BRONCOS 2018 Draft Reveiw

May 16, 2018

I think most of you realize that overall I am a big fan of John Elway in his role of running the Broncos organization. Like any personnel evaluator he makes his share of mistakes, but he has made some solid decisions in manipulating his roster and is not afraid to admit his mistakes and move on. Big John worked the Draft and traded himself into 10 Picks by the end of the proceedings.

The Football Gods were kind to Elway and his Broncos, allowing BRADLEY CHUBB/NC STATE, widely regarded as the top DE/Edge-rusher in the Draft, to fall to them at Pick 5. I do NOT think Chubb is as explosive and impactful as VON MILLER, as some proclaim, but he is going to give his new team top effort and production, at an affordable price for the next 5 years. He’s a sideline to sideline player who combines solid athleticism with high energy, ala CAM JORDAN of the Saints, IMO. He looks and plays even longer than his 6’043″ height and 33 1/8″ arms would indicate.

Assuming that VFA signee CASE KEENUM is indeed their QB for the foreseeable future they used multiple picks to upgrade their receiving corps for him. COURTLAND SUTTON/WR/SMU was their first new weapon at Pick 40. I had him pegged as late first round. He’s a long striding, sure handed receiver ala ALSHON JEFFREY. In Round 4 at Pick 113, they tabbed Penn State WR/DAE SEAN HAMILTON, a solid route runner, with faster playing speed than his “reported” 4.58/40-time. A solid possession receiver, who showed well at both the Shrine and Senior Bowl events. Then in Round 5, at Pick 156, they got my 105th ranked player in TROY FUMAGALLI/TE/Wisconsin. TROY is very solid catching in traffic and a decent inline blocker. Combine him with a healthy JAKE BUTTS from last year’s Draft and the Broncos have a solid pair of young TE to work with.

Mr. Elway chose to release the team’s top RB C.J. ANDERSON for Cap reasons. So in Round 3 he selected ROYCE FREEMAN the battering ram and TD maker out of Oregon. FREEMAN will give them an inside power running threat to supplement BOOKER. Just for good measure he also picked DAVID WILLIAMS/Arkansas, another straight line runner with some pop.

ELWAY has wisely used a significant number of picks to rebuild his OL in recent years. In Round 6 he chose SAM JONES/OG/Arizona State. Underclassman JONES is a very good athlete who needs to add some muscle mass to his frame. JONES runs well and can get to second level blocks. He’s also a scrappy guy. Remember his name. He could work his way into a starting job in a couple of years.

Let’s get back to the Defense for a moment or two. With the departure of AQUIB TALIB, the team needed some depth in the secondary. The choice was ISAAC YIADOM/CB/BC, who moved up prospect rankings in the post-season, including the Senior Bowl. He has nice size, at 6’1/190, and arms that measure over 32″. Expect him. to find playing time in sub-packages as a Rookie.

The team also selected two LB on Day 3, including Iowa tackling machine and permanent Team Captain JOSEY JEWELL, a former walk-on. BRONCOS Personnel People reportedly luv his FBI and hustle. His 2017 stats indicate his all around athleticism and nose for the ball; 136 T, 13.5 TFL, 11 PBU, 2 INT. Expect him to win an ILB as a Rookie. His achilles heel may be a tendency to get washed out if blockers get on him. But with 437 career tackles in college I’m not too worried about that undermining his NFL career. KEISHAWN BIERRIA/LB/Washington was another highly productive collegian. Just for starters expect him to emerge early as a Special Teams star for the BRONCOS.

I like this Draft Class as a group, with CHUBB, FREEMAN and SUTTON emerging as big contributors right away. A nice roster restock job by Elway and his staff.

Pigskin