JERSEY CITY, N.J. --It goes without saying that playing on the NFL's grandest stage makes for excellent brand exposure, and that's no different for the Broncos organization as the team prepares to play in its seventh Super Bowl in franchise history.
The Broncos have been in the national spotlight all season long – consistently garnering among the highest television ratings of all NFL teams –and Sunday's game marks the biggest one of them all. According to a poll in December, the Broncos were considered to be the most popular team in America.
It's the type of brand visibility that Broncos President Joe Ellis acknowledged as a significant benefit during an exclusive one-on-one interview with Chris Hall of Broncos TV, with Ellis noting that the successes of the team – and its leading man, quarterback Peyton Manning – have put the franchise in an optimal position.
"I think that has been elevated as well – not only by the great play of our team, and so many of our players and coaches – but by really the marquee player in the National Football League, our quarterback, Peyton Manning," Ellis said. "It's put us in, as you pointed out, several nighttime, primetime games. As well as late-afternoon games, where 85-95 percent of the nation is watching us play."
Denver's 26-16 win over New England was watched by 51.3 million viewers, making it the third-most watched AFC Championship Game of all-time. With a Super Bowl Championship on the line and the league's highest-scoring offense facing off against Seattle's top-ranked defense, there will be even more people watching around the world on Sunday.
"There are a lot of eyeballs checking us out and watching us," Ellis said. "And that's a very, very good thing for us."
And, as Ellis noted, that's an important turnaround from where the Broncos just over three years ago when their 2010 campaign concluded with a 4-12 record.
"It might not have been the case a few years back," he added. "So we're very appreciative of all the attention that is being paid to us, for sure."
But despite all the attention and excitement, there is truly only one thing on the minds of Ellis and the Broncos organization headed into Super Bowl XLVIII – bringing home to Denver a third World Championship in franchise history.
"You do reflect back and stop and look out the window at this great city and think about the year that has gone by very quickly," Ellis said. "But there is always something logistically that's happened that you need to be concerned with and that makes the week go by quickly. But we're all looking forward to the game Sunday and when we kick off at 6:30 here, that will be exciting."
