Broncos receive sparkly Super Bowl rings

The Denver Broncos briefly set aside their public squabbles yesterday to unite around an important cause—receiving their long-awaited, gigantic Super Bowl rings. The rings, created by Jostens, each include 212 diamonds that amount to roughly 5.05 carats.

According to the Broncos website, “The Bronco mane is created from diamond-cut orange sapphires while the head features pave-set diamonds and a custom-cut corundum blue stone.”

The face of the ring features the Broncos’ logo, the legend “World Champions,” Denver’s three Lombardi trophies, a reference to Super Bowl 50, and enough sparkle to power a unicorn convention in the Land of Gum Drop Candy Corns.

One side of the ring features the legend “This one’s for Pat.” Pat is Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, who 18 years earlier proclaimed, “This one’s for John,” when John Elway won his first Super Bowl. Though Bowlen was not able to attend Super Bowl 50 because of health issues, Elway, now the Broncos general manager, told the world, “This one’s for Pat,” amid post-game celebrations.

The other side of the ring features each player’s name and number, along with an NFL crown. (Interestingly, the photo gallery on the Broncos website features the ring that belongs to Von Miller, who has been in a very public contract feud with the team, and who recently cropped John Elway out of a group photo on Instagram.)

Etched on the inside of the ring are the final scores of each of the Broncos’ postseason wins en route to the Super Bowl title.

Speaking of the Panthers, they also received some rings recently. The 77-diamond, 1.35-carat NFC Championship rings highlight the team’s 17-2 record and feature the legend, “Keep Pounding,” an homage to the late Panthers coach Sam Mills, who used the phrase, which has since become a team mantra, in a post-game speech in 2004.