Denver Broncos mock draft: Getting to the playoffs in 2020

We’re fixing Todd McShay’s mistake here.

McShay left Wirfs on the board until the 30th overall pick of his first mock draft, so obviously there’s a disconnect here with what some people think about how to sort offensive tackles in this class but whether or not they are legit first-round prospects.

It’s easy for me to see that Wirfs is a first-round player at the tackle position, but maybe McShay isn’t quite there yet.

If a player like Wirfs is there with the Broncos’ pick, I think he’s a no-brainer. The Broncos obviously have some similar concepts in their offense to what Iowa runs, and Wirfs has shown he can play both the right and left side at a high level for the Hawkeyes.

A graceful athlete for a 6-foot-5, 322-pound behemoth, Wirfs is as quick and natural in pass pro as he is powerful in the running game.

Wirfs is also an absolute monster in the weight room and hard worker off the field.

If teams have players like Andrew Thomas and Jedrick Wills ranked above Wirfs, there’s a decent chance a player like Wirfs could fall to the Broncos. He’s a blue-chip prospect and would make a lot of sense for Denver for a variety of reasons.

First and foremost, his versatility to play either position would allow the Broncos to put him in the lineup at left tackle over Garett Bolles immediately as an upgrade there, or if Ja’Wuan James is hurt again, Wirfs could play on the right side and excel for the Broncos there.

Bolles is entering the final year of his rookie contract in 2020 and the Broncos are not likely to pick up his team option.

If that’s the case, this move is as much about planning for the long-term as it is for upgrading an area of weakness right away for Denver.