How do the Denver Broncos’ drafts compare to the AFC West?

Oakland Raiders

I was pleasantly surprised to see the results of the Raiders drafts the past seven years. I anticipated ranking them either 1st or 2nd in terms of AFC West draft success. In reality, one draft class (2014) instigated recency bias. 

Additionally, there is a trend of Oakland drafting players that leave the team and find much more success outside of the bay area.

T.J. Carrie, Shelby Harris, Joe Barksdale, Latavious Murray, and Brice Butler are no longer in Oakland. Some of those guys (Harris, Barksdale, and Butler), were let go before finding much more success in other places. Carrie, on the other hand, signed a 4 year/$31M contract with Cleveland after a career year that saw him rank as the 21st cornerback in the league according to Pro Football Focus.

The other issue Oakland has had is consistency. Outside of the 2014 draft class where they selected elite starters Khalil Mack and Derek Carr and starters Gabe Jackson, Justin Ellis, T.J. Carrie, and Shelby Harris, they have minimal success.

On day one and two, the Raiders have whiffed on eight of their picks. One could even argue the Raiders haven’t had much success with Amari Cooper either considering he can’t seem to hold on to the ball consistently.

With Jon Gruden in town, there is a lot of intrigue with the 2018 draft class. If the Raiders 2018 draft is anything like their free agency signings, it could be a long few years for silver and black fans.

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What does this mean for Denver?

When I compare John Elway’s seven draft classes to his AFC West counterparts, he comes in second. The Chiefs have been the premier team in the West when it comes to drafting. The Chargers are holding the last place baton and the Raiders are third.

The perception of Elway is that he has been a below average talent evaluator in the draft. The swing and miss on Paxton Lynch two years ago and Brock Osweiler six years ago do not help this. For a fan base used to winning, we sure don’t like to see such a big failure at the most important position in football, twice.

One thing I didn’t cover either is how successful Elway has been in finding undrafted free agents. Not technically draft picks, the Denver Broncos are very successful in signing undrafted free agents. Chris Harris Jr, CJ Anderson, and Shaquil Barrett are all undrafted free agents.

Going forward, where I would love to see Elway improve in 2018 is capitalizing on day two picks. The Denver Broncos have three picks on Friday, April 27th. These picks will help set the tone for the franchise going into a crucial 2018 season.