By 
One of the many benefits to the Denver Broncos signing Peyton Manning is that the move has and will continue to help the team draw quality free agents desperate to play with No. 18 at Mile High. Jacob Tamme is an example. The talented veteran tight end followed Manning from Indianapolis to Colorado, signing on the dotted line soon after Manning and the Broncos made things official last week. Jacob Tamme joined KKFN in Denver on the Drive to talk about his decision to sign with the Broncos and the impact Peyton Manning had on said decision. He also weighed in on what makes Manning so special, broke down his own blocking skills and expressed his sympathy for the fans in Indy.
On how it feels to be in Denver:
“Well I’m very, very excited. I know it’s a great organization with great fans. It’s a great area and I really couldn’t be more excited to become a part of it.”
On if he was waiting to see where Manning went before signing with a team:
“Well, for me, I was hoping that he would do that just because I figured that it would get things moving across the whole landscape of football. I didn’t speak with him through the process — I just wanted to see what teams I might best fit in with. And that started to unfold itself. And when he became a Bronco that became one of the teams that might be on the list. Then they contacted me and I just really had a good visit, felt like things really going in the right direction. And obviously Peyton has brought about tremendous amount of excitement to the franchise. It’s definitely very exciting to come in and get to know the guys and hopefully make a difference.”
On what makes Manning special:
“There’s a lot of things special about Peyton. It’s a long list, but he’s a tremendous leader, he’s a great teammate. He sees things on the field that other people don’t see, and that’s what makes it a lot of fun to play with him. When you’re on the field as a group offensively, everyone’s on the same page and everyone knows — you rep it to the point in practice where you know what he’s thinking and he knows what you’re thinking and I think that guys will have a lot of fun playing that way. So he brings a lot to the table. You could just keep going on and on but he’s one of the best ever.”
On if he’s had a chance to talk to Peyton yet:
“Yeah, I have. I told him I was really excited and looking forward, I think it’ll be a lot of fun. So I think it will be a good group offensively. I think we can do some real neat things. And I know it’s a solid football team already. So it’s definitely a fun thing to join and be a part of.”
On how much blocking figures into his game:
“Yeah well that will be something that’ll be determined sort of as things go, but what I’ve always said is — from elementary school through high school to college and to this level — my deal is I’m gonna do whatever I can do to help the team win football games. In Indianapolis when I was backing up a great tight end in Dallas Clark for a few years I became a special-teams player for the most part, and tried to work my tail off in that area — made a bunch of tackles. So it’s whatever they want me to do. I certainly love catching the ball, I love getting down the field and making plays, I love blocking and creating a hole whenever I’m asked to do that. So it’s not about — all I want to do is have a role to help the team win games. So whether it’s blocking, catching, whatever. So that’ll be fun to see how all that works out and to be out there helping move the chains.”
On if he feels bad for the fans in Indianapolis:
“Do I feel bad? In some respects, certainly. I mean, because it’s been such consistent winning around here for a long time. Last year was very tough. It was incredibly tough on us as a team and I’m sure tough on them as well. And now there’s a lot of people that have been a part of the organization, a lot of players that aren’t gonna be back in Indy next year. But I think it’s in fine hands. Mr. Irsay knows what he’s doing and the coaching staff they’ve brought in really seems to be top notch. So it’s definitely a tough time for the fans here but I think they’re certainly in good hands.”
On if he considered staying in Indy:
“I definitely considered it. I mean, I considered everything. There’s just so many things changing here right now that I wanted to go where I was most wanted and where it worked out correctly and where the best opportunity was. And that ended up being the Denver Broncos.”
Comments