👋 Good Morning!

Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders will give an update today on his health status.

There has been rampant speculation about what may happen this fall, as Sanders has had to miss some time in Boulder this summer while dealing with some lingering issues. What exactly he’s been dealing with of late is unknown publicly. That said, Sanders’ past issues with blood clots are widely noted. And obviously anything related to that can be extremely serious.

I might be ‘the CSU guy’ in the DNVR world. But I just wanted to begin today’s newsletter by saying I’m hoping for the best for Sanders. Rivalries are fun but some things are bigger than football.

— Justin Michael

Drew Sanders was carted off the field on Sunday with a reported foot / ankle injury. It was a significant vibe killer amid all of the excitement for the return of football.

Sanders missed the majority of the 2024 campaign after tearing his achilles in preseason workouts. If he were to miss significant time again this fall it would be a blow for a player who has great potential but has unfortunately struggled to stay on the field of late.

Though Sanders would likely be more of a rotational player this fall, with Alex Singleton coming off of an ACL tear and factoring in Dre Greenlaw’s injury history, losing the former Arkansas Razorback would also be a blow to Denver’s depth at linebacker.

Sanders is a plus-athlete who offers some positional versatility. He can cover a ton of ground sideline to sideline but is a missile coming downhill in pass-rushing scenarios, too. He’s a guy that we were all very intrigued by on the DNVR Draft Podcast back in the day. And he’s flashed a little bit of that athleticism and playmaking ability at the next level.

Let’s hope that Sanders doesn’t end up missing too much time in 2025. One of the things people don’t always touch on when reflecting back on the 2015 Broncos is how deep that front-seven was. Sure, you had a pair of Hall-of-Fame edge rushers in DeMarcus Ware and Von Miller to lead the way. The Broncos also had Shane Ray and Shaq Barrett though. It was pretty much unfair.

When healthy, the 2025 Broncos are not on par with what I believe was the greatest defense in NFL history, this group has a chance to be really solid though. The tough thing is it only takes a couple of injuries to completely change the equation.

Where will 2025 first-round pick Jahdae Barron play this fall?

READ: Sean Payton identifies where Jahdae Barron will get his first shot | by Zac Stevens

The Rockies traded Ryan McMahon to the Yankees for a pair of pitching prospects on Friday. I know it’s a tough concept for some to embrace but this was actually an example of the organization operating with the right process.

The Broncos found out the same thing over the last 10 years, but when you try to hang onto past success for too long, it doesn't allow you to move forward. Eventually you have to truly tear it all down and start fresh. And the best way to do that is by building the foundation of your organization with young talent.

There’s no quick fix in baseball unless you have unlimited resources like the Dodgers. The Rox can’t just buy the best players in baseball. If this team is ever going to compete again, they have to rebuild from the ground up. Moves like this are how you do that.

WATCH: Ryan McMahon traded to the Yankees