The Denver Broncos finished their 2019 NFL Draft class last week. What is the feeling about every pick with time to digest?
It’s hard to believe the 2019 NFL Draft is already in the rearview, and we’re looking forward to talking about Denver Broncos depth chart stuff, camp battles, and in-depth analysis of each one of these guys going forward.
It feels like the draft process goes by faster and faster every year, but the Denver Broncos know how to make the entire process memorable.
The Broncos cranked up the anticipation of what would happen in this year’s draft by trading for Joe Flacco and creating some uncertainty about whether or not they would take a quarterback at all.
As fate would have it, they did.
There were also a ton of questions about what direction the team would go in the first round with Vic Fangio as their head coach. Would they go for a linebacker, a position Fangio is an expert with?
Would they go quarterback? Offensive line? Take an offensive weapon? Cornerback with Chris Harris’ situation unfolding in a way no one wanted?
After the Broncos’ stellar free agency period, anything was on the table in the 2019 NFL Draft but the way it unfolded was exceptional.
Now that we’re one week removed from the first round, let’s see how we’re feeling about this class of players.
1. Noah Fant, TE, Iowa
It’s safe to say I really like this pick for the Broncos.
Denver has lacked a presence at the tight end position since Julius Thomas was running all over people in 2013-14. No offense to Owen Daniels, who made some clutch plays, or the other guys who have made attempts from 2016-present.
Although I like the group the Broncos have of Jeff Heuerman, Jake Butt, and Troy Fumagalli (when healthy in all three cases), there’s no way the Broncos could pass on a dynamic player like Fant especially after trading down in the first round.
I wrote a few reasons why I think this is such a great pick for the Broncos here and dispelled some of the analytics regarding Fant that have been made public knowledge.
Fant is a complete mismatch at the tight end position with speed, explosiveness, and a well-rounded overall game besides that.
He’s a red zone nightmare. As a matter of fact, 13 of his 19 touchdowns at Iowa came inside the red zone.
The Broncos will find ways to get him the ball and get him the ball in space, specifically. Fant is not the most creative runner after the catch, but he’s really hard to track down when he gets a full head of steam.
With the weapons the Broncos have in addition to Fant, I like this pick even more and can’t wait to see the offensive core they have put in place grow together.
2. Dalton Risner, OL, Kansas State
It’s safe to say pretty much everyone in Broncos Country wanted to come away from day two of the 2019 NFL Draft with Dalton Risner, the kid who sprinted up to John Elway at the 2019 Senior Bowl to introduce himself to his childhood idol.
This is the guy who wore his work boots to his introductory press conference with the team because he’s ready to go to work.
In terms of being a perfect prospect on and off the field, Risner is pretty darn close.
This guy is a mauler as an offensive lineman and he’s going to make a huge impact for the Broncos as an offensive guard. He was a starter for Kansas State at center when he first got on campus, but switched over to the right tackle position and excelled.
He said he practiced at tackle, guard, and center while he was with the Wildcats, and everyone assumes he will play right guard for the Broncos with the loss of Matt Paradis pushing last year’s starting right guard — Connor McGovern — to center on a full-time basis.
Why is this such an exciting pick? Because perhaps even more so than last year’s group which was upgraded with the addition of Jared Veldheer at right tackle, the Broncos seem to have a stellar offensive line on paper.
Okay, I won’t overreact anymore, but it does look really strong.
LT: Garett Bolles
LG: Ron Leary
C: Connor McGovern
RG: Dalton Risner
RT: Ja’Wuan James
The additions of Risner and Ja’Wuan James (free agency) give the Broncos a legit pairing on the right side of the line and with Mike Munchak coaching this group up, things are really looking up for Denver’s line.
This pick had/has me stoked.
3. Drew Lock, QB, Missouri
I used this photo for a very specific reason.
I used the photo you see above because this was the game John Elway attended in person to watch Drew Lock play last November.
On Drew Lock’s senior day at Missouri, he was absolutely outstanding in a dominating win over Arkansas, completing 16-of-25 passes in the rain with two touchdowns passing and two rushing touchdowns.
Lock was having fun slinging the ball around in the rain on Thanksgiving weekend, and this game undoubtedly left an impression on Elway, who said he had Lock as the top QB on his draft board.
Watching over Lock some more, there’s no explanation other than divine intervention for how this kid fell to the 10th pick of the second round of the NFL Draft.
When the Broncos traded up from the 52nd pick to the 42nd pick to take Lock, I shot out of my seat. I’m still giddy about it.
I thought Kyler Murray had the highest ceiling of any QB in this year’s draft, but I felt like Lock was better than just about every QB prospect to come out in the past two years, excluding Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold, and Murray.
I think the Broncos have a player they can build around for the future here.
4. Dre’Mont Jones, DL, Ohio State
When the Broncos were coming up in the third round at pick 71 overall, I have to be honest and tell you that I did not care what they did.
I had some ideas — maybe DK Metcalf would fall (he didn’t), or maybe the Broncos should take advantage of the wide receiver depth in this draft in general and take Emanuel Hall (they didn’t and no one else did the entire draft) — but I truly was so pleased with the top three picks that this pick could have been just about anyone and I would have been thrilled.
As it turns out, the Broncos got another very solid interior defensive lineman with burst off the snap and the ability to make a bunch of plays in the backfield.
Dre’Mont Jones had very modest production (nine tackles for loss) his first two years seeing playing time with Ohio State, but he broke free this past season with 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss, even with Nick Bosa going down with an injury.
Jones is a leaner interior defensive lineman who can line up over the center when needed or at defensive end when needed, but he’s primarily a 3T (plays over the guard) who wins one-on-one situations and with high effort.
He didn’t test as well as he produced this past year, but getting him in the room with Bill Kollar should — as it typically does — work in the Broncos’ favor.
5. Justin Hollins, LB, Oregon
When I heard about the Broncos’ visit with Justin Hollins in the pre-draft process, I started plugging him into just about every mock draft exercise I did on The Draft Network’s mock draft simulator.
Guilty for using that about a hundred times…
After the Broncos picked four guys they had in town on pre-draft visits with their top four picks, I wasn’t at all surprised to see Hollins come in with their fifth-round pick.
https://twitter.com/Broncos/status/1122215190530011137
Like this tweet from the Broncos says, Hollins was a beast this past season in terms of creating turnovers (five FF, one INT) and he gets to the quarterback.
With his size (6-foot-5, 248 pounds), wingspan (79.5 inches), and overall athleticism (4.50 in the 40-yard dash, 36-inch vertical, 7.06 three-cone) I think the Broncos got themselves a weapon they can use all over the defense as a backup.
Hollins can obviously play on the edge as a pass rusher, but he’s athletic enough and fluid enough in space to hang with tight ends in coverage. He also has the size to do that.
Maybe he can be the Broncos’ version of a Jamie Collins or Anthony Barr…
6. Juwann Winfree, WR, Colorado
I really wanted the Denver Broncos to draft a wide receiver, but this pick was a bit of a shocker to me.
Unlike many of you, I don’t follow the CU program very closely. I am an Iowa Hawkeyes/Big Ten guy, remember?
So for the Broncos to draft a deep sleeper like this, I had to head to the Google machine. They stumped the truck, so to speak.
But a quick dig on Winfree indicates the Broncos got a player with high upside and all of the athletic traits required of a wide receiver in the NFL, but injury issues plaguing him throughout college.
The play Winfree made in 2017 against USC was particularly nice, in my opinion.
Even with a limited sample size, it’s clear to see this is a really smooth athlete with phenomenal hands and route running ability.
It’s no wonder wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni was leaping around in the Broncos’ offices when they traded up to pick this kid.
Winfree was part of a massive tryout at the Broncos facility when they hosted a ‘local’ pro day. He was so impressive to the coaching staff — which conducted the workout — that the Broncos felt they had to prioritize him and move up in the sixth round about 20 spots to get him.
If they are that confident in him, I’m good with the pick, and the more I see of this guy the more I like.