The Broncos traded for a marquee quarterback last offseason, evoking memories of when they traded for Peyton Manning before the 2012 season.
Although they acquired Russell Wilson under very different circumstances, some constants remain. The Broncos were coming off multiple seasons starting several different quarterbacks; they picked up a franchise quarterback who was written off by his former team; and they tailor-made their team to work around the quarterback they got.
Former Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett is kicking off his head coaching career with Wilson and the Broncos, so it will undoubtedly be an interesting duo.
MORE: Russell Wilson says Seahawks tried to trade him multiple times before Broncos deal
So how did Denver get from Manning to Wilson? Here's a look at the myriad of quarterbacks the Broncos have had since trading for Manning in 2012.
For three seasons, the Broncos enjoyed a healthy Peyton Manning under center. From 2012 to 2014, Manning had a starting record of 38-10 and completed 67.7 percent of his passes for 14,863 yards, 131 touchdowns, and 36 interceptions.
Manning moved into second in Broncos franchise history in touchdowns and yards in that span, and made a Super Bowl appearance (in which the Broncos were blown out by the Seahawks).
MORE: How to watch Peyton, Eli Manning on 'Monday Night Football' Manningcast
In 2015, the Broncos got a shadow of the Manning NFL fans were familiar with. He had severely deteriorated arm strength and battled a tear of his plantar fascia in his foot that sidelined him for part of the season.
While he was out, Denver turned the reins over to Brock Osweiler, who compiled a 5-2 record as the Broncos starter. He completed 61.8 percent of his passes for 1,967 yards, 10 touchdowns, and six interceptions.
In spite of their struggling quarterback play, the Broncos went on to win the Super Bowl in Manning's swan song. Osweiler departed for the Texans that offseason on a four-year, $72 million contract. Not re-signing Osweiler has been regarded as one of the best moves of John Elway's tenure.
Trevor Siemian had spent his rookie season under Manning's tutelage, which was part of why the Broncos were comfortable letting Osweiler walk. Siemian wrested the job from Mark Sanchez and Paxton Lynch in training camp, getting off to an inauspicious start against the Panthers.
Despite completing 18 of his 26 passes, he went for only 178 yards, a touchdown, and two picks. Siemian finished his season in very good standing, however, completing 59.5 percent of his passes for 3,401 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 10 picks. The Broncos went 9-7 on the year and missed the playoffs, but Siemian did get a Pro Bowl alternate nod. However, he was recovering from surgery on the sprained shoulder that kept him out of Week 5. He also missed Week 13 with a foot injury.
In Siemian's stead, Paxton Lynch threw for 497 yards on 59 percent passing. He had two touchdowns and an interception, and the Broncos went 1-1 with Lynch at the helm.
MORE: NFL power rankings: Eagles, Vikings climb NFC hierarchy
The Broncos started 2017 strong, going 3-1, but they fell off a cliff and lost their next eight games.
After his promising start, Siemian was benched after Week 8 when he threw three interceptions against the Chiefs in a loss. His replacement? Osweiler -- again.
Osweiler had been signed in September as a contingency after Lynch was injured. After three starts, Osweiler was benched in favor of Lynch.
The final few games of the season were a cavalcade of injuries and bad quarterback play. Lynch was injured in a start and was relieved by Siemian. Siemian was then injured and Osweiler came in. Osweiler started the final game of the season. The Broncos finished 5-11.
The Broncos finally got some continuity in 2018, when veteran Case Keenum started a full season for Denver. Keenum starting all 16 games was partially due to necessity, as Denver had just drafted Chad Kelly, who wasn't NFL-ready when he was picked.
The Broncos finished the year 6-10, and it spelled the end of Vance Joseph's tenure in Denver. Keenum was also traded the following offseason despite finishing with career-highs in touchdowns and yards due to throwing nearly an interception per game (15).
Denver continued its quest for a veteran presence in 2019, trading for Joe Flacco from the disaffected Ravens for a fourth-round pick.
Flacco started 2019 fairly strong, completing two-thirds of his passes for 1,076 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions in his first four games. However, none of those numbers translated to wins, and the Broncos started the year 0-4. Flacco's high interception rate plagued the Broncos, but an injury to his neck ended his season, forcing the team's hand with Brandon Allen (Drew Lock was on injured reserve to start the year).
Allen was, to be plain, not good. He completed 46.4 percent of his passes for 515 yards in three games, and the Broncos ran a neutered playbook with nearly no verticality. Once Lock came in, things got moderately better, as he threw seven touchdowns to three interceptions and had some spark to him. The Broncos won four of their last five games with Lock at the helm, but finished the season 7-9.
Throwing out the Kendall Hinton game as an anomaly -- given that only happened because the entire QB room contracted COVID before a bout with the Saints -- 2020 was one of the Broncos' worse seasons to date.
MORE: Grading veterans' debuts in new places after NFL Week 1
Heartened by Lock's strong finish to the previous year, the Broncos turned to him in 2020. He exited in Week 2 against the Steelers with a shoulder injury, and the Broncos turned to Jeff Driskel and Brett Rypien in back-to-back weeks against the Buccaneers and Jets. Rypien actually led Denver to a win over the Jets despite a three-interception performance, but the Broncos handed the ball back to Lock the next week.
Lock finished with 2,933 yards passing, 16 touchdowns and 15 interceptions in a 5-11 campaign for the Broncos. Despite the team battling injuries and COVID all season, Denver went out the next year and looked for a quarterback a bit more long-term.
The carousel continued with Teddy Bridgewater, who was coming off a one-year stint with the Panthers following his time as Saints backup. This was also after John Elway was moved out of his GM role.
The Broncos got off to another strong start, going 3-0, but a friendly schedule (Giants, Jaguars, Jets) could have made that a mirage. More to the point, however, Bridgewater didn't have a turnover in those first three games. After that, however, the Broncos lost four straight games in which Bridgewater threw eight touchdowns to five interceptions. From there, the team reentered into mediocrity, never winning more than two straight for the rest of the season.
When Bridgewater was injured toward the end of the season, Lock once again took over, and the Broncos were conservative with him. Denver lost three straight games to round out the season, finishing the year out 7-10 and missing the playoffs for the sixth straight season after winning Super Bowl XL.
After all of this, the Broncos moved on from Lock and to trade for Wilson, who they hope can be a long-term leader of their team. The pressure is also on Nathaniel Hackett to make the situation work, after Wilson fizzled out in Seattle.
As Denver opens the season, expectations are high once again. Wilson has a franchise QB ceiling. He'll have to hit it if the Broncos are going to go where they want to go in the packed AFC West.