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Denver Broncos Top-25 Big Board for 2020 NFL Draft
The Denver Broncos are going into the offseason with their guy at quarterback… at least for the 2020 season. For the first time in what feels like ages, the Broncos aren’t looking under every rock and shaking every tree trying to find a worthy quarterback.
After the board mercifully fell in the Broncos’ favor, trading down from pick 10 to 20 to select Iowa TE Noah Fant while securing extra draft capital, the team walked out of round two with back-to-back picks at 41 and 42, selecting Kansas State OL Dalton Risner and trading up to select Missouri QB Drew Lock.
A five-game audition is not enough of a sample size to get a fair evaluation on any player, let alone one as nuanced and integral as the quarterback position. Still, Lock’s final five games of the 2019 season where he led the Broncos to a 4-1 finish and showed flashes of excellent arm talent and playmaking ability, means that the team can essentially rule out a quarterback in round one as the NFL Draft approaches.
Given that a first-round QB is the epitome of unlikely for Denver, that gives the Broncos a chance to go a multitude of different directions come draft day.
While it is almost a certainty that Joe Burrow, Tua Tagovailoa, and Justin Herbert are selected before Denver is on the clock at pick 15 (along with the possibility of Jordan Love and Jacob Eason), a really good talent is likely to fall to Denver regardless of how they stack their own non-QB big board.
How might a big board without QB look for GM John Elway and the Broncos? Here is my best stab at it.
1. Chase Young, EDGE | Ohio State
2. Jeffrey Okudah, CB | Ohio State
3. Isaiah Simmons, LB/S/NB | Clemson
4. Derrick Brown, IDL | Auburn
5. Tristan Wirfs, OL | Iowa
No shocker here but any big board not including a QB should start with the best player in the class. Denver is solid at edge rusher with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, but Young is a plug-and-play stud with generational potential. He won’t get to Denver, but he is an easy choice for number one on the board. After that it gets interesting.
Another Buckeye comes next as the best corner in this class. With length, physicality, and athleticism, Okudah would fit in any scheme with immense upside. Elway and the Broncos were reportedly doing extensive work on him before finishing the season strong and dropping down the draft order. Okudah might be the best CB prospect since Jalen Ramsey.
While I don't see Simmons as a linebacker in a majority of reps in the Vic Fangio scheme, he is lined up across the back seven. From safety to nickel to linebacker in dime, he is a match up neutralizer. With Will Parks playing nearly 80% of the snaps down the stretch, there is a hybrid safety/nickelback role there for the taking on this defense that fits Simmons perfectly. Furthermore given Denver will be up against good tight ends in Waller and Kelce for the foreseeable future, Simmons could be the solution to their problems.
Brown comes in fourth as one of the safest prospects in the class. Possessing the size and athleticism to line up from 0 tech to 5 tech and equally good against the pass and run, he is a no-brainer top-10 pick. A lineman who can win in a multitude of fronts in many different ways and can play all three downs could be huge for the entire Broncos’ defense between Miller and Chubb.
Wirfs rounds out the top-5. There are some questions surrounding his best fit at guard or tackle, but really he projects well at both. A positional and scheme transcendent offensive lineman boosts value along with possessing the best overall athleticism of anyone else at his position in this class. Given Denver seems bound and determined to go into 2020 with Garett Bolles and Ja'Wuan James starting at tackle, Wirfs can play guard out of the gate but can move to tackle when the need arises.
6. Jedrick Wills, Jr OL | Alabama
7. Javon Kinlaw, IDL | South Carolina
8. Jerry Jeudy, WR | Alabama
9. CeeDee Lamb, WR | Oklahoma
10. Henry Ruggs, III WR | Alabama
Wills is perhaps the safest lineman in this class just because he dominates where it matters most, in his pass sets. While he doesn’t have Wirfs' mobility or athletic upside he is so smooth and technically proficient. He may have played right tackle for Alabama but that was the blindside blocker for the Crimson Tide. Given his strength he could play guard year one if he had to which is important for Denver with their current situation on the offensive line. Wills is likely best in a gap scheme but can play zone. He seems likely to be the first tackle off the board at this point.
No one helped themselves more at the Senior Bowl than Kinlaw. With a massively long frame, a great first step, and strength to boot, Kinlaw is versatile with incredible upside on a defensive interior. Seeing the interior pass rushers dominate the Super Bowl should have teams valuing Kinlaw high. He is still somewhat raw technically but has more upside as a pass rusher than any other interior rusher in this class.
After that, here comes the current ‘Big Three’ at the WR position in Jeudy, Lamb, and Ruggs. Jeudy is a route dynamo that can separate better than anyone at the line and is a great fit in the Shurmur offense and opposite Sutton from Z or slot. Jeudy’s suddenness shows in both his route running and after the catch. Lamb is more physically dominant on tape at the catch point versus contested catches and after the catch, and has tremendous route running upside. Could be a candidate to slip with a less-than-stellar Xombine but the tape is really good.
Lamb is likely the least ‘quarterback dependent’ of the bunch given his catch radius and my ball mentality. Ruggs is very likely going to test as the fastest player in the upcoming class and can win with multidimensional speed. Over the top, after the catch, on the boundary, or over the middle he is a treat to score on every play. He improved as a route runner as the season progressed and has flashed a surprising catch radius for a ‘speed’ guy. Ruggs can help create space for everyone else on offense given how opponents must account for his speed and explosiveness in the pass game.
11. A.J. Epenesa, DL | Iowa
12. Laviska Shenault, Jr., WR | Colorado
13. Andrew Thomas, OL | Georgia
14. Xavier McKinney, NB/S | Alabama
15. Mekhi Becton, OT | Louisville
Epenesa appears to be slipping some according to consensus but he was dominant down the stretch for the Hawkeyes. He played mostly 7 tech in Iowa’s 4-3 but would be an easy fit at 5 technique for Denver. With tremendously strong hands and good power moves, the 6-foot-6, 285-pound player could be like Justin Smith in San Francisco was for Fangio. Just watch Epenesa absolutely dominate the inside in the fourth quarter of the Minnesota game if one has questions if Epenesa can play and win rushing from the interior.
Perhaps the biggest athletic freak in the draft, don’t sleep on Shenault going earlier than anyone currently believes is possible coming out of the NFL Combine. If he gets a clean bill of health out of the Combine, expect for him to put on a show. No one possesses his combination of height/weight/speed. His route running needs work, but never underestimate the hubris of an NFL coach that believes they can be the one to unlock that massive potential. It really will come down to his medicals.
Thomas was perhaps somewhat overrated early in the process as he has some athletic limitations as a pass blocker and in space as a run blocker, but don’t let his slip fool you as he is still very good. Technically proficient for many years against SEC competition, he (along with Wills and Wirfs) could easily play guard year one for Denver while providing depth, competition, and a future option at tackle.
McKinney might be the most slept on fit for the Broncos’ in the upcoming draft. His versatility in coverage and ability to play standout nickel gives him an inroad to start year 1 in sub. He has great instincts and is a very good tackler. His ability just screams Fangio safety.
If Denver had a 2020 hole at tackle, Becton would be higher. The 6-foot-7, 360-pound man moves much better than his size would indicate and has the potential to match the frame. However, he has technical issues and has had issues with weight and conditioning and given his height, probably is a tackle only (leverage and passing lanes harder to create for someone so tall). Could these issues be amplified playing at altitude? A question worth pondering at this point in time.
16. Jalen Reagor, WR | Texas Christian
17. Kristian Fulton, CB | LSU
18. Josh Jones, OT | Houston
19. Jeff Gladney, CB | TCU
20. Trevon Diggs, CB | Alabama
Perhaps the only player that could give Ruggs a run for his money in the 40-yard dash, Reagor is absolutely electric in space. He also has a rather chiseled out frame for a speedster standing at 5-foot-11 with 195 pounds of muscle on his body. Reagor was really hurt by horrific quarterback play this past season and has some questions about ability to beat press and consistency in his hands, but has the ability to win as another multi-dimensional speed threat. Having someone who is simply fast in a straight-line isn’t as valuable as Reagor who can win in jet sweeps, screens, slants, and gos. Reagor is a space creator because he is such an athletic dynamo.
Fulton leads the list of corners not named Okudah. He is smooth with quick feet and length. Has man and zone ability. Some tackling issues but not abhorrent in the physical aspects of the game. Fulton’s lack of ball production is concerning but could be explained some given how LSU utilized him but he looks to have the physical tools to start for any team playing a multitude of different coverages.
Another Senior Bowl standout, Jones possesses excellent movement skills and projects well to a pass-heavy zone run team. He likely needs a year to marinate but the tools are Andre Dillard-esque. Gladney is a corner currently being slept on but might have the sweetest feet of any in the draft. An athletic specimen Gladney has great click-and-close and oily hips. Gladney also will make a play and let his receiver know it’s going to be a long day for them.
Diggs is more projection than a sure thing. He may be best in a scheme that allows him to play at the line and use his size to disrupt receivers. Diggs has good ball skills as a former receiver but will likely have an up-and-down early career given some raw technical aspects to his game.
21. Grant Delpit, S | LSU
22. Brandon Aiyuk, WR | Arizona State
23. Justin Jefferson, WR | LSU
24. D’Andre Swift, RB | Georgia
25. Patrick Queen, LB | LSU
Perhaps no player fell down boards quite like Delpit did this season. Delpit does have the almighty ability to play single high and has shown ball-skills and instincts in coverage, but much like Malik Hooker in the 2017 draft, there just is far too much bad tape in terms of playing disciplined in tackling form. If Denver utilized more cover 1 looks or didn’t depend so much on one-on-one tackle opportunities from the defensive backs, Delpit would be higher. Alas, he isn’t a great fit.
It was massively disappointing that Aiyuk was not medically eligible for the Senior Bowl this year. The YAC monster with a 6-foot-9 wingspan dominated for the Sun Devils in 2019. He still has work to do in his releases and routes, but has an intriguing mix of athleticism, size, tenacity, and explosiveness after the catch.
While Jefferson doesn’t have the upside of Aiyuk, he probably is going to be better in year one. A crafty route runner, Jefferson has shown the ability to win from Z and slot. He won’t win after the catch or vertically like those that are above him on this board, but he simply can get open and is as dependable as they come in this class.
Swift is perhaps the most well-rounded running back in this class. Having equal ability running between or outside the tackles on top of smoothness in the receiving game, Swift really projects similar to Dalvin Cook. Running back isn’t the best value round one but at some point the best player is the best player.
The Broncos (and even more so the fanbase) have been on the hunt for an athletic linebacker since Al Wilson retired. Queen has up and down to start 2019 but played exceptionally well down the stretch. Showing good instincts in the run game as well as fluidity and upside in coverage, if he can clean up his tackling and block shedding he could be a dynamic partner to Alexander Johnson at linebacker.
Keep in Mind
As the NFL Combine less than two weeks away, we are officially fully enthralled in the NFL draft season. At the Combine, players will confirm what many saw on tape this past season while others will cause scouts to scramble back to the tape after a surprise (good or bad) showing.
On top of the interviews and the all-important medical checks, the entire draft process is fluid and a player’s value is in the eye of the beholder. The Broncos can go a number of different directions at pick 15 in the draft (if they stay there). Who knows how the board will fall and what rumors are true and which are told to deceive?
It’s lying season in the NFL after all. The thought of the Broncos’ adding a potential stud in the first round though is enough to fill the void that is the lack of football in the offseason. For many in Broncos Country, April simply can’t get here soon enough.
Follow Nick on Twitter @NickKendellMHH and @MileHighHuddle.
