during the team's Week 15 win over the Chargers, and was placed on the season-ending injured reserve on December 16.