The unit was assembled

in the wake of back-to-back postseason fiascos, beginning with the 2012 Divisional Round upset defeat to the Ravens in which Joe Flacco forced overtime on a stunning 70-yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Jones with 31 seconds remaining in regulation -- a desperation heave that inexplicably went over the head of out-of-position safety Rahim Moore. The following season ended in the aforementioned Super Bowl XLVIII disaster against the Seahawks, a game that convinced executive vice president John Elway he had to toughen up his defense.That led to the free-agent signings of Talib, who'd spent the previous season-and-a-half with the Patriots, and Ward, a Cleveland Browns standout, both of whom would earn Pro Bowl selections in Year 1 as Broncos. And Harris, who'd torn his ACL in the Broncos' 2013 Divisional Round playoff victory over the San Diego Chargers, came back even better in 2014.The quartet was completed last March when the physical Stewart, formerly of the Ravens and Rams, was signed as a free agent, giving newly hired defensive coordinator Wade Phillips yet another heavy hitter."Stew's gonna knock some sense into you, for real," Talib said of the free safety. "But he's the guy who's gonna know everything about how we're supposed to line up, and he stays calm, cool and collected."That's in sharp contrast to the equally aggressive Ward, a strong safety Talib likened to the Tasmanian Devil."He's the spark," Harris said of Ward. "If we're not awake, he's gonna wake us up, man. He's gonna give a speech before we come out; he gets us going."Added Stewart: "There's no telling what he's gonna say, really. He's gonna make you high; you're going to be turned up. And definitely, he's our enforcer: People know that when they run the ball, or somebody catches it down the middle, they're gonna getWhen Ward gets overly hyped, he relies on Talib to calm him down. "Sometimes, I'll be flipping out, and 'Lib will be the guy who brings me back. He's like the uncle of the group."That's a far cry from Talib's persona as a self-proclaimed wild child during his first four-plus seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who selected him in the first round of the 2008 NFL Draft. After a long string of off-the-field trouble, Talib was traded to the Patriots midway through the 2012 season, his career at a crossroads."I've come a long, long way," he said. "I remember the days when I got to the league, after practice I'd head straight out of the house, get back in at maybe 1 in the morning and set three alarms making sure I'd wake up and get to work. [Patriots coach Bill Belichick] definitely took a chance on me, and I'm very thankful. It was just a long way from football player tofootball player."Back when Talib was a junior at Kansas, he was struck by the maturity of a Jayhawks freshman who joined him in the secondary: Harris, with whom he would reunite seven seasons later after signing a free-agent deal with the Broncos. "The first day we put on pads [at Kansas], our starting corner shattered his hand," Talib recalled. "So lo and behold, we've got this 18-year-old who's got to play now. He stepped in and did about as good a job as you could do."Chris, he's got an old soul. And he's the most competitive little person that I've ever seen. He knows what coach is gonna call before coach calls it, man."Added Stewart: "He's a studyholic."As Harris, who has fought through a painful shoulder injury during the Broncos' postseason run, attempts to crack the code while preparing for the league's top scoring offense on Super Sunday, he's also mindful of history: With a Lombardi Trophy, the No Fly Zone can join the Legion of Boom in any conversation breaking down the elite units of this era."Hey, right now, we're in the Bowl, man," Harris said. "But the Legion of Boom, they've got a ring, and almost got a second one, so that's what we need before we can even talk about those things. Hopefully, we can get back to this topic after the game."And if Sunday'sends with orange and blue confetti falling from the Santa Clara sky, don't be surprised if Talib is the Broncos defender uttering the loudest -- and sassiest -- words of all.