Finding Broncos: Five Safeties for Added Competition

While the Denver Broncos have significantly improved their roster, they still have multiple holes. One is at safety, where they lack depth and don't have a set starter next to Justin Simmons. Caden Sterns has shown flashes, but after an injury that ended his 2022 season, he needs to have competition for the starting job. However, the safety class is solid overall, and the Broncos could find a prospect who can compete with Sterns or improve their depth.

Brandon Joseph | S | Notre Dame

Pros

He has a high football IQ with a quick read of passing concepts.
He can bring the heat when working as a tackler.
He picked up the defense at Notre Dame quickly.
He is confident in coverage and trusts his instincts.
His instincts are consistently correct, and he rarely finds himself out of position.
His timing in coverage is there, and he attacks the catch point with 10 career interceptions.

Cons

His size is fine, though not ideal.
Overall, he is a fine athlete but lacks an elite trait.
He had a great 2021 season at Northwestern, but his play dropped off a good amount after transferring to Notre Dame.
He missed 30 tackles over the last three seasons and has a 15.7% career missed tackle percentage.
His tackling technique is quite solid, which makes for a questionable ability to cut down.
There isn't great agility or quickness with his change of direction.

Fit with Broncos

Joseph does well in coverage, and his instincts and timing consistently put him in the right spot. However, there are issues with his tackling, and if there is room to clean up the issues there. The question around Joseph is if he is already near his ceiling as a player. He fits with what the Broncos do, and if he doesn't win the starting job, he can help raise the floor in the room.

Brandon Hill | S | Pittsburgh

Pros

A solid athlete who has great explosion and speed.
While he doesn't have an ideal size, he brings plenty of physicality.
He has good range and instincts to play a singe-high role while offering up versatility to do more.
He matches up with tight ends in man coverage well and doesn't allow himself to get bullied.
He loves to go for the big hits and help excite the defense.
He has a good burst to close quickly on the catch point or ball carrier.

Cons

He is undersized but has some room on his frame for a little more mass.
Missed tackles were an issue, with 22 over the last two seasons.
He flashes good ball skills, but the ball production isn't there.
His play recognition can lag, and find himself late to rotate.
The enforcer mentality plays a significant part in the missed tackles.
He doesn't stay disciplined to the play, which opens up holes for the offense to make a big play.

Fit with Broncos

Hill is a physical defender who does have good versatility on defense. However, he has to improve the mental side of things not to be a potential liability. There isn't much to start as a rookie, and while he can still compete with Caden Sterns, he will primarily help improve the depth.

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Trey Dean III | S | Florida

Pros

He has a good size and frame with room to add a little more mass if needed.
Good athlete overall with good explosion and tested well in agility.
He has plenty of experience playing nearly 3,000 snaps over five seasons.
He has excellent versatility and played over 600 snaps at four different spots.
There is no question about the physicality he brings to the defense.
He has good experience on special teams and can translate to being a boost in the NFL right away there.
He can handle man coverage assignments, especially when asked to work in the slot.

Cons

His technique is consistent, and he cuts corners with bad habits.
He lacks discipline and will get out of position.
Missed tackles were an issue, with 38 over the last three seasons.
There are times he seems lost with his duties in coverage.
He can be slow to read the play and late to react when he finally does.
The angles when working downhill are poor.

Fit with Broncos

While Dean would be hard to start as a rookie, he can compete with Sterns and improve the Broncos' depth at the position. The biggest boost he brings would be to the special teams unit, where they are trying to make significant improvements.

Daniel Scott | S | California

Pros

He has good size and is an excellent athlete.
He tested exceptionally well with a 9.94 Relative Athletic Score.
He was praised for his leadership qualities and character on and off the field.
He has excellent production over the last two seasons.
The ball skills are there, with six interceptions and eight passes broken up.
While there were few opportunities as a blitzer, he had great timing and efficiency.
He has the versatility to play in the slot or multiple roles as a safety.
There is excellent range as a single-high safety.
He reads plays quickly.
He is smooth and fluid with his ability to change direction.

Cons

Missed tackles are a significant concern, with 36 over the last two seasons.
His length isn't ideal, which doesn't help with the missed tackles.
There are times he will get himself out of position, leading to big plays for the offense.
He needs more discipline to not bite on fakes by receivers or quarterbacks.
His angles downhill aren't the best.
He will be older as a 25-year-old rookie.

Fit with Broncos

Daniel Scott could compliment Justin Simmons and Caden Sterns exceptionally well. He brings versatility with what he can do, opening things up for what Vance Joseph can do with his safeties. There is enough to start as a rookie, but if he doesn't beat out Sterns, he fits in exceptionally well as the third safety in the room.

Christopher Smith II | S | Georgia

Pros

He has excellent short area burst.
He has good range and reliability in coverage.
The ball skills are there, with six interceptions over the last two seasons.
He has a high football IQ, which is easy to see with his play recognition and diagnosing of passing concepts.
There is good versatility to play multiple roles.
He has a great range to be a single-high safety in the NFL.
He is a coach's player who will do whatever is asked or needed.
There is excellent timing in coverage when attacking the catch point to make a play for the ball or break up the pass.
He takes good angles when coming downhill against the run.

Cons

He is a little undersized and may be asked to add a little more mass to his frame.
He tested out extremely poorly, with a Relative Athletic Score of 2.89.
There are length concerns, which show up with his tackling issues, missing 11 tackles in 2022.
There are issues with where he puts his focus on coverage and not sustaining a good balance with his vision.
He has a bad habit of slowing into contact, leaving him vulnerable to being juked in space.

Fit with Broncos

Smith has excellent range and versatility and is reliable in coverage. Even though he is a little undersized, his ability in coverage and ball skills with see teams overlook that. His versatility can work with the Broncos, and he could easily start immediately if he can beat out Caden Sterns for the job.

They need to improve their safety room, which wasn't great in 2022. They brought P.J. Locke back, which is fine, but they are still lacking. Even if they bring Kareem Jackson back, which has been reported as a possibility, it still leaves them lacking in the room. Jackson isn't the player he once was, which was evident in 2022. Even if they don't pick up one of these five, there are other options they can look at.

Follow Erick on Twitter @ErickTrickel.

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