Dre Greenlaw's Emotional Story Hits Home with Broncos Country
By Kevin Dandino
· Player News
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· 3 min read
He’s been through more than most—and now he’s exactly where he wants to be: Denver.
Me, personally? I rock a custom “KEVDAN” Broncos jersey. I am a firm believer in not purchasing a specific player’s jersey because players seem to come and go too often over the last 10 years (let me dust off the Drew Lock jersey I got after his first few wins with the team for example). However, the Broncos are turning a corner and we can expect some of these players to be around for a long time. Players such as Nix, Surtain and Mimms gives fans real hope – this team finally looks built for a Super Bowl run if things break right.
There are occasional exceptions though. A player like Phillip Lindsay whose story of growing up in Colorado wanting to be on the Broncos to ultimately playing for the Blue and Orange inspire many fans to get behind them almost immediately. The Denver Broncos might just have another one of those stories unfolding now.
Broncos Country has yet to really get to see these news players in action, much less get to really know them until training camp when the flurry of interviews become available. Today, Denver’s newest linebacker from the 49ers, Dre Greenlaw, took the podium talking about why he chose the Broncos and what it meant for the Broncos to really want him. His response has made me an instant fan before seeing on the field for a single play. Greenlaw said:
*“They wanted me… throughout the whole time I was talking to Sean, there were no ifs, ands, buts, this or that. Man, we want you to be here. You know… I was a foster kid growing up, so not a lot of times people just wanted me. It made me feel special—made me feel like this was the place I needed to be.”*
You wouldn’t know by looking at him today, but Dre had a notably tough childhood. Growing up in a home with eleven siblings and experiencing the hardship of his parents splitting apart, which also lead to the siblings being separated led to a real lack of stability on the whole family. Following the split, Dre, along with his mom and the six other siblings that had gone with her, would never find a permanent residence. Needless to say, there was a lot more going on beyond that. These challenges led to Dre being suspended from school—and even landing in jail at one point. Eventually, he found strength, maturity and most importantly family through football. His story is fascinating, and I encourage you to read more about his story because it truly is an inspirational story of being able to find success no matter what adversity life throws our way.
While sentimental stories can be very inspirational, this is still the NFL and expectations are high. There are a lot of legitimate concerns about whether Greenlaw can stay healthy or not. While head coach Sean Payton has brought in a phenomenal athletic training staff which allowed the Broncos to be one of the heathiest teams throughout all of 2024, Broncos Country has too many recent memories of injury-prone free agents coming to Denver and doing nothing but eating away at our cap space because they continue to get and stay injured.
So, knock on wood, Broncos Country. If Dre Greenlaw can stay healthy, do not be surprised if he becomes one of the most beloved Broncos on the roster. That #57 jersey? Might be worth grabbing early.
Tags: Greenlaw, Broncos, Training Camp