Kenny Robinson, safety, West Virginia
Numerous Broncos fans wanted the team to select Jeremy Chinn as a safety of the future, but the Carolina Panthers spoiled those plans when they took him in the second round. But if you want an intriguing prospect, here you go.
Robinson has actually already played professional football, suiting up for the St. Louis BattleHawks of the XFL before the league was forced to suspend operations due to COVID-19. In five games for the team, he had 21 tackles and two interceptions.
He was able to keep his NFL draft eligibility and was the only XFL player able to do so. In two seasons at West Virginia, he had seven interceptions but was expelled from the school for a Code of Conduct policy.
Robinson entered the NCAA transfer portal to go to a different school but when West Virginia refused to release his transcripts and tried to charge him $3,000, he left school to pursue the professional ranks.
Alohi Gilman, safety, Notre Dame
Gilman began his college career at Navy before transferring to Notre Dame. He is athletic and tough in coverage, particularly against tight ends, but lacks the kind of consistency you want to see at the position.
As a rookie, he could be a strong contributor on special teams, one of his calling cards in college and has the ability to be a rotational piece in the secondary down the road if he can improve on his tackling and pursuit of the ball carrier, which is sometimes quite troubling.
The Broncos could use more help at safety, without question, and Gilman could come in and compete with a guy like Trey Marshall for a spot on the roster.