Lindsay H. Jones

USA TODAY Sports

Ramirez manned the center position this season -- his first as a full-time starter

Ramirez mans the pivot for the highest-scoring team ever five years after playing on the 0-16 Lions

NEWARK — Five years ago, the man Peyton Manning currently trusts more than just about anybody on the Denver Broncos wasn't deemed good enough to start for one of the worst teams in NFL history.

Perhaps no one here at the Super Bowl has experienced quite the career lows and highs as Broncos center Manny Ramirez. He has gone from being a seldom-used backup guard on the 0-16 Detroit Lions in 2008 to the starting center for the highest scoring team in league history.

"You don't ever want to see a team go 0-16, and unfortunately we were a part of it," Ramirez said. "You gain a lot of positives, because it builds your character. It makes you see, you take a step back and see, what am I doing? What adjustments do I need to make? And it's worked out so far."

Ramirez is one of three members of that Lions team that will play in Super Bowl XLVIII, along with Broncos middle linebacker Paris Lenon and Seattle Seahawks pass rusher Cliff Avril.

But the winless season might not have been the lowest professional point of Ramirez's career. That came when he was cut by the Lions, about a month into the 2010 season, without playing a game that year. He spent the rest of the season unemployed, contemplating his life after football.

"It was hard, because it put everything in perspective. Am I really capable of playing at this level? You start thinking of other options you might have to take as far as providing for your family," Ramirez said. "At the same time, I was like, if God is giving me another opportunity to play, I'm going to take full advantage of it."

That chance came with the Broncos, who signed Ramirez to a futures contract in early 2011.

He made the team that year as a backup guard — playing in just two regular-season games and then two postseason contests after starter Chris Kuper suffered a broken ankle in the regular-season finale.

He became a part-time starter at guard last year, filling in for Kuper for 11 games before coaches asked him to make a position change that would redefine his career. With J.D. Walton, the starting center for more than two seasons, still recovering from ankle surgery, the Broncos needed someone to snap the ball to Manning during offseason workouts.

Enter Ramirez, who had never made a snap in an NFL game.

"Once I started taking my first snaps with Peyton, I said, 'I'm in there, this is my job,'" Ramirez said. "That's how I looked at it. It's been a blessing to say I've been able to hold that position the entire year."

It would have been a challenge to switch positions while playing in any offense, but Manning's line-of-scrimmage theatrics put even more pressure on Ramirez, who has to act as a translator between Manning and the rest of his fellow offensive linemen.

"It's been making sure I'm on point with everything the quarterback sees — what '18' sees — and to be able to make the adjustments he sees and be able to get the offensive line on the same page as quickly as possible," Ramirez said.

That process has been made considerably easier by the addition of all-pro right guard Louis Vasquez — Ramirez's former college teammate and roommate while at Texas Tech. Lined up next to each other again, the duo beefed up the interior of Denver's offensive line.

They have teamed up off the field as well to serve as ambassadors for the Hispanic community, including hosting a youth football camp at the Broncos facility with Hall of Fame offensive lineman Anthony Munoz in September.

"It can be overwhelming, but we're taking it for what it is, and it's awesome to know that we have such a large group, especially youth, out there watching us," Vasquez said.

"Hopefully it opens their eyes to say anything is possible."