Report: Broncos Could Be Interested in Pair of Inside Linebackers
It’s NFL Draft season, so the Denver Broncos and every NFL team are seemingly going to be linked to every player. That said, it feels like in recent weeks the Broncos have been abnormally connected to more of the draft’s top players than has typically been released at this point in time, and that continued on Monday with some rumors that they may have interest in a couple of the draft’s top inside linebackers.
According to Tony Pauline, a draft insider, the Broncos might be sniffing around Mississippi State star linebacker Benardrick McKinney and TCU playmaker Paul Dawson.
“The Denver Broncos are another team I’m hearing linked to McKinney as they believe he’d fill their linebacker need. The other name associated with Denver in league circles is Paul Dawson of TCU. It must be mentioned the team has not shown a lot of interest in Dawson via the visit/workout route.”
This news comes on the heels of reports that the Broncos could be interested in trading up in this year’s draft, as they were reportedly last year, for an inside linebacker (C.J. Mosley). Neither McKinney or Dawson is a top 20 player on my board, but the Broncos might see it differently.
If either of these guys are first round picks, as Pauline explained in the post linked above, the Broncos might be the team another franchise tries to jump to get a guy like McKinney, but they should be able to snag Dawson in the second or third round if they want to.
McKinney would likely have to be a first round pick. Here’s a quick look at both players and their measurables:
Benardrick McKinney, Mississippi State
Paul Dawson, TCU
With the Broncos’ current depth at inside linebacker, it seems odd that they would have significant interest in the top linebackers in this year’s class, but there are valid reasons why they would want both guys.
Breakout linebacker Brandon Marshall is on a one year, RFA contract and just had foot surgery. He was the team’s leading tackler a year ago, but the Broncos might feel like they need someone in play just in case Marshall cannot. The guy who is supposed to be his running mate at ILB is Danny Trevathan, who led the team in tackles the year prior, and is coming off of season-ending knee surgery.
If the Broncos are not satisfied with the trajectory of either Marshall or Trevathan, or the youngsters behind them, taking an inside linebacker is most certainly not out of the question.