Veteran tight end Owen Daniels ready for shot at his first Super Bowl

Three teams.

10 years.

Three knee surgeries.

And yet here is Owen Daniels, the 33-year old tight still standing and finally getting his shot at the Super Bowl.

Daniels saved his best for last this year, with two touchdowns in the 20-18 win in the AFC Championship over the New England Patriots to get him a shot at something that has alluded him his entire career.

“It means everything,” an excited Daniels said this week. “Really why I’m still playing football right now is to get to this opportunity to play in this game. Ten years is a long time to wait, but its 100% worth the wait to be in this and have this experience and to be in the moment and enjoy everything and hopefully have a great outcome on Sunday.”

“I continue to be amazed by everything I see,” Daniels added. “We’re here and we’ve had conversations with guys about how we’re getting on this plane and we’re going to go to the Super Bowl. We’re here, we’re at the Super Bowl. It’s here and I’m loving it. It’s well worth the 10-year wait for sure. The 33-year wait maybe. I’m just trying to enjoy everything and live in the moment. That’s kind of been our thing, to live in the moment, enjoy it and continue to work hard. It’s been outstanding.”

So will the two touchdown outburst be an occurring trend this weekend for the veteran who caught just three during the regular season.

“Of course,” Daniels said about his performance. “I would love for that to continue. We’ll see what the game dictates but I’m always trying to do my best to get open and make plays when the opportunity comes my way. I had two opportunities last week that I made the most of, and hopefully make some more this weekend. I’m excited by this opportunity. I’m excited about this game. Hopefully get some more chances to make some big plays.”

The two-time Pro Bowler was left without a team during the offseason after spending eight years with the Houston Texans and one with the Baltimore Ravens.

Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak reached out to the then free agent, a player he knew very well.

The two had spent ten years together, and for Kubiak the move was a no-brainer.

“He has been very important,” Kubiak said. “I’m really proud of him. I’ve said this numerous times: as a coach, when you bounce and you go somewhere and guys are free, you get asked about them. That’s just the way it is. If you’re going to stand up and say, ‘Go get this player,’ (and) those types of things, you better be right,”

“There are a lot of players out there, but I’ve always thought the world of Owen. I knew he had some football left in him. One of the things we’ve had to do with Owen the last two years is really watch his work and stuff, because he has had some knee issues and those types of things…With him coming here, we tried to do the same thing. But, he has responded, and he’s a pro. I knew he’d be a great guy in the locker room. I told (Broncos Executive Vice President of Football Operations) John (Elway), ‘You watch the film, but I’ll stand up for him as a person.’ They watched the film, and the good news is we got him with us. (I am) very proud of him.”

Quarterback Peyton Manning expressed similar thoughts.

“I knew Owen was going to be a big part of this team,” Manning said. “We lost (Jacksonville Jaguars tight end) Julius Thomas, (tight end) Virgil Green was back, but Owen was going to play a big role and of course the fact that he was so familiar with this offense and Coach Kubiak has played with him, or coached him for all 10 plus years, he could speak the language.”

“Owen has had an outstanding career,” Manning added. “I played in a couple Pro Bowls with Owen over there and use to play him a bunch when the Colts would play in Houston. So I definitely thought he’d have a huge role in this offense and he was awesome against the Patriots two weeks ago, had two textbook classic routes, double move type routes that he executed them to the T. So it’s a real credit to him, he’s been a great pro throughout his career and I’m excited for him getting a chance to play in his first Super Bowl.”

Once Daniels found out Kubiak was coming to Denver, even with multiple teams looking at him, it wasn’t a very hard choice to make.

“It was a big factor,” Daniels said when asked about following his former and now current coach. “A big, big factor when I was a free agent this offseason to kind of decide where I wanted to play. [Kubiak] being the head man here kind of put the Denver Broncos at the top of the list and on top of that playing with Peyton Manning and the talent that the team had just kind of became a no brainer to me.”

The two formed what has turned into an inseparable bond in a cutthroat business that doesn’t allow for many more like it.

“Coach “Kub” gave me my first opportunity to play in the NFL, drafted me back in 2006,” Daniels said. “Being in his offense, tight ends get to play a lot of different spots, got a lot of different responsibilities and challenges to play that position, but it’s a lot of fun. You can line up everywhere – in the backfield, line of scrimmage, we’re everywhere. He likes to involve us, but you’ve got to be able to block, though. He likes to involve us in the pass game. I don’t know if maybe I’ve fooled him over the years that I’m good enough to keep playing, but I have nothing but love and respect for Coach Kub (Kubiak) and we’ve built a great relationship over the years. I wouldn’t want to play for anyone else.”

“It was definitely a dream,” Daniels added. “This is the dream scenario for me at this point. That’s the reason I followed [Coach]. I’ve always had “Kub’s” back with everything because I know he knows what it takes to get a championship done. He’s done it a couple times as a coordinator. He knows the ups and downs. He knows how to handle things. He’s a former player so he knows how we feel on a daily and weekly basis. He’s got a feel for us. Given the opportunity to come to Denver and play for him again with this team and roster, I saw that this could be it. This could be what we’ve been waiting for. They don’t always turn out like that. They usually don’t, but it’s hard for me to put into words. Like you said, it’s a dream. It’s a dream scenario, and we’re going to make the most of it.”

“We spent 10 years together so a whole decade of working together, working hard, grinding all that stress and all that work we put in,” Daniels said. “We wanted to make it to this point a lot sooner than we have. But I think it has made it that much more special for both of us that we are at this point in our careers right now.”

So after 131 career games played, just how much does the veteran have left in the tank?

“I want to play a couple more years, we’ll see,” Daniels said. “I kind of assess it. The last few years I have kind of been assessing my career and what I want to do next kind of after every season. Then I talk to my family and get their blessing on it.”

At least it sounds like he has a good plan for after he hangs them up.

“I do want to work in weather in some capacity when I’m done,” Daniels said with a smile. “I’ve been trying my best the last couple years to get my foot in the door and get out there and do some forecasting for home games and stuff like that,”

“It’s been a lot of fun for me. I’ve spent a ton of time on it in college so I want to put that degree to work when I’m done.”

Photo credits Barry Lively @LivelyNow