This isn’t high school or college, where players have the same coach throughout.

This is the NFL where the shortest of playing careers can go through multiple coaches. Owen Daniels and Gary Kubiak are a unique case. Daniels is a 10-year player going on his third team.

For all 10 years and all three teams, Daniels’ coach has been Kubiak. They’re together again after the Broncos and Daniels reached an agreement Tuesday on a three-year, $12 million contract.

“That’s been the pattern so far,” said Daniels, minutes after arriving in Denver on Tuesday night. “It’s been a lot of fun.He’s an awesome coach, I’ve got a ton of respect for him. We seem to work well together.”

Daniels, a two-time Pro Bowl tight end, will be introduced to the Broncos’ region Wednesday with a news conference. Virgil Green, a four-year “blocking” tight end, was given his first news conference as a Bronco on Tuesday after he re-signed with the team on a three-year, $8.4 million contract.

He dressed for the occasion, wearing a black suit and a blue tie with a tight, double-Windsor knot. Pressed orange shirt. Big smile. And winter wool beanie. The beanie, Virgil?

“I’ve got my hair in braids and I didn’t want to show it for the cameras,” Green said, smiling while standing next to Marianne, his wife of two years.

There was symbolism in Green’s fashion as there is a whole new look to the Broncos’ free-agent class. Instead of signing stars and buzzing the Rocky Mountain region with offseason hope, the Broncos have reached a point where they’ve had to let some of their best players go.

In their stead, the Broncos have brought in or re-signed, solid, if understated professionals like Daniels and Green.

“I think John Elway has done a great job of making sure that he puts together a great team every year,” Green said about the Broncos’ general manager. “I’m sure he’s going to do that again this year. I don’t think this is something that fans should be too worried about or anybody should be too worried about because at the end of the day we’re going to put together a playoff performing team and we’re going to fight to get there.”

That’s the perspective from a player who has been inside the Broncos’ locker room the previous four years. Now for the view from the outside, where Daniels played nine previous seasons as an AFC opponent.

“It seems like they’ve been a team that’s always going to be there at the end of the season,” Daniels said. “They’re always going to be very competitive and have a chance to win it all. That’s really what I’m looking for at this point in my career is to win a ring. I didn’t see any better place to do it than here.”

If it wasn’t obvious the Broncos didn’t have much money to spend before free agency opened Tuesday, it became clear after they reached accord with Daniels and Green. Their budget strapped, the Broncos called off their scheduled visit with free-agent defensive lineman Kendall Langford.

Knowing the Broncos were no longer an option, Langford agreed to terms Tuesday with the Indianapolis Colts.

When free agency expires, Daniels may well be the prize of the Broncos’ free-agent class this year. To virtually no one’s surprise, he followed Kubiak to Denver.

Daniels, 32, has been around since he was drafted by Kubiak’s Houston Texans with the first pick of the fourth round in 2006. Kubiak was his Texans’ coach through 2013.

When Kubiak moved on to become the Baltimore Ravens’ offensive coordinator last year, Daniels also became a Raven. Had a good year, too, catching 48 passes.

Broncos offensive coordinator Rick Dennison and tight ends coach Brian Pariani were also part of Kubiak’s staff in recent years.

“They were always in the back of my mind,” said Daniels, who also drew interest from Atlanta, Seattle, Arizona and the Ravens. “Went through all the preliminary steps and Denver was really aggressive during this little three-day period that we had and we got something worked out.”

Between Daniels the all-around receiving and blocking tight end, and Green, a terrific run-blocking tight end who has steadily improved as a pass catcher, the Broncos believe they have filled the Julius Thomas void.

In the spread-’em-out, pass-heavy Broncos offense of 2013 and the first half of 2014, Thomas caught 24 touchdowns from quarterback Peyton Manning.

There will a greater emphasis on running the ball in Kubiak’s offensive system that requires its tight ends to block as well as catch.

Not that Thomas couldn’t find a fit. As of Tuesday evening, he was still awaiting the Jacksonville Jaguars to finalize his five-year deal worth around $9 million a year.

Former Broncos left guard Orlando Franklin finished up his five-year, $36.5 million contract with the AFC West rival San Diego Chargers. Defensive tackle Terrance “Pot Roast” Knighton was weighing interest from Indianapolis, San Diego and New England.

The Broncos are not completely finished with safety Rahim Moore, although he is exploring the market.

It’s not the Broncos are poor so much as they had already spent a large percentage of their payroll before free agency began. In 2015 alone, the Broncos will pay $15 million to Manning, $12.82 million to receiver Demaryius Thomas, $10 million to left tackle Ryan Clady and $9.75 million to outside linebacker Von Miller.

That’s 31.7 percent of the Broncos’ $150 million salary cap allocated to four players.

Mike Klis: mklis@denverpost.com or twitter.com/mikeklis