NFL Draft 2015: Denver Broncos Day Two Recap, Analysis
It was an eventful day two of the 2015 NFL Draft for the Denver Broncos, who filled their most pressing need (offensive line) and added another playmaking tight end for Gary Kubiak.
In the second round, the Broncos took Colorado State left tackle Ty Sambrialo, who projects to the right side as a rookie or possibly left guard, though John Elway and Gary Kubiak both talked to his ability to play the right side and compete immediately.
“[We like] his athleticism and the way he can the play the game. He plays with a chip on his shoulder and he’s tough,” Elway said. “As I said, he’s got versatility. He’s our kind of guy. I think that there were a lot of good tackles on there, but we’re happy that we were able to get select him in the second round. We were hoping he was going to make it to us, and we were fortunate that he did.”
“Just adding to what John just said, we think he’s a quick study, too. That’s one of the things that was very important,” Kubiak said. “We don’t see a big transition for him from a mental standpoint from what he’s been doing in college and what we’re going to ask him to do for us. We think this kid will be in position to compete really, really quickly.”
The Broncos obviously have high hopes for Sambrailo, who some felt would be available in the third round or later. The NFL Draft isn’t based off of our personal boards, however, and not even sometimes close to the boards we see from prominent NFL Draft analysts. Elway saying that they were hoping Sambrailo would fall to them means they weren’t even sure teams in front of them wouldn’t pick him.
Certainly, a hard-nosed lineman with athleticism and quick feet like Sambrailo wouldn’t have lasted to the Broncos’ third round pick.
Sambrailo is a finisher. He’s one of the most efficient lineman the Broncos could have drafted this year. When you talk about guys going into day two who were zone scheme fits, there might not have been many better on the short list than Sambrailo. He graded out a 90 percent in his games last year with 69 knockdowns. That’s a LOT.
He does a phenomenal job of getting to the second level and his game translates perfectly to the Broncos, which is why Gary Kubiak and John Elway feel he’ll be able to contribute immediately. The only thing people might have a legitimate gripe about with this pick is the fact that it means the future of Michael Schofield is in the balance. You can’t have two starting right tackles.
Elway made the comment after the third round that Schofield and Sambrailo are pretty similar guys with their athleticism. Schofield is a little bit lighter, and possibly a little bit more of a power fit. Therefore, he might be best suited at guard. He has expressed that he feels he is a tackle, so we’ll see what happens with that competition this offseason.
Jeff Heuerman Adds New Dimension at TE
The Broncos lost Julius Thomas to the Jacksonville Jaguars this offseason, and they got right to work replacing him. They signed Owen Daniels and re-signed Virgil Green at the outset of free agency, and later brought in Joe Don Duncan and James Casey. It’s since been revealed that Duncan and Casey will be playing more fullback (possibly) than tight end, but it seemed they had addressed the matter at least in the short term.
But Gary Kubiak loves tight ends, and John Elway loves athletes with versatility, so the pick of Heuerman was a good fit for everyone involved.
“He can play the ‘Y,’ but has the ability to play the ‘H’ and will also be a guy that can block and also be involved in the passing game,” Elway said. “I really think that he has a high ceiling. He’s just scratching the surface of what he can do. We were happy to get him the bottom of the third.”
Scratching the surface is key. Heuerman was excellent as a junior in 2013, but had a down year marred by injuries in 2014. He caught just two touchdown passes on Ohio State’s national championship team.
That said, with his foot injury limiting the number of times he could cut and release as a route runner, Heuerman was forced to improve his blocking, and he did just that. The Broncos got a guy who is not only a willing participant in the running game, but I see a player that does a good job of using his length and getting his hands inside. He’s also incredibly strong for a 255 pound tight end.
But as much as he improved as a blocker, Heuerman was drafted also for his ability to catch the ball and make plays after the catch. He has big hands and a broad catch radius. Some scouts compared him to Bengals first round pick Tyler Eifert, formerly a star at Notre Dame.
If Heuerman is healthy, this is a dynamic mismatch in the passing game. He’s humongous, he can block, and he has big, strong hands. The Broncos made him the third tight end selected in the draft behind only Maxx Williams and Clive Walford, both of whom will be coming to Denver this season as members of the Ravens and Raiders respectively.
Overall Thoughts
I wasn’t ‘underwhelmed’ by the Broncos’ picks, but they were somewhat predictable. Getting Sambrailo in the 2nd was the top scenario in my day 2 mock draft, but I had hoped the Broncos might take a risk on a guy like La’El Collins or TJ Clemmings with their third round pick.
For what it’s worth, that’s still a possibility.
I’m not upset the Broncos took a tight end, because I don’t think Owen Daniels or James Case are long-term answers and the Broncos need a guy to pair with Virgil Green for the future, but I thought they might address another area of the team.
Still, having plenty of weapons for Peyton Manning is not going to cause me to lose sleep at night. In fact, I fell asleep on my computer Friday night, exhausted from the coverage. Heuerman joins a bevy of Big Ten players selected by the Broncos in the top three rounds of the draft, along with his former teammate Bradley Roby (1st round, 2014).
The Broncos addressed major needs already, and they got a guy that could potentially wind up being the best tight end in this class. Like I wrote on Friday night, I remember watching path to the draft a month ago on NFL Network and they were gushing about how good of a fit Heuerman would be for the Broncos, so he’s definitely been on the radar.
With six picks to make yet on Saturday, the Broncos are primed for a fun day of drafting.