Broncos receivers confident they can fill void left by Emmanuel Sanders trade (Ryan O'Halloran, The Denver Post)

Sanders was the gray-beard in the Broncos' receiver room since Demaryius Thomas was shipped to Houston last October. Courtland Sutton, DaeSean Hamilton, Tim Patrick, etc., all leaned on Sanders for advice and are ready to apply those lessons on the field, starting Sunday at Indianapolis.

Joe Cool or Joe Blow? Joe Flacco doesn't care what you think (Jeff Legwold, ESPN)

"That is Joe," said Broncos coach Vic Fangio. "Like I think I've told you guys before, when things are going good, [people say] he's Joe Cool. When things are going bad, it's a lack of intensity. It's a lack of enthusiasm. I think that's just going to continue to be the dialogue as it relates to Joe Flacco and his career."

Ja’Wuan James nears return, but Fangio says all three tackles will play vs. Colts (Ryan O'Halloran and Kyle Newman, The Denver Post)

James, who was medically cleared before the Kansas City game last week, said Wednesday before practice that his knee "feels all right" as he aims to return Sunday at Indianapolis. The 27-year-old was injured during the first half of the Week 1 loss in Oakland.

Broncos’ Noah Fant experiencing usual growing pains in NFL (Arnie Stapleton, Associated Press)

Tight ends, even first-rounders such as Fant, typically struggle as rookies to adjust to press coverage and digest playbooks, game plans and line calls in the NFL that are much knottier than the ones they had in college.

What’s happening now with the Broncos shows why John Elway wanted mature, proven players in the 2018 class (Nicki Jhabvala, The Athletic)

"I just think everybody's got the license to become a leader on the team," Fangio said. "You don't need to be appointed. I think leadership is something that somebody takes; it's not granted to them, whether it be by a coaching staff or a vote. You take it. You don't get proclaimed that."