DENVER (AP) — John Elway the executive is about to find out if he’s as good at bouncing back as John Elway the quarterback was.

Elway compares the heartbreak of Denver’s loss to Baltimore in the playoffs last January to Jacksonville’s upset of the well-rested Broncos 17 years earlier when they also were 13-3 and the AFC’s prohibitive Super Bowl favorite.

The Broncos bounced back to win the next two Super Bowls.

“And believe me, that’s what I’m praying that we’re going to do these next two, three, four years is to use last year and be able to get over the hump and get to the Super Bowl and be able to win it,” said Elway, now the Broncos executive vice president.

As a player, Elway trudged through the tunnel at Mile High in deafening silence after a stunning 30-27 home loss to the Jaguars.

He made the same lonely walk in a suit and tie eight months ago following Denver’s 38-35 loss to the Ravens at Sports Authority Field.

The Broncos kick off the new season against the Super Bowl champion Ravens tonight at Sports Authority Field, site of Joe Flacco’s 70- yard touchdown toss to Jacoby Jones over Rahim Moore that tied the game at 35 with a half minute left in regulation.

As a player, Elway used the heartbreak off the loss to the Jaguars to stoke his internal fire as he guided the Broncos to a Super Bowl win over Green Bay a year later.

This time, he’s using the gut-wrenching early exit from the playoffs to make sure there’s no complacency at Dove Valley again. He added Wes Welker, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Louis Vasquez as the crown jewels of a $125 million offseason spending spree.