ENGLEWOOD Emmanuel Sanders Jersey , Colo. (AP) — Johnson is getting a shot in the NFL with the Denver Broncos less than a month after he was acquitted along with a college teammate of aggravated rape charges.After his first practice as a pro Monday, Johnson said, “It’s a blessing to be a part of a team, I’m excited to get out here, start working out and start working my tail off.”He said he never doubted he’d see this day .“No, never a time. I had faith. I trusted in God,” he said. “I kept working and being determined and kept pushing. I knew it was going to come.”Johnson said the Broncos reached out to him Saturday.Coach Vance Joseph said he wasn’t sure what to expect from Johnson following such a long layoff from football.“Well, we’ll see. It’s been three years since he’s actually played football. At that time, three years ago, he was a serious prospect,” Joseph said. “He’s got great size, he can run, he’s a very, very intelligent player. So, we’ll see.”Johnson and Michael Williams were acquitted of all counts July 27. They were indicted in February 2015 after a woman said both men raped her during a party at Johnson’s apartment in the early morning hours of Nov. 16, 2014. Johnson and Williams were suspended from the team less than 48 hours after the party and never played for Tennessee again.While Williams was a part-time starter in the secondary, Johnson was a four-year starter and a pro prospect whose invitation to the 2015 NFL combine was rescinded after charges were filed.“A.J. hasn’t had the opportunity to play football for the last three years while resolving a serious legal matter,” general manager John Elway said in a statement Monday. “We’ve had several conversations with him since he’s been cleared and have become very familiar with his background and character. Our organization is confident A.J. is ready to move forward and resume his playing career.”Joseph said the Broncos did their due diligence before signing Johnson.“We talked to all of his coaches. My cousin actually coached him at Tennessee. Zach (Azzanni DeMarcus Ware Jersey , Denver’s new wide receivers coach) had him at Tennessee. Everyone spoke highly about the guy, so we’ll see. Again, he wants to play football, he’s been training for two years to play football. He’s been here for four hours, so we’ll see how he fits in.”To make room for Johnson, the Broncos released linebacker Stansly Maponga.They also signed safety Shamarko Thomas after losing safety Jamal Carter (torn hamstring) for the season Saturday night in their preseason opener. Joseph said Carter needs surgery and will go on IR.Thomas was released by the Colts on Saturday, less than 48 hours after he was ejected from a preseason game against Seattle for an illegal helmet hit.Thomas said Colts coach Frank Reich told him his release wasn’t over that hit, however.“It’s all in God’s plan. The ejection, I leaned with my helmet, that’s what they say. I’m just happy to be here and be a Bronco,” Thomas said.Now a 26-year-old rookie, Johnson was a three-time All-SEC selection at Tennessee from 2011-14. He was a four-year starter in Knoxville whose 425 tackles ran second among any Volunteer since the school started keeping track of the statistic in 1970.In 46 career games at Tennessee, he had 30½ tackles for loss, three sacks, an interception, 11 pass breakups, three forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries. He posted double digits in tackles 23 times.Prosecutors painted Johnson and Williams as entitled athletes who weren’t used to being told no. Defense attorneys argued that the woman had sex with both men at the same time and then lied, claiming she had been raped.After a jury of seven women and five men found Johnson and Williams not guilty Dre’Mont Jones Jersey 2019 , Johnson said, “I just knew God was going to take care of it.”The Broncos listed the 6-foot-2 Johnson at 243 pounds, but he said at his trial last month that he weighs 255 as he sought to revive his dream of playing in the NFL.Johnson said he wasn’t bitter over his long-delayed debut.“No, I’m not a bitter guy. I wake up happy every day. I’m blessed, I’m glad to be out here,” he said. “I haven’t had this many cameras in my face in a long time. But no, I have no bitterness about me.” Benjamin Allbright said the buzz in Nashville was that Denver’s was one of the top drafts this year." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesMile High Report homepageHorizontal - WhiteMile High Reporta Denver Broncos communityFollow Mile High Report online:Follow Mile High Report on TwitterFollow Mile High Report on FacebookLog in or sign upLog InSign UpSite searchSearchSearchMile High Report main menuFanpostsFanshotsSectionsBroncosOddsShopAboutMastheadCommunity GuidelinesStubHubMoreAll 321 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Broncos NewsBroncos ScheduleBroncos PodcastsBroncos Film RoomBroncos RosterBroncos Injury UpdatesFull ArchiveBroncos StoriesScheduleRosterStatsOdds Shop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub ✕This past week could be a “narrative changing moment for John Elway and the draft”New,32commentsBenjamin Allbright said the buzz in Nashville was that Denver’s was one of the top drafts this year.MDTShare this storyShare this on FacebookShare this on TwitterShareAll sharing optionsShareAll sharing options for:This past week could be a “narrative changing moment for John Elway and the draft”TwitterFacebookRedditPocketFlipboardEmailThe praise keeps coming in for the Broncos 2019 draft. NFL insider, Benjamin Allbright, joined the guys on 1st & 10 at 10 on Orange and Blue 760 this morning to share some of what he had been hearing around league circles from being in Nashville all last week.Allbright said that the primary buzz around Nashville this week was that Elway and the Broncos had “one of the top two or three” drafts in the league this year, and after years of mediocre drafts that has led to Denver not re-signing a single draft pick since the 2012 draft, Allbright suggests this could potentially be a “narrative changing moment for John Elway and the draft.”Since joining the team management ranks in 2011, Elway has been seen as a GM who is a good negotiator with a penchant for landing key free agents, taking the team to two Super Bowls on the backs of big time signings, but any praise directed toward Elway’s GM prowess is always quickly caveated by his poor drafting record. “If only Elway could figure out how to draft.”And the criticism has been warranted. Denver’s 2013-2017 drafts were chalk full of reaches, busts, injured players, risky picks Cheap Dre’Mont Jones Jersey , and any other negative draft buzzword you want to include, Denver picked them. However, after last year’s draft netted multiple starters and the makings of a young core of talent, the big question was whether Elway could do it again, or was it a function of them picking at #5?Certainly, picking in the top ten the last two drafts has helped, but stringing another excellent draft together this year to go with last year’s class has begun to potentially chip away at the narrative that Elway cannot draft his way to franchise success.Allbright added on air, “whatever it is that they changed, whatever it is that they figured out in their evaluation process, or their evaluation of themselves, they’ve figured out how to better evaluate players and it seems to be working.” Check out the whole interview above for more great insights.We’ve been talking about this for the last several days here, and the guys on the show today also touch on a big piece of what seems to be part of Elway’s new draft strategy that Ian St. Clair has been talking about - how Denver’s last two draft classes are guys that all show great football character and leadership. Now obviously, no one wins awards in May, so it remains to be seen just how good this class can be until they put the pads on, but the early returns of these two most recent draft classes indicate that Denver may have just armored their Achilles heel.