Denver Broncos

Manchester born and raised Denver Broncos tackle Menelik Watson says the scumbag terrorists who attacked his home city are only gonna make Manchester stronger.

Watson -- who was drafted in the 2nd round of the '13 draft, and plays tackle for the Broncos -- was visibly shaken when we spoke to him ... saying "this one hurts a lot."

Despite the pain Watson and others from the city are feeling, he says Manchester is a tough place that won't be broken ... and will instead "band together."

"Scumbags want to impose their will on people through terror, and it doesn't work. It never works. The city of Manchester will only get stronger from this."

Garett Bolles is taking a page out of Kendrick Lamar's book and keepin' humble despite a huge NFL contract waiting for him ... saying he still plans to keep driving a Honda minivan to work every day.

TMZ Sports spoke with Bolles before the Denver Broncos took him with the 20th pick in the draft Thursday ... and he made it clear that he's not fazed by the extra 0s in his bank account.

Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall almost got TRUCKED by an elephant in Mozambique ... and the whole thing was caught on video.

The NFL star is on safari in Africa with fellow football players William Gay, Duke Ihenacho, Omar Bolden, Mike Adams and more.

During a day out in the bush, the gang came across a large African elephant -- which was beautiful and majestic -- until it started to charge!!!

Don't worry, it chilled out ... but Marshall was shook.

The gang soldiered on and encountered a LION later in the safari.

No one was eaten in the making of these videos.

John Elway says he does NOT believe Colin Kaepernick is being blackballed by the NFL over his national anthem protests ... but says he's not really sure if the QB can still compete in the league.

John and his smokin' hot wife Paige (a former Oakland Raiders cheerleader!) were in D.C. when we asked why he thought the ex-49ers quarterback is still unemployed.

Elway is the GM and executive vice president of football operations for the Denver Broncos -- a team that could use a QB right now -- but when it comes to Kaep, Elway says he hasn't been studying up.

When we asked if Kaep could still play, John replied -- "I don't know. I haven't been close enough to him to be able to tell."

Talk about spreading the wealth ...

Denver Broncos Pro Bowler C.J. Anderson -- who signed a 4-year, $18 million contract last year -- is finally spending some of that dough by taking his family to Hawaii ... on a private jet!!!

The running back tells TMZ Sports he's always dreamed about sharing his good fortune with the ones he loves ... and now that he's got the time and money, he made it happen!

The Super Bowl 50 champ brought 12 people to Honolulu -- all expenses paid -- for some sun, fun and helicopter rides!

C.J. says he was inspired by LeBron James ... who's always treating his family to the finer things.

“My mom and grandmother deserve it. All the things they have done for me, this trip was for them. I’m excited I can use my money in a positive way.”

Denver Broncos WR Emmanuel Sanders turned 30 with a bang ... turning all the way up with Rick Ross and boxing superstar Danny Garcia at one of the hottest nightclubs in Miami.

Both guys were up in VIP (Garcia was celebrating his 29th bday) at LIV nightclub ... while Ross, Wale and Meek Mill performed for Rick's album release party.

9:02 AM PT -- Sources connected to the investigation tell us 2 Patriots jerseys and 1 Broncos helmet were recovered in Mexico.

The Broncos helmet is likely that of Von Miller, as Jay Glazer reported.

We're told no cleats have been recovered ... at least not yet.

Glazer said Miller's cleats also went M.I.A. after Super Bowl 50. Unclear if it's connected to this investigation.

The man who jacked Tom Brady's Super Bowl jerseys may have ALSO stolen Von Miller's helmet and cleats from Super Bowl 50 ... so says Jay Glazer.

Glazer appeared on "Undisputed" on FS1 and said investigators used video footage to identify the suspect in the Super Bowl 51 caper.

Glazer says investigators saw the suspect enter the locker room behind Bill Belichick and leave a short time later with something tucked under his arm.

Glazer says the suspect had a legitimate media credential -- but may not be a real journalist. He may have been running a scam.

And get this ... Glazer says the Denver Broncos believe the suspect hit Von Miller in the previous Super Bowl.

Story developing ...

Denver Broncos stud WR Demaryius Thomas had a helluva weekend -- playfully saying, "F**k Tom Brady" and dancing topless on a bar in Georgia ... and TMZ Sports has the footage.

The estranged wife of Denver Broncos WR Emmanuel Sanders has declared WAR on the NFL star -- claiming he lied, cheated and spent THOUSANDS on chicks he was banging on the side.

It's all in ANGRY court docs filed by Gabriella Sanders -- who blasts the father of her 2 children with a metaphorical bazooka right from the get go.

"When he's not playing football on the field, he 'plays the field' with numerous women whom he is or has committed adultery."

Gabby lays out multiple marital "atrocities" allegedly committed by her husband -- and claims he spent "thousands upon thousands of dollars on girlfriends and wasting the community estate, even purchasing a vehicle for one of his illicit affairs."

The allegations are strikingly similar to those of Shelly Sterling -- who claimed her husband Donald Sterling had no right to give $2.6 mil in gifts to V. Stiviano. She sued V and won. V was ordered to reimburse the Sterling estate.

Gabby filed for divorce from Sanders back in October and in the new court docs filed in Texas she says there is ZERO chance of a reconciliation.

Emmanuel signed a $33 mil extension with the Broncos back in Sept. -- with $27 mil fully guaranteed.

But there's more ...

Gabby also claims Emmanuel lied to the Broncos -- claiming he told the team he needed to miss a practice in Nov. so he could be in Houston for the birth of their child ... which was a a lie so he could go out partying.

The wife of Broncos star Emmanuel Sanders is pulling the plug on their brief marriage, despite the fact she's about to give birth to their 2nd child any day ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Gabriella Sanders -- who is due this month -- filed divorce docs in Texas at the end of October, a few days before the couple's 3 year wedding anniversary.

According to the court docs, GS says "the marriage has become insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities," but doesn't say exactly what caused the split.

It doesn't seem pretty, cause the judge gave Gabriella a temporary restraining order to keep the wide receiver away from her and their Texas home until further notice.

The judge did give the NFLer "limited access" to their 2-year-old son and future daughter.

In the docs, Gabriella's also asking for child support and a "disproportionate share" of their assets, because she says the divorce is Emmanuel's fault.

We reached out to his camp, but they had no comment at this time.

1:50 PM PT -- Gabriella had their baby girl Tuesday afternoon, and Emmanuel was there in the delivery room. He posted a pic which makes it seem like they buried their differences, at least for today.

He's usually a chatty guy ... but John Elway shut down when asked about the Von Miller sex tape case Wednesday night.

The Broncos GM was leaving Madeo with his smokin' hot wife when we asked how he felt about his biggest star being involved in a crazy sex tape war. It's clear it's a touchy subject.

Elway was down to talk the last time Von was involved in a big controversy -- saying it was "too bad" when Miller cut Elway out of a White House photo because he was mad about contract negotiations.

Denver Broncos linebacker Shane Ray has a fallback plan if the whole NFL thing doesn't work out -- he's a master Benihana chef ... and he's got the certificate to prove it!

The 23-year-old donned the trademark Benihana chef hat and apron -- and got cookin' on the teppanyaki ... grillin' up everything from shrimp to fried rice!

He even did the "spin the egg" trick!

Ray's teammate, Taurean Nixon, documented the whole thing -- and though Ray was strugglin' at times ... he did well enough to get certified!

Von Miller's sex tape partner says the NFL star is full of crap -- claiming she NEVER set him up or shook him down ... and says she only kept the X-rated footage as a self-pleasuring aid.

Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall has decided to end his national anthem protest --- and will STAND when the Star Spangled Banner is played for the rest of the season.

Marshall was one of the first NFL players to join Colin Kaepernick's protest -- and said he would be taking a knee during the anthem to "raise awareness for social injustice and to start conversation about what all of us can do to make a positive change."

Marshall explained his decision to call off the protest on Instagram before the Broncos vs. Raiders game Sunday night ... saying:

"Going forward, I will be standing for the National Anthem -- not because everything is perfect, or because I'm changing my stance on things. But because of my hope for what we can become."

"Just because I am standing doesn't mean the work will end. There’s much work to be done. I’ll continue to recognize and support organizations that are stepping up as leaders and making a real difference in our community, and I will do my part to be there for those in need."

Marshall added, "I really appreciate the support from my family, teammates, coaches and fans. I’m grateful for those who have taken the time to hear me out. I’m excited for what all of us can accomplish when we truly work together."

Ain't nuthin' but a Broncos paaarty ...

Tupac, Dr. Evil, the dude from "Coming to America" ... the Denver Broncos busted out some pretty awesome costumes at the team Halloween party Monday night -- and we've got the video.

Von Miller was Austin Powers' nemesis, DeMarcus Ware was The Mad Hatter, T.J. Ward was Macho Man Randy Savage (RIP) and Aqib Talib was either Willy Wonka or a pimp.

But the best costume ... Kayvon Webster and his date who went as Tupac and Jada Pinkett from that famous photo.

Are we sure Tupac isn't alive and playing cornerback???

How's this for fate ...

When Paxton Lynch was called off the Broncos bench to make his unexpected NFL debut this weekend, 100 of his closest friends and family members just happened to be in the stands.

Here's the deal ... the Broncos were playing in Tampa Bay -- about 90 minutes from where the Denver rookie went to high school.

100 of the QB's closest friends and family decided to buy tickets to the game to support their boy -- knowing he's the 2nd string QB behind Trevor Siemian ... who's been on fire lately.

Fast forward to the 2nd quarter -- Siemian goes down, Paxton goes in and balls out -- 14 of 24 for 170 yards and a TD ... and his cheering section LOVED IT!!!

"We weren't even expecting him to play," Paxton's mother, Stacie, tells us ... "We just went to show support, and were lucky enough to see him get some action."

"He was excited everyone was able to come!"

We also spoke with Lynch's high school coach, Allen Johnson, who says he wasn't surprised by Paxton's performance -- he'd been preparing like crazy for that moment.

"I talked to him after the game yesterday briefly," Johnson said ... "He said he’s going to be there for the team and not be the reason why they don’t make it back to the Super Bowl."