The Denver Broncos have risen considerably in ESPN’s roster rankings.
It’s hard to ignore the substantial improvements the Denver Broncos have made to their roster in the past couple of years, specifically since the start of the 2018 offseason when the team was coming off of a dreadful 4-12 finish.
The Broncos have gone back to the basics, building through the NFL Draft primarily while adding veterans in free agency and emphasizing character and even captainship in their player acquisition process.
ESPN has apparently taken notice and ranked the Broncos 14th on their recent ranking of NFL rosters.
To illustrate how much the Broncos have improved from the perspective of those outside of the Denver and Broncos Country bubble, here are their rankings over the past three seasons:
Broncos roster rankings since 2018 (via ESPN)
2018: 25th
2019: 22nd
2020: 14th
Just last offseason, ESPN ranked the Broncos in the bottom 10 of the NFL in terms of talent aged 25 or under, but that has also changed significantly in the 2020 offseason with the Broncos’ talent from the past two draft classes progressing and the incoming 2020 rookie class looking really strong.
If you have ESPN+ access, you can read the full analysis, but it’s basically the Broncos’ depth chart with Pro Football Focus grades and they cite the weapons in the passing game as the team’s biggest strength right now with their cornerback position being the biggest weakness.
At this point, those are probably pretty accurate, though arguments could be made for other position groups, certainly.
It’s great to see the Broncos’ roster getting national respect like this and if they finish in the top 14 in the NFL this coming season in terms of overall record, they would be a playoff team.
If Drew Lock becomes the player everyone thinks he can be, the Broncos should be contending for years to come, something that seemed an impossibility less than a year ago.