Adamo Marinelli
April 25, 2020
General Manager George Paton had an active first offseason at the helm of the Denver Broncos, resigning several key core players and bringing in talent to improve the defensive line, secondary and linebacker core.
Their main needs in the draft are at the QB position, on the offensive line and they have minor needs at linebacker and running back.
9th overall pick: The Broncos will trade their 9th pick to the Falcons for the 4th overall pick, the 40th pick, and a 2022 first-round pick. The Falcons are okay offensively and need to improve their defense. They will be able to select whatever defensive player they want at 9. As for the Broncos, with the 4th overall pick, they will select Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State. Justin Fields excelled at a big school, against great competition and has the potential to be a franchise QB. He has great mechanics, is very accurate, is a good field general, is an elite pocket passer but can use his speed and agility to evade pressure and extend plays. He is a leader, he is tough and resilient. He needs to work on making sure he sees the whole field clearly and to avoid locking in on primary reads and with a slower release he needs to recognize pressure pre and post-snap, but he can be a great QB at the NFL level in a few seasons.
40th overall pick: Traded to the Falcons with the 2021 9th overall and a 2022 first-round pick for 2021 4th overall.
71st overall pick: The Broncos will select Jamin Davis, LB, Kentucky. Davis would be an excellent addition to a core consisting of Von Miller and Bradley Chubb. This pick could make Denver’s linebacker core top 5 in the NFL. He is a top prospect with an excellent combination of size, speed, strength, length, and the ability to pursue QBs and ball carriers. He has a nose for finding the ball carrier and can stop the run and is explosive when rushing the passer. His vision, focus, and field awareness are innate strengths that all play a part in his ability to play past blockers with his eyes and pursue with consistent fluidity to the direction of the running play. He can also cover slot receivers and big tight ends which will help with Kelce and Waller. Finally, he is a ball-hawk in zone coverage. With some experience under Fangio, he’ll be good.
114th pick: Walker Little, OT, Stanford. Little might be one of the biggest sleepers in the draft. After missing the 2019 season with injury and opting out in 2020 due to COVID-19, he has not played a meaningful snap, so it might take him some time to adjust to playing at an NFL level, whether in preseason or OTAs. Walker has a big frame, at 6’7” and 304 lbs, and has amazing speed and agility for his frame. Little’s size and athleticism shined at his pro day. He has a great first step that helps him excel both in pass blocking and run blocking. His ability to function in space and move into the second level was impressive. Finally, his kick step backward in pass protection is amazing. He was able to gain ground quickly with long legs firing out of his stance. There’s some concern with his extended break but he’ll be good in 1-2 years.
152nd pick: Kelvin Joseph, CB, Kentucky. Joseph has been flying up the draft boards as of late and could be a nice addition to an already strong Broncos’ secondary. He is a nice size at almost 6 feet tall and almost 200 pounds. He has great ball skills, excels in man coverage, and has a huge upside. He is very aggressive and loves to press coverage yet he has the footwork and speed to keep the action in front of him. He can cover a lot of ground in little time and excels at tracking passes in the air to nicely time his pass defenses which leads to interceptions. He is a good field general and can quickly diagnose plays. He excels at getting off blocks to defend the run. He always takes the best angle to make a play in coverage and uses his hands to protect himself. He is not the most explosive off the line of scrimmage, can sometimes get beat off the line and he often stays in his backpedal for too long, which hurts him.
191st pick: Kendrick Green, OG, Illinois. Green should help solidify the Broncos’ offensive line and provide good depth. He transitioned to guard from defensive tackle and started 33 consecutive games as a guard or center. Green has the mobility, agility, and athleticism to develop into a starting-caliber offensive lineman at the NFL level. However, Green is rough around the edges and needs some work to develop into a starting lineman. His footwork, base, and his lateral movement needs to improve. He needs to straighten his angles when climbing to the second level when run blocking and in pass protection, he can sometimes get beat or knocked down to the floor. But considering he is new to the position, his flashes of leverage at the point of mobility and attack make him a good developmental/backup center or right guard.
237th pick: Khalil Herbert, RB, Virginia Tech. After Philip Lindsay left in free agency and signed with the Texans, the Broncos’ backfield was handed to Melvin Gordon, who recorded almost1000 rushing yards and 9 rushing touchdowns. Behind Gordon is Royce Freeman who has had a solid 3-year career with the Broncos thus far. 2021 is the last year of Gordon’s contract and they should resign him, but if not Freeman can take control of the backfield with Herbert behind him. Herbert wasn’t super productive from 2016-19, but had a breakout year in 2020 with 1192 rush yards and 8 TDs, averaging nearly 8 yards per carry. Herbert is a disciplined runner that has good vision, takes excellent angles, has good contact balance, can keep running after contact, and is a smooth operator. While he’s a good athlete, he isn’t overly dynamic—Herbert’s big plays come because of his decision-making and explosiveness going through gaps made by his o-line. He’ll only get better behind Gordon.
239th pick: Royce Newman, OT, Mississippi. He is listed as a right guard but he is versatile and athletic enough to play right tackle. He is underrated who is big and strong but has great speed and agility in run block and pass protection. He has great fundamentals and plays with a lot of strength. He quickly sets up in pass protection, bends his knees, stays square to defenders, keeps his feet moving, and has great leverage at the point of attack. He immediately gets his hands into defenders at the correct locations. When run blocking, he explodes off the line of scrimmage, firing out to the second level always looking for someone to hit or block. He almost always wins one on one blocking assignments. He does struggle with hitting a rapidly moving target and will need time to develop blocking top-tier edge rushers so they do not blow by him. His footwork and explosiveness of the line of scrimmage in pass protection need to improve. Once it does, he will be able to hit and block moving targets easier.
253rd pick: Tommy Doyle, OT, Miami. Being a defensive football player and a highschool hockey player, he has seen constant improvement on the technical side of the tackle position. With a 6’8”, 326-pound frame, he is able to generate a lot of power when run and pass blocking and is very flexible and agile for his size. He has good fundamentals in pass protection and is able to keep opposing edge rushers off of his quarterback consistently. His hands and feet are in sync in pass pro and he is able to angle defenders away from the quarterback with his initial punch. Doyle struggles in open space in the run game. He can generate power with his blocks but has trouble engaging and moving towards defenders when he has to block defenders downfield. His best fit is on a pass-first team. The Broncos are a run-first team, but once they establish the run and open play action, Doyle can succeed. Another solid depth pick for George Paton and the Broncos.
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