The Broncos this week focused on defense and a backup for Peyton Manning. For the 57th overall pick John Elway and company chose 21-year-old Arizona State Brock Osweiler for quarterback in the 2012 NFL Draft. He will compete with Caleb Hanie and Adam Weber for the No. 2 spot behind 36-year-old NFL MVP and Broncos starting QB, Peyton Manning.

The 6’7”, 242-pound Osweiler ranks among the tallest quarterbacks and has a great arm. As an ASU underclassman this year he threw for 4,036 yards, 26 touchdowns and 13 interceptions and completed 63 percent of passes. To help with the pass rush, the Broncos picked defensive tackle Derek Wolfe (6’5, 300 pounds) from the University of Cincinnati who had 21.5 tackles for a loss and 9.5 sacks in 2011. Also selected is the 5’9, 200-pound running back Ronnie Hillman from San Diego State who last season ran for 1,478 yards, 15 touchdowns and averaged 134 yards a game.

In Major League Baseball: The Rockies continue to struggle with an 11-11 record and near the bottom of the National League West in 4th place just ahead of San Diego with a 7-6 record at home and 4-5 on the road. In the May 1 game against the Dodgers, Rockies pitcher Juan Nicasio helped secure a 6-2 victory over L.A. by pitching for a solid six innings.

In the NBA: The Nuggets fell 103-88 to the Lakers in L.A.’s backyard in game 1 of the NBA playoffs. Danilo Gallinari led the Nuggets with 19 points. The Lakers’ strong defense kept the Nuggets trailing by 10-20 points through most of the game. The Lakers almost 7-foot Andrew Bynum made 13 rebounds and 10 blocks to keep the Nuggets to two digits and helped L.A. tie the rebound record in an NBA playoff. The two teams, who met in the playoffs in 2008 and 2009, meet again in Denver, Friday, May 4 for game 3 of the best-of-seven series.