ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Brock Osweiler inadvertently ignored a congratulatory tweet from his soon-to-be mentor, Peyton Manning.
Oops.
In fairness, Osweiler, the raw but talented quarterback out of Arizona State, was caught up in the craziness of the NFL draft Friday night and simply didn't pay that close of attention to his phone once he was picked by the Denver Broncos in the second round.
Only the next day, as Osweiler was about to board a plane to meet his new team, did he notice Manning's message.
"I was like, 'Oh shoot! Peyton Manning!'Â " he said.
"I hope that Peyton and myself can spark a great relationship," the nearly 6-foot-8 quarterback said. "I hope he doesn't mind me looking over his shoulder and trying to take as many notes as I possibly can."
Manning is a four-time NFL MVP because of his meticulous attention to detail and his relentless work ethic. Osweiler marvels at the dedication and pledges to emulate it.
For now -- and possibly even for the next few years to come -- Osweiler insists he doesn't mind playing backup to Manning. He's just looking at it as on-the-job training from one of the best in the business.
"When I see him, I'm going to ask him, 'Hey, what time are you getting to the building? What are we doing today? What drills do you have?'Â " Osweiler said. "I'm going to try to match everything that he does so I can continue to grow as a quarterback."
Osweiler blossomed under center with the Sun Devils, throwing for 4,036 yards and 26 touchdowns last season. He also set new school records for completions (326), attempts (516) and completion percentage (63.2).
Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press
