ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Marvin Austin was an afterthought in the Denver Broncos $110 million defensive makeover this off-season. Long after fellow free agents DeMarcus Ware, Aqib Talib and T.J. Ward signed their mega deals and posed with their orange jerseys, Austin slipped into town in May and quietly began his latest comeback. The fourth-year defensive tackle who signed a one-year, $570,000 contract might just prove to be general manager John Elways latest rummage-sale find to produce a big payoff. "Camp has gone pretty good," said Austin, who moved up Tuesday to take snaps with the starters. "Most importantly I feel great, healthy, just going out there and playing with the guys. Its great to be back in football, back able to move around like Im supposed to, like people know I can. "And the coaches just want to see what I can do out there against the 1s. Weve got the top offence in the league and they just wanted to see can I bring that tenacity and fire against the 1s." He did, the latest step in his return from career-saving back surgery last November that he feared at first would end his playing days. "Oh, my spine works now," Austin said. "It feels great. Ive been humbled throughout my career, so I know what type of opportunity I have. So, Im just grateful to be here. Im grateful to be able to say that I can still play football and especially at the NFL level." Austin (6-foot-2 and 319 pounds) said this is as good as hes ever felt, and the Broncos believe he looks better than ever, too. "He was a good acquisition," coach John Fox said. "I think John and his staff did a good job in that evaluation process. He has come off of a fairly significant injury and he looks like hes got that explosiveness and quickness he had when he came out of Chapel Hill." Funny that Fox should say that because Austin said, "I feel like college again." He was a second-round draft choice of the New York Giants in 2011 but he missed his rookie season with a torn chest muscle. He played in eight games in 2012 while dealing with a bad back that resulted in a weak right leg. And he played in a total of three games last season for Miami and Dallas. The Cowboys released him after just one game and one tackle when his bad back acted up in practice. Told he needed surgery, "I just cried my eyes out," Austin said. "I knew my career was over, being a second-round pick, being cut, and then coming back to that situation. It was over with for me in my mind." He underwent surgery to remove a herniated disc in his lower back and to take out part of the vertebral arch in order to decompress the corresponding spinal cord or spinal nerve root. The surgeon also "took out some of the bone in my spine to open up my spinal canal because I was born with a little bit of stenosis," Austin said. "I feel 10 million times better now," he said. He said his surgeon told him his back was in such bad shape its a wonder he wasnt paralyzed. "And I played with that for two years," Austin said. Able to work out as feverishly as he once did, he attacked his latest comeback dripping with gusto. "Now, to be out here playing and feel good, this is easy," he said as sweat drenched him after Tuesday mornings practice. "I was out there playing with a bum back, a bad leg. Im a grinder. At the end of the day, they aint going to say I didnt work. Regardless of whatever happens, if Im here or if Im not, if Im playing football or if Im not, youre not going to be able to say that Marvin Austin is lazy." He said he looked out at the crowd during the Broncos stadium scrimmage last weekend "and I was like, I love football again. I had lost the love for it, man, because I was dealing with so many injuries and they were so frustrating." Notes: The Broncos signed DL Brian Sanford, a 6-2, 280-pound fifth-year pro who appeared in a dozen games with Cleveland (2011-12) and Oakland (2013). Cheap Jerseys Authentic . The win puts the final playoff berth in Group A in question. If the Czechs beat Slovakia on Tuesday, they will go through. If they lose, Germany will get the last quarter-final berth. Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic . -- Green Bay wide receiver Greg Jennings will be on the sideline as the Packers make their push for a perfect regular season. http://www.wholesaleauthenticjerseys.cc/ . -- Challenged for the first time under Major League Baseballs expanded replay system, umpires got it right. Nike NFL Jerseys Wholesale . The deals were announced on Friday. Beckham will receive $4.175 million in base salary, while De Aza will receive $4.25 million. Beckham hit .267 with five home runs and 24 RBIs over 103 games last season, his fifth with the White Sox. Authentic NFL Jerseys . -- Southern Illinois coach Barry Hinson couldnt hear himself amid the roar in Koch Arena, so he kept stomping on the floor in a fruitless attempt to get his teams attention.NEW YORK -- Clemson star receiver Sammy Watkins was the common thread early on the final day of the NFL draft Saturday. Watkins, the fourth overall selection in the first round by Buffalo, saw his older brother, Florida cornerback Jaylen Watkins, taken by Philadelphia to open the fourth round. Philadelphia acquired the selection the previous day from Houston, trading its third-round pick (No. 83) for the Texans fourth- and fifth-round spots. "Today is a very big day for our family," Jaylen said. "I texted him (Thursday) before he went on stage and he just texted me ... were both excited for each other. We cant complain about anything that happened this year for us." The next pick, by Washington, was Sammy Watkins college teammate, cornerback Bashaud Breeland, who went up against the nations top wideout in practice for several years at Clemson. Watkins fellow receiver with the Tigers, Martavis Bryant, also went in the fourth round, to Pittsburgh. "Sammy, hes a great player, hes like my brother," Bryant said. "I got a lot of love for him, so Ive never been the type to feel that (jealousy). Everything that the coaches asked me to do I did for the team, and if it was playing behind him then it was playing behind him." Andre Williams of Boston College, the nations leading rusher, went to the New York Giants, whose backfield has been plagued by injuries. Williams rushed for 2,177 yards and won the Doak Walker Award as Americas top running back in 2013, but he is considered a weak receiver. "Patience is a really valuable thing," Williams said. "It worked out the best possible way it could, no matter what round it ended up being.&" Arizonas KaDeem Carey, like Williams, an All-American runner, was taken four spots later by Chicago.dddddddddddd Oregons DeAnthony Thomas went to Kansas City, ostensibly to replace departed Dexter McCluster. National champion Florida State had two players go in the first five picks Saturday: running back Devonta Freeman to Atlanta, and centre Bryan Stork, another All-American, to New England. Big 12 power Oklahoma, which was blanked in the first three rounds, broke through when the New York Jets drafted receiver Jalen Saunders. While two other powerhouse programs, Texas and Georgia, did not yet have anyone taken, Duke did. When Buffalo made cornerback Ross Cockrell the 109th overall selection, it was the highest a Blue Devil had gone since offensive lineman Lennie Friedman went to Denver in the second round in 1999. Cockrell thought Duke making the Chick-Fil-A bowl helped his stock. "I think it opened a lot of eyes that this guy from Duke can actually play a little ball and will be able to compete at the next level," he said. The first quarterback to go Saturday was a bit of surprise: inconsistent Logan Thomas of Virginia Tech. Thomas never really improved to the level expected during his career with the Hokies after a strong debut. Hes big, with a strong arm, but is turnover prone. Going on consecutive picks late in the fifth round were two other star QBs: Aaron Murray of Georgia to Kansas City, and A.J. McCarron of Alabama to Cincinnati. Zach Mettenberger of LSU went in the sixth round to the Titans. Missouri defensive end/linebacker Michael Sam, the first openly gay player to enter the draft, also is still waiting. ' ' '