5 ways NFL will change if Broncos win Super Bowl 50

It's the early morning hours of Feb. 8 and the last of the confetti has landed. The Denver Broncos are Super Bowl champions.

General manager John Elway's master plan has succeeded and the Broncos, on the strength of their fantastic defense and a brief spurt of adequate play from a broken-down Peyton Manning, have reached the top of the mountain.

In the days, months, and years to come, the Broncos' victory alters the course of the NFL in several key ways:

Manning walks off into the sunset

It's the scenario Manning and Elway dreamed of when the team took a chance and signed the veteran passer to a mega-deal in 2012, at a time when Manning was coming off multiple neck surgeries and there were legitimate questions if he would ever return to form.

The path to a career-capping win wasn't easy for Manning, and no one will claim he's going out as the same player he was in his prime, but he did just enough to experience the rare joy of leaving the game as a champion.

In winning his second ring, Manning finally sheds the label of playoff choker and is henceforth universally appreciated as one of football's handful of all-time greats.

Manning among group to purchase Titans

With his playing days over, Manning wastes little time moving to the next phase of his football career: ownership.

Manning is a wealthy man after years at or near the top of the NFL's salary list, not to mention his successful business endeavors outside of football, but he doesn't have the $1.5 billion needed to buy an NFL team.

To make up the difference, Manning teams up with a collection of wealthy associates, including Papa John's founder John H. Schnatter, and works out a deal to buy the Tennessee Titans, whose owners have hinted at selling the team since Bud Adams' death.

It's a great fit for Manning, who played his college football at Tennessee and is still beloved in much of the state (despite years of dominating the Titans when he was quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts).

Manning excels as a hands-on owner - taking on a similar role to Elway's with the Broncos - and guiding the team's football decisions.

Broncos trade for Drew Brees

Elway recognizes the Broncos remain in a Super Bowl window the loss of Manning and seeks to replicate Manning's storybook ending by acquiring another superstar quarterback in the twilight of his career.

The Broncos aggressively explore the trade market, inquiring about the availability of Philip Rivers, Eli Manning, and Drew Brees.

In the end it's Brees, whose $30-million salary cap hit is untenable for the rebuilding New Orleans Saints, who proves to be available for the Broncos.

Elway swaps his 2016 first-round pick, plus additional mid-round picks in 2016 and 2017, to the Saints for Brees, who agrees to a restructured deal that essentially takes Manning's vacated slot in the Broncos' salary cap structure.

Osweiler signs with Texans, fails to win starting job

With Brees in the fold, the Broncos abandon attempts to re-sign Brock Osweiler. The lanky passer departs in free agency for the Houston Texans, where he competes with a draft pick to earn the team's starting job.

Despite a substantial edge in NFL experience, the same problems that plagued Osweiler in his brief time as Broncos starter (slow and questionable decision making) continue, and Osweiler loses a training camp battle with a rookie passer.

Miller tagged, prompting extended holdout

The Broncos and edge rusher Von Miller are unable to come to terms on a long-term contract extension. On the heels of a dominant Super Bowl performance, Miller seeks the richest deal ever given to a defensive player. The Broncos balk due to his checkered off-field history.

In the end, the Broncos are forced to use the franchise tag to retain Miller, a move he doesn't appreciate. Miller stages a holdout that lasts through the offseason and into the regular season.

Though Miller returns to play for the Broncos in the second half of the season, his relationship with the front office remains fractured and the sides agree to part ways in 2017.