Daniel Jeremiah predicts Broncos take top linebacker in first round

Daniel Jeremiah, one of the most respected NFL Draft analysts in the business, predicts the Broncos will take a top linebacker in the 2020 NFL Draft.

NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah, who has significant ties around the league as a former scout for the Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens, and Cleveland Browns, put out a brand-new first-round mock draft after the Scouting Combine festivities last week and through the weekend. He had a surprising pick for the Denver Broncos in the first round.

DJ thinks the Broncos take Oklahoma linebacker Kenneth Murray with the 15th overall pick, an intriguing pick on its own but couple that surprising selection with the fact that he also has the Broncos passing on Murray’s Oklahoma teammate CeeDee Lamb as well as Alabama wide receiver Henry Ruggs III.

It’s hard to see that happening.

Most Broncos fans don’t even think Ruggs has a prayer of being on the board at 15 overall at this point, but obviously Jeremiah doesn’t necessarily agree.

There will likely be teams that have Ruggs as the top receiver in the draft based on his speed — right or wrong — and it feels like there’s a better chance than not that a receiver-needy team like the Raiders would certainly scoop him up before Denver gets the chance.

With that said, the NFL Draft is unpredictable. There’s no telling what can happen, but it seems highly unlikely that the Broncos would pass on Ruggs based on their high level of interest in him at this point.

Murray, for what it’s worth, is an outstanding prospect.

At 6-foot-2, 241 pounds, Murray is an ideally built inside linebacker prospect who ran a blazing 4.52 in the 40-yard dash with a 38-inch vertical jump and a 129-inch broad jump. Last year’s top linebacker prospects Devin White and Devin Bush ran 4.42 and 4.43 respectively, but they were both lighter and smaller all-around than Murray, who isn’t far behind them at 4.52 anyway.

Murray is right up there with both of those guys in terms of his overall athleticism, and certainly with his production at the college level. He had 17 tackles for loss and four sacks this past season from the off-ball linebacker position.

In a ‘worst case scenario’ mock draft where all of the top offensive linemen and receivers are off the board, Murray is an acceptable first-round option for the Broncos.

In this scenario, however, with both Ruggs and Lamb on the board, it would be a tough one to swallow.