Thanks to the addition of Peyton Manning, the Denver Broncos are officially in a win now mode. Last season was a great start, as the team cruised through the regular season, but they ended up losing a heartbreaker to eventual Super Bowl champions Baltimore. The team is loaded again heading into 2013, but for former Georgia standout Champ Bailey, he has to start feeling the pressure as far as how many years left he has left to produce at a high level.
The 35-year old is coming off a poor playoff performance, as Joe Flacco tore up an otherwise reliable secondary for the Broncos. Many people felt as though Bailey clearly lost a step in 2012, but he points to lingering injuries as being more of the case in that regard.
With the possible suspension of Von Miller to begin the season, there is a very good chance that the defense will face a much tougher task in 2013 as well. Chris Harris and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie are just two of the players who will help out Bailey in the secondary, and they will need it with less pressure on the quarterback from a linebacker position.
Although very few people play fantasy football that selects individual defensive players, Bailey and the Broncos defense will be a nice fantasy football sleeper pick collectively. They have all the goods to be dominant, especially when Miller returns and the team is at full strength. For Champ Bailey fans, this could be his best chance to ever get that Super Bowl ring that he has been chasing since entering the league in 1999.