Denver, CO
Missing 15-year-old girl last seen in Lakewood on Aug. 23
![Missing 15-year-old girl last seen in Lakewood on Aug. 23 Missing 15-year-old girl last seen in Lakewood on Aug. 23](https://www.denverpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/MISSING.png?w=500&h=500)
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation issued a missing Indigenous person alert for a 15-year-old girl last seen in Lakewood more than a week ago.
Valerie Ayala-Griego was last seen at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 23 in the 6100 block of West 13th Avenue. She also made a phone call at about 4:30 p.m. Aug. 25, but hasn’t been heard from since.
Ayala-Griego is about five-foot-six and 130 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. The last time anyone saw her, she was wearing a white hooded sweatshirt with “Paris” written on it, light-colored pants and black-and-white shoes.
If you see Ayala-Griego, call 911 or police dispatch, 303-980-7300, and mention case number LK24-027185.
Originally Published:
![](https://newspub.live/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/np-logo.png)
Denver, CO
Denver Nuggets Champion throws out bold Giannis Antetokounmpo claim
![Denver Nuggets Champion throws out bold Giannis Antetokounmpo claim Denver Nuggets Champion throws out bold Giannis Antetokounmpo claim](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4071,h_2289,x_856,y_1301/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/inside_the_nuggets/01j6qyxg8dek7vy4v899.jpg)
The NBA’s debate over the greatest players of all time has slowly evolved into a debate over eras. Many wonder if Bill Russell could play in today’s game or if a player like Giannis Antetkounmpo could play 40 years ago. Denver Nuggets star Michael Porter Jr. believes a guy like Giannis could not only play
Porter Jr. recently joined The Ringer’s Off Guard Podcast with Austin Rivers, where the two debated about the best players in the NBA and the different eras of NBA basketball.
“It’s better now,” Porter Jr. said. “If you take some of these players and put them then… Like, if you put Giannis [Antetokounmpo] in that era, he would’ve been the best player to ever tough a basketball.”
Austin Rivers cut him off to say, “He would’ve broken Wilt’s record. He would’ve had a game with like 140. Just going downhill.”
From athleticism to skill level, basketball has continued to evolve. Players today continue to be more and more skilled, resulting an increase in debates.
“As humans, we’re supposed to evolve and get better the longer we’re doing something,” Porter Jr. added. “So the players now obviously can be more skilled than the players back then, but there’s definitely players you could’ve taken from back then and put them in today’s game and they would’ve adapted. Like if you put Michael Jordan in today’s game, I’m sure he’s shooting way more threes. He’s probably still by far the best player in the NBA.”
These debates aren’t ending anytime soon, as players from today’s game and past eras continue to go back and forth on which eras is the best.
Nikola Jokic Made Unprecedented History at 2024 Paris Olympics
Kevin Durant Gets Honest About How NBA Players View Nikola Jokic
Russell Westbrook Reacts to Being Snubbed From Viral NBA List
Denver, CO
Sean Payton Offers Curious Response When Asked to Name Broncos’ QB2
![Sean Payton Offers Curious Response When Asked to Name Broncos’ QB2 Sean Payton Offers Curious Response When Asked to Name Broncos’ QB2](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_2725,h_1532,x_644,y_89/c_fill,w_1440,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/mile_high_huddle/01j6trm8xe49fvr7pcz6.jpg)
For the first time since 1983 with John Elway, the Denver Broncos will open up the regular season with a rookie starting quarterback. Bo Nix, the 2024 first-round pick, has been the story of the offseason and summer and will rightly be the focus as the Broncos travel to take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.
But there’s still the unsettled issue of who Nix’s backup will be. The Broncos surprised many by keeping three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster — Nix, Jarrett Stidham, and Zach Wilson.
Stidham still seems like the obvious prediction to be Denver’s QB2 behind Nix, but even with the season-opener in Seattle being just six days away, head coach Sean Payton has yet to confirm it.
“I’ll settle it and keep you guys posted,” Payton said on Monday when asked about who Denver’s backup quarterback will be.
What happens next on the Broncos beat? Don’t miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!
It’s Game Week, albeit Day 1, and Payton wouldn’t just come out and say who his backup QB is. It’s conspicuous, but that doesn’t mean that it’ll be Wilson.
In all honesty, Wilson makes more sense to be Nix’s backup, and for multiple reasons — not the least of which is his overwhelmingly positive and supportive attitude about his rookie counterpart. Wilson gushed about Nix in his first public remarks after the rookie was named starter.
“I was excited for him. I don’t think it was a surprise too much, obviously,” Wilson said back on August 25 following the Broncos’ preseason finale. “I think he’s had a great camp. I told him I’m excited for him for this opportunity. I really believe that they’re putting him in a good situation. I think Sean [Payton] has done a phenomenal job… And then Bo just continued to keep getting better. So I’m excited to see what he can do, and I think he’s ready for it.”
Compared to Stidham’s rather dour and self-oriented comments about being vanquished by Nix, Wilson has clearly taken a more supportive posture relative to his rookie teammate.
“First of all, obviously, I was very disappointed,” Stidham said on August 25. “I know I’m a starting quarterback in this league. I have no doubts about that, and it just didn’t shake out my way. I know what kind of player I am, what kind of person I am.”
Let’s not forget that, as a former No. 2 overall pick in the NFL draft, Wilson is technically Denver’s most experienced pro quarterback, with 33 career starts. Stidham, meanwhile, has all of four NFL starts since entering the league in 2019.
So perhaps Payton’s QB2 decision is not as “obvious” as I wrote above. Stidham seemed to take losing to Nix in the open competition this past summer a lot harder than Wilson did, and that could create a little bit of an awkward vibe.
Tapping Wilson to be the backup could help insulate Nix from those Stidham vibrations. But Nix, despite being an NFL rookie, isn’t exactly the traditional green-behind-the-ears first-year quarterback.
After all, Nix is 24 years old, he’s married, and he just so happens to be the most experienced college quarterback to ever be drafted into the NFL. His 61 college starts — spanning the SEC and now-defunct PAC-12 — are an NCAA record.
That experience and maturity are part of what made him such an attractive prospect to Payton and the Broncos. If things are a little sensitive around Stidham, Payton probably doesn’t have to worry too much about Nix’s feelings or reactions to it.
The Broncos haven’t released an official depth chart yet, but they will before the Week 1 tilt at Seattle. It might just be that Payton isn’t going to offer up any depth-chart revelations to the press until he’s mandated to by the NFL. Or there could be some there there, if you know what I mean.
Payton’s primary focus, like all of Broncos Country, is getting Nix ready to rock and roll in front of a rowdy, hostile crowd at Lumen Field. Nix has some unfinished business in that stadium, having come up short last season in the PAC-12 title game as Oregon fell to Washington at Lumen Field.
“It’s going to be loud,” Payton said of the Seattle opener. “I would imagine there will be some similarities to when Oregon goes to Washington and they’re playing in front of however many thousand people. That’s another loud stadium an hour down the road. So we’ll deal with the crowd noise this week. This won’t be the first game we play where it’s loud.”
Loud stadiums aren’t exactly a pro novelty, but Seattle has traditionally been one of the NFL’s loudest stadiums, so Payton and Nix will be ready for it. And which quarterback will be holding the clipboard as the No. 2 is an answer we’ll simply have to wait a little while longer to get.
Follow Mile High Huddle on X and Facebook and subscribe on YouTube for daily Broncos live-stream podcasts!
Denver, CO
Broncos announce additional number changes ahead of 2024 season
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — As the Broncos begin their first regular-season game week, several more players have changed their jersey numbers.
Outside linebacker Nik Bonitto and wide receivers Devaughn Vele and Lil’Jordan Humphrey all switched numbers.
New inside linebacker Kristian Welch also now has a jersey number.
Bonitto will now wear No. 15 after playing the first two seasons of his NFL career in No. 42. Vele will wear No. 17 after spending the offseason in No. 81. Humphrey will return to No. 84, which he wore for three seasons in New Orleans. He wore No. 17 in Denver in 2023.
Welch will wear No. 57 in Denver, which is the same number he wore for three seasons in Baltimore to begin his NFL career.
Several other Broncos previously changed their numbers following roster cutdowns.
See below for a list of the most-recent changes:
Bonitto: No. 15 (formerly No. 42)
Vele: No. 17 (formerly No. 81)
Welch: No. 57
Humphrey: No. 84 (formerly No. 17)
-
Politics1 week ago
Why won't Pennsylvania voters have results on Election Night?
-
Politics1 week ago
Trump sets intense pace with campaign events as questions swirl about Harris' policy positions
-
World1 week ago
Portugal coast hit by 5.3 magnitude earthquake
-
World1 week ago
Who is Telegram CEO Pavel Durov? What to know about his arrest in France
-
News1 week ago
Former national security adviser McMaster says he won’t work for Trump again
-
Politics1 week ago
VP Harris' tiebreaker votes in Senate were key to inflation-boosting Biden policies: expert
-
World1 week ago
Photos: 300,000 in emergency shelters after Bangladesh floods
-
Science1 week ago
How much more water and power does AI computing demand? Tech firms don't want you to know