Tonight at 9 p.m. ET, the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos kick off their respective preseasons live from Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver. The game can be live streamed here. Seattle fans can hear all of the action on KIRO 97.3 while Denver fans can do the same on KRFX 103.5.
This is a rematch of Super Bowl XLVIII as Seattle topped Denver 43-8 on Feb. 2 to earn the first title in franchise history.
The Super Bowl champion Seahawks finished last season with a 13-3 record and first place finish in the NFC West while the AFC champion Broncos also finished 13-3 with a first place AFC West finish before dropping the Super Bowl.
Russell Wilson returns for his third season as the Seahawks quarterback, though it remains to be seen how he'll be utilized tonight, if at all. Wilson went 257-for-407 (63.1 percent) for 3,357 yards with 26 touchdowns and nine interceptions en route to the Super Bowl last season.
Marshawn Lynch, who missed most of training camp due to a contract holdout, led Seattle with 1,257 rushing yards last season off of 301 carries while reaching the end zone 12 times.
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll cautioned that Lynch missed a lot of time and needs to get into football shape.
"He missed a lot of offseason with us. He did work very hard - he had a really diligent routine that he went through, regimen that he went through. But it's still football shape he's gotta get in," Carroll told the team's official website.
Though he fell shy of his second Super Bowl championship, Peyton Manning had a record-breaking year for the Broncos amid murmurs that his retirement was looming and his neck won't hold up.
Manning went 450-for-659 (68.3 percent) for 5,477 yards with 55 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
Manning's new teammate Emmanuel Sanders caused a bit of a stir when he implied that Manning is a better leader than his former quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers signal caller Ben Roethlisberger.
"I feel like Peyton is a far better leader, in terms of staying after practice, catching balls, wanting guys to get on the same page with him, things of that sort," Sanders told 104.3 The Fan in Denver. "This is the first time that I've had a quarterback that every single day after practice - no matter what his accolades, NFL MVP, Super Bowl ring - he keeps guys like me and [rookie receiver Cody] Latimer after practice. . . . He's not one of those guys you've got to chase down. He's going to be right in the same spot, ready to work, every single day. I just feel like that's a difference from a mental standpoint."
One of Manning's favorite targets last season was Demaryius Thomas, who hauled in 92 receptions for 1,430 yards while reaching the end zone 14 times.
It a Super Bowl XLVIII rematch when the Seahawks and Broncos collide at Sports Authority Field at Mile High tonight in preseason action.
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