Miles
Well-known member
- Mar 18, 2019
- 2,455
- 0
That approach comes not just from the territory of his role as a brawling lineman, but perhaps with the territory of his small hometown, located about an hour away from Denver. And with that, there was always a hope that he could stay in his home state and bring his skills and tenacity to his favorite NFL team.
“In the back of my mind, I said, ‘No matter what, I feel safe that the Broncos are at 41. No matter how the draft goes. If I go first round, that’s great, but the fact that the Broncos are at 41, I felt like they wouldn’t pass on me,’” Risner recalled. “And I’m just so thankful that they didn’t. That shows their appreciation for me and how much I appreciate them. If I could go back right now and choose to be a 20th draft pick or 21st draft pick to the Seahawks, whatever it was, I’d choose 41 to the Broncos every day. … I’m happy to be a part of this.”
So was his family, which rolled seven peopledeep to accompany him to UCHealth Training Center and wrote “#LeagueBound” on one of the windows of his truck, which is already parked in the players’ parking lot.
“I think it means a lot to them,” Risner said. “They were obviously bawling. There’s a lot of happy tears, tears of joy. Just to be an hour down the road, I think, is a God thing. That’s something bigger at play. I don’t think that’s just luck. I don’t just think that’s how things pan out. That was God’s plan, and I’m so excited to see how God’s going to work through me in Denver: the impact I can have on the football team, and the impact that I can have on the community.”
To be able to play for the Broncos means that Risner is already quite familiar with the team. He grew up watching the team, which included Assistant Offensive Line Coach Chris Kuper during his playing days.