Film Room: Why Tyler Onyedim Could Be a Steal for Broncos

With the 66th overall pick of the 2026 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos selected Texas A&M defensive lineman Tyler Onyedim. A fifth-year senior with 53 total games played, Onyedim wasn’t well received by fans in Broncos Country, perhaps because he doesn't play a position of great need, and due to a general misunderstanding about his abilities in general.

When looking at consensus big boards and mock draft simulators, Onyedim was seen as a day-three prospect who was consistently available in the fifth round.

What went unrecognized was a technically refined player with incredible run-defending ability and untapped pass-rush potential. While not the most flashy player, Onyedim possesses incredible leadership abilities with an exceptionally consistent level of play. He’s capable of lining up at several spots across the defensive line, and has loads of experience at all of them.

Onyedim began his collegiate career as a teammate of current Broncos defensive lineman Eyioma Uwazurike at Iowa State back in 2021. A three-star recruit out of high school, Onyedim would go on to play in 38 games for the Cyclones.

In three years as a primary rotational defensive lineman with several starts, Onyedim racked up 90 total tackles (37 solo), 12 tackles for loss, and three sacks.

Following his senior season at Iowa State, Onyedim transferred to Texas A&M, where he was placed into a hyper-aggressive, attacking front to accentuate his athletic skill set. The results were noticeable: he developed a technically refined pass-rush arsenal while further developing into one of the better run stuffers in all of college football.

In his 13 total games with the Aggies, Onyedim nearly matched his previous career production, posting 48 total tackles (18 solo), 8.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks en route to a College Football Playoff appearance.

Let’s have a look at Denver’s newest defensive lineman in this week’s film room.

Play 1 & 2: Understanding Iowa State’s Defensive Scheme

Iowa State has been unkind to defensive linemen over the past decade, playing a front that features three down linemen, three off-ball linebackers, and five defensive backs. The three down linemen are typically tasked with eating space and occupying as many blockers as they can to allow players at the second level an opportunity to make plays on the ball carrier.

This first play highlights exactly that. Onyedim is lined up as a 3-tech defender (outside shoulder of the guard) and slashes through the B-gap to occupy the offensive tackle. Even though it looks like he throws himself out of the play, notice how quickly the players at the second level rally to the football. This is assignment sound football, and also a really good example of Onyedim’s first-step quickness, which is one of his best attributes.

This looks horrible for Onyedim, but knowing how ISU runs their defense, this is assignment sound football. Occupy the blocker and open space for second-level players to make the play. pic.twitter.com/qwdaULZKIr
— Lance Sanderson (@LanceS_MHH) April 27, 2026

The Cyclones also task their defensive linemen to “two-gap," which means playing with a strong base, core strength, and arm length to take on multiple blockers at the same time while still being able to make plays on the football.

Here, Onyedim is lined up in the 3-technique again. He meets the guard face-to-face with quality power in his hands to create extension, and despite being chipped by the center as he works his way to the second level, Onyedim resets his feet, scrapes through the guard, and follows the play to make the tackle.

Bench press and stack, wear the contact and work back to the ball. It's not flashy, but it's effective. pic.twitter.com/eUDcZTo3iV
— Lance Sanderson (@LanceS_MHH) April 27, 2026

Play 3: After the Transfer

First and foremost, the stark contrast between what Iowa State and Texas A&M asked Onyedim to do couldn’t have been more apparent. At TAMU, he finally got a chance to accentuate his first step to get upfield, disrupt plays in the backfield, and use his 34-inch arm length to facilitate his technical prowess at the point of attack.

This next play highlights Onyedim's ability to attack the line of scrimmage, press and stack a blocker in the gap, then scrape across the face to make a play on the quarterback draw. You can see his upper-body strength and power in his lower half as he develops leverage to get the guard on his heels, then rip through contact to make the play in the hole.

This is Onyedim at TAMU. Watch his first step, power to stack and shed, then make the play on the draw. When he gets to attack upfield, he still has gap discipline and abilty to make plays. pic.twitter.com/soY3ge6Wlx
— Lance Sanderson (@LanceS_MHH) April 27, 2026

Play 4: Underrated Athleticism

Texas A&M Aggies defensive tackle Tyler Onyedim (11) celebrates against the Miami Hurricanes. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Onyedim also has some twitch in his lower half. While he has some stiffness in his hips when changing direction, Onyedim can be an effective stunter when given the opportunity, thanks to his first-step explosiveness.

What you’ll see here is something the Broncos love to do in their defensive scheme: using linebackers as blitzers to change the math and freeing up pass rushers on stunts to collapse the pocket from the interior.

Watch how Onyedim pauses to allow the linebacker to attack the guard, rips his hands free to complete the stunt, then utilizes his burst as a free runner to force the strip sack. His closing speed when allowed a path to the quarterback is impressive for a player of his size.

The Broncos use several stunts like this in their double-sugar A-gap blitz scheme, when they use Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad to disrupt the offensive line and open up rush lanes for the defensive linemen. Onyedim fits incredibly well in this aspect.

This is impressive closing speed from a player of Onyedim's size. It's also a great example of his football IQ, allowing the linebacker time to attack the center before bending around to get up field. pic.twitter.com/Kq4Lw3GqVy
— Lance Sanderson (@LanceS_MHH) April 28, 2026

Play 5 & 6: Growing the Pass-Rush Arsenal

Over the past two seasons, and especially at Texas A&M, Onyedim developed as a pass rusher despite limited opportunities to attack the pocket. Again, Iowa State didn’t ask their interior defensive linemen to collapse the pocket, opting for blitz packages and coverage disguises from the second level to disrupt the quarterback.

When Onyedim did get after the quarterback at Iowa State, it was mostly due to his high-end motor, and he rarely produced results. There are flashes, but they are incredibly inconsistent.

As an Aggie, Onyedim flashed several different counter moves, a pass-rush plan, and showed high-end upside as a pass rusher. He showed a quality cross-rip move, a devastating swim move, and the occasional spin move.

In this clip, I want to highlight the development that Onyedim showed in his spin move as a pass rusher. First at Iowa State as a nose tackle. He tries to attack the left side of the center and doesn’t have the footwork to climb across the face and get upfield. He tries to spin again, to no avail.

In the second part of the clip, Onyedim does a great job of attacking the outside shoulder to open up the spin move. Once his hands land, he drops his hips and rips his elbow through the waist of the guard. This opens up a clear lane to plant his foot and explode to the quarterback for a critical strip sack.

This is how you develop a spin move. Notice how Onyedim flashes to the outside to open the angle for the spin against Texas. His feet also look much cleaner, and he gets low to explode. pic.twitter.com/KogXtahH8Q
— Lance Sanderson (@LanceS_MHH) April 28, 2026

How Onyedim Fits in Denver

After allowing John Franklin-Myers to walk in free agency, the Broncos needed to bolster the defensive line. Former third-round pick Sai'vion Jones hasn’t shown the capability to be a reliable run-stopping option, and still has room to grow as a pass rusher. Despite having Uwazurike and Jordan Jackson on the roster, the Broncos needed another option to help fill out the room.

While this film room doesn’t show the major flashes of what Onyedim can bring as a player, it does illustrate what he can be on a down-to-down contributor. The first few clips show the baseline of what he can bring, followed by his development as a player.

Onyedim can play anywhere from the nose tackle in obvious pass-rushing situations to outside of the tackle as a run-stopping defensive end in a three-down defensive line alignment.

Putting players in the best situation to succeed will almost always yield positive results. Onyedim showed consistency in his role as a player despite an overall lack of production at Iowa State. But when given the chance to shine at Texas A&M, he showed major improvements.

The Broncos just drafted a rock-solid football player who can contribute on all three downs and has the upside to be a long-term option for the defensive line. His prowess as a run defender cannot be overstated, and he should become a starter sooner rather than later.

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