Denver Broncos could target Josh Jones as Garett Bolles replacement

The Denver Broncos could target Houston Cougars offensive tackle Josh Jones as a potential Garett Bolles replacement early in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Despite the fact that Garett Bolles played pretty well down the final stretch of games in the 2019 season (aside from a really bad penalty that nearly cost a victory in the season finale vs. Oakland), the Denver Broncos could be looking for his eventual replacement in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Bolles has one year left on his rookie contract heading into the 2020 season, and by May, the Broncos will have to make the decision of whether or not to exercise his fifth-year option, which should come in at around $10 million, all of which is fully guaranteed for injury.

Considering all that has to be decided in the coming months regarding Bolles, it wouldn’t surprise anyone to see the Broncos use a top 100 pick on a tackle prospect who could potentially challenge Bolles for a starting job as early as 2020.

Even if the Broncos don’t necessarily want this player to challenge Bolles this year, they need to bring in someone with enough talent to be able to play at a high level in case Ja’Wuan James is unable to stay healthy.

Whether it’s for fear of Bolles struggling again or James getting injured again, the Broncos have ample reason to invest a fairly high draft pick in the tackle position.

But how high?

They are covering pretty much every base.

Dating back to the Scouting Combine, the Broncos have had formal meetings with just about every top offensive lineman in the 2020 NFL Draft, including the likes of Jedrick Wills (Alabama), Tristan Wirfs (Iowa), Ezra Cleveland (Boise State), and Austin Jackson (USC).

The Broncos also have had a formal pre-draft meeting with Houston Cougars left tackle prospect Josh Jones, who is often predicted to be the fourth or fifth tackle off the board in mock drafts.

According to Mile High Report, the Broncos also had a meeting with Josh Jones at the 2020 Senior Bowl in Mobile, AL.

Jones had a number of different position coaches in his time at Houston, but really blossomed as a Senior in his fourth year as a starter. He was also a team captain, which is something the Broncos have really valued in recent draft classes.

Jim Nagy, the director of the Senior Bowl, thinks that Josh Jones has a chance to be a first-round pick and also thinks that this year’s offensive tackle class — though deep — doesn’t have a blue-chip prospect like a Joe Thomas or Tyron Smith, and that Jones is actually right up there with the rest of the juniors.

Though Jones was a four-year starter at left tackle, that video footage is of him taking reps as a right tackle.

As is always the case — versatility is key.

Jones is also playing next to Temple center Matt Hennessy in that video, another player the Broncos like in this draft class.

Although offensive tackle is not my particular flavor for the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, it remains one of the most critical positions to have stable production at in the NFL, and if the Broncos can solve that position for the foreseeable future, I’m all for it. It would just be really tough to pass on the top players of this year’s wide receiver class.

The Broncos also are rumored to be interested in moving up from their three third-round picks and having two second-round picks again as they’ve had success in that round in recent years.

It doesn’t seem likely that Jones would be available in the second round, so perhaps he’s an option for the Broncos should they move down the first-round order like they did in 2019.