Nick Saban insisted a recent visit from Denver Broncos quarterback and offensive coordinator Adam Gase was "mutually beneficial."

After Thursday's practice, AL.com reported, Alabama head football coach indicated Manning and Gase's visit was spontaneous. He told reporters the two were "making some visits" and stopped by Tuscaloosa.

"To be honest with you, he was just trying to learn so he could be a better player," Saban said. "I think a lot of people would say, 'Wow, the guy is one of the best, if not the best, and certainly from a career standpoint probably about as good as anybody's been in the history of the league. After all the experience and knowledge that he has, he's going out and trying to seek more knowledge and understanding of the game of football so he can play better.'"

Alabama has two abundantly obvious benefits from Manning's presence in a Crimson Tide practice. First, the best defense in college football is horrible against the no-huddle offense and Manning's Broncos run do that better than any team in the world. Two, Alabama lost quarterback A.J. McCarron, a Heisman finalist, to the NFL Draft and now have two former backups competing for the starting job.

Johnny Manziel and the Texas A&M offense made the Crimson Tide defense look foolish two years in a row. This past season, Alabama may have won the game, but they surrendered a record 628 yards of total offense, more than 500 belonging to Manziel himself.

Saban said he and Peyton's father Archie have been friends for a "long, long time" and that has translated into a friendship with the Broncos passer. Senior quarterback Blake Sims took reps with the first team offense in the Tide's spring game, but Florida State transfer Jacob Coker is expected on campus in a matter of months.

He was favored to be the Seminoles' starter last season until that Jameis Winston fellow arrived. Now Coker needs to finish his undergraduate degree before officially transferring to Alabama. As a graduate student, he will be able to compete with Sims for the starting QB position.

"That was kind of a mutual, hopefully beneficial - I know it was a benefit to us," Saban told reporters. "I hope it was a benefit to them as well."

It probably was not, NBC Sports reported, because the Broncos offseason workout sessions have not begun yet. Under the new collective bargaining agreement, players and coaches cannot meet until then. This is by all indications the first time a team could be penalized for this specific violation.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed to NBC Sports the league is looking into Gase and Manning's visit to Tuscaloosa.