The Drive

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil listen to Sean Payton’s first comments on the Devaughn Vele trade. Was Payton’s choice to trade Vele a tough decision? The guys speculate who were the other teams interested in Vele. Was Vele ever going to be in Sean Payton’s vision? Will this move come back to bite the Broncos if Vele shines elsewhere? Today’s “Three Count” includes Von Miller calling Peyton Manning his GOAT for changing how the quarterback position is played, the Rockies shelling Shohei Ohtani in last night’s Rockies win over the Dodgers, and the news about bullets being shot into Andy Reid’s office at the Chiefs facility. With Colorado kicking off their season in 8 days, we discuss the Buffs best and worst case scenarios.

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach, Phil and the guys compete in our weekly trivia competition vs the morning show. We address the controversy with one of the questions we gave the morning show as we look continue our hot streak in trivia from over the past few weeks. We hear from Sean Payton with his first comments on the Devaughn Vele trade. Were the Broncos shopping Vele or was the compensation too good for the Broncos to pass up? Will Vele be able to have more opportunities and production in New Orleans? Was Vele ever going to be in Sean Payton’s vision? Zach and Phil react to Mike Klis’ projected 53-man roster for the offense of the Broncos. Where do the guys agree and disagree with Klis for his roster and practice squad projections?

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil continue to break down the Broncos Devaughn Vele trade. Were the Broncos shopping Vele or was the compensation too good for the Broncos to pass up? The guys speculate who were the other teams interested in Vele. We hear from Sean Payton and his thoughts on if the Broncos were shopping Vele, if the location was a part of the trade, and the coincidence of New Orleans being the other team. We react to Mike Klis’ projected 53-man roster for the defense of the Broncos. Where do Phil and Zach agree and disagree with Klis’ projections? We wrap up the show with previewing the Buffs as they kick off their season a week from tomorrow. What would be the ceiling and floor for the Buffs in 2025?

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil cross talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys discuss Shohei Ohtani pitching at Coors Field tonight and how sad it is that the guys have lost interest in the Rockies. Zach throws out the idea of the Broncos bringing in Anthony Richardson to be Sean Payton’s next quarterback reclamation project. Is Richardson a “QB rehab” away from competing for a starting job in the NFL? We look around the league at former Broncos and how they have been doing in preseason, free agency, and other football leagues.

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil react to the Athletic’s simulation for the NFL season and how it pertains to the Broncos and the AFC west. Has the hype surrounding the Broncos gone too far to where a 9-8 season would be looked at as very disappointing by many? Are we overlooking the many “green lights” the Broncos had last year? Can the Broncos have the same record as last season and lose in the first round of the playoffs but still have a good season? Today’s “Three Count” features if the Broncos are hiding Kyrese Rowan during preseason games to stache him on the practice squad, Shohei Ohtani hitting a homerun last night and starting on the mound tonight, and the Avalanche signing Victor Olofsson. We react to ESPN’s “way too early” NFL mock draft, in which the Broncos select, wide receiver, Jordan Tyson out of Arizona State.

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil break down the Broncos wide receiver room. We hear from Sean Payton and how he plans to use multiple guys in multiple roles throughout the season at wide out. The guys debate how the target share will be distributed in 2025 for the wide receivers. How do the guys feel about Devaughn Vele being mentioned as a trade candidate with a packed wide receiver room? We look around the league at former Broncos and how they have been doing in preseason, free agency, and other football leagues.  Zach throws out the idea of the Broncos bringing in Anthony Richardson to be Sean Payton’s next quarterback reclamation project. Is Richardson a “QB rehab” away from competing for a starting job in the NFL?

In hour 4 of The Drive, Zach and Phil react to the breaking news of the Broncos trading Devaughn Vele to the Saints for draft compensation. Did the Broncos get enough compensation for Vele? Will this move open the door for Pat Bryant to get more snaps? Were the Broncos always planning on trading Vele and that is why they have been keeping his health under wraps? Will this move come back to bite the Broncos by losing valuable depth at wide receiver? We wrap up the show with DenverSports.com’s Will Petersen joining the show to discuss his impressions of the trade who is impacted most from the move.

Hour 1 of The Drive kicks off with Zach and Phil cross talking with Dover and Cecil. The guys debate if the Broncos will have/need a 1,000-yard rusher this season. We have news coming out of Indianapolis with the Colts announcing their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones. Have weeks 1 and 2 for the Broncos become “must-win” games? Zach compares Anthony Richardson and if he will be a similar draft bust to Paxton Lynch. The guys attempt to translate what Nik Bonitto’s cryptic message “plan c, iykyk” means. Will we see Bonitto and the Broncos come to an agreement on a contract extension before the season starts?

In hour 2 of The Drive, Zach and Phil break down what they’ve seen from first round pick Jahdae Barron so far in preseason and training camp. What do the guys make of Sean Payton making Barron go out and earn his starting position? We hear from Sean Payton and Barron about what his role will be with the defense. Will the Broncos be able to come out the gates hot with both winning games and getting the run game established? Today’s “Three Count” includes the Rockies hot streak of winning 6 out of 7 games and 4 straight, Patrick Surtain being underrated and coming in at number 6 on the top 25 NFL players under the age of 25, and 5.1 million viewers for the Bears and Bills preseason game. We react to PFF’s grades for Broncos players in game 2 of the preseason.

In hour 3 of The Drive, Zach and Phil are joined by veteran NFL reporter James Palmer to discuss the latest on Nik Bonitto after he posted a cryptic message and spoke to the media today for the first time all season, where Jahdae Barron slots on the corner back depth chart, and if Dillion Gabriel was taking a shot at Shedeur Sanders over the weekend with his “competitors and entertainers” comment. Zach calls his shot and predicts Nik Bonitto and the Broncos will sign a contract extension this week. We have news coming out of Indianapolis with the Colts announcing their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones. Have weeks 1 and 2 for the Broncos become “must-win” games? We react to Coach Prime calling out his team and telling them they are not ready to play next Friday in their season opener.