The 2021 NFL Draft is almost here, and George Paton has a lot to consider for the immediate future of the Denver Broncos in his first year on the job as general manager. Paton has come to Denver from the Minnesota Vikings, where their overall team philosophy was that more picks is better, because the more picks you have, the better chance you have on hitting in the crapshoot that is the NFL Draft.
The Denver Broncos have a talented young offense and a reloaded, veteran-laden defense. With Vic Fangio at the helm as head coach, the defense will unquestionably be a strength of the team and it has proven to be that almost regardless of who is sent out there personnel-wise.
The 2020 season was a very difficult test of the whole “next man up” philosophy as the Broncos — perhaps more than any team in the NFL besides the San Francisco 49ers — were ravaged by injuries to key players.
As of today, who knows what Paton is going to do? There are only so many directions he can go with the 9th pick that make a lot of sense. One of three quarterbacks — Mac Jones, Trey Lance, and Justin Fields — could make sense there.
An offensive tackle like Rashawn Slater or Penei Sewell could make sense.
This draft class is not renowned on the defensive side of the ball, but you could make a case for Patrick Surtain II, Jaycee Horn, or even Micah Parsons at the top of the class for the Denver Broncos if they stay put at 9 overall.
Paton has stated publicly that the Broncos like Drew Lock, and I don’t think he’s lying. Even if the Broncos do draft someone, I think Paton is willing to give Lock first dibs at the starting job this year. He is under no pressure to trade or get rid of Lock, nor should he be.
With that being said, I think Paton’s ideal scenario in the 2021 NFL Draft is to either have a QB he likes fall to his pick at 9 or trade back and accumulate picks for this year and next year.
And in this mock draft scenario, that’s what he’s going to do.
Trading down from the 9th pick using the TDN Mock Draft Machine, I ended up with multiple first-round selections just as I did in my other recent mock draft scenario. The Broncos could acquire even more picks throughout the draft if they trade players on their roster right now.
Ultimately, this mock draft includes nine selections with two in the first round and two in the third round after all of the trades were made. Let’s get to the picks.
For the last however many months, I’ve been saying the Denver Broncos need to avoid here in this postPenn State’s Micah Parsons. The reasons for that have been outlined with a list of players I would try to avoid if I were George Paton.
So why the change of heart here?
Well, it feels like the Denver Broncos have potentially cleared Parsons and have him on their board at this point. Not that Paton was only there to see Parsons, but he and Brian Stark attended the Penn State pro day and so far, nobody with any substantial connections to the team has disonnected Parsons, and there would undoubtedly be people who knew at this point if Parsons were off the Broncos’ board.
To defend Parsons somewhat, another teammate that was alleged to have involvement in the same events at Penn State that Parsons is alleged to have been part of is Carolina Panthers defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos. Gross-Matos was a borderline first-round pick in 2020 who ended up going very early in round two to the Carolina Panthers.
Essentially, his 2020 NFL Draft stock was unaffected by the same allegations people have been referencing with Parsons.
In a trade-down scenario, it’s hard to deny the value of a player like Parsons. This is a guy who, if football is the only subject of discussion, is probably the best defensive player in the draft, and he’s done the majority of his awesome work playing mostly with instinct and athleticism.
As he gets coached up and is able to pick up on nuances of the game, this is a guy that could really be a superstar at the next level.
My idea with the Denver Broncos and Parsons? Let him come off the edge primarily.
The Broncos were apparently interested earlier in the 2021 offseason at the idea of bringing in Leonard Floyd. What that would have meant for Von Miller is unknown, but the Broncos’ future beyond 2021 off the edge is somewhat murky.
Heck, at off-ball linebacker, it’s fairly murky as well.
Von Miller, Alexander Johnson, and Josey Jewell are all slated for free agency in 2022.
Micah Parsons is a defensive end who converted to off-ball linebacker, but he still got the chance to rush the passer at Penn State and he’s exceptional at it. In today’s NFL, you have to be able to do a little bit of everything if you play any linebacker position, whether you’re coming off the edge or playing the off-ball spot.
Parsons is a guy that you could legitimately play as an inside linebacker on early downs and shift him to the edge in passing downs.
Obviously the off-field is a major question mark for many of us who do not have the resources NFL teams have. Again, if the Denver Broncos have cleared Parsons’ off-field, there’s no question they could draft him in the first round, even at pick number 9 overall.
After trading down a handful of picks and still getting Micah Parsons, the Denver Broncos could jump back into the first-round and get this year’s version of Isaiah Simmons — Notre Dame’s Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah.
Owusu-Koramoah plays all over the defensive formation but I think he has a great future as an off-ball linebacker in the NFL with his aggressive style of play and instincts in coverage.
I wrote about Owusu-Koramoah as one of “my guys” in a recent roundtable post with the PO crew, and I think he would be a tremendous fit in Vic Fangio’s defense.
Owusu-Koramoah is explosive, he has great length, and he can line up anywhere.
The Broncos have come really close eto using a top draft choice at linebacker in recent years, and in this mock draft scenario, they actually come away with two very versatile guys whose versatility can be used in very different ways.
While Parsons excels in the pass rush department and can also play off-ball linebacker, Owusu-Koramoah is a guy who you can literally line up as a slot corner and he can get the job done. Some have compared him to Darius Leonard of the Indianapolis Colts, and that comparison holds up when you watch this guy play.
Owusu-Koramoah has special change of direction skills in addition to being an absolute missile out there on the field.
Thinking about putting the speed of Parsons and Owusu-Koramoah into the Vic Fangio defense with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb is downright scary. I don’t know how committed the Broncos are to Alexander Johnson beyond 2021, and these two guys would give Fangio and the Denver Broncos a couple of guys who can do a lot of things well for the defense.
The beauty of trading back is this selection right here.
The Denver Broncos let Phillip Lindsay go this offseason, which was not a fan-approved move by any stretch.
Melvin Gordon is under contract for one more year, and the price tag on free agent Mike Boone combined with some exciting plays in a small sample has given fans enough of a tide-me-over until we all see what happens in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Because of Melvin Gordon’s contract situation, I’ve been saying all offseason that the running back position could be pretty high on George Paton’s priority list, and I still don’t think it’s impossible that the Broncos could use a first-round pick on Najee Harris or maybe even Travis Etienne.
With that being said, Javonte Williams is one of my favorite players in this draft class with his combination of size, pass-catching ability, tackle-breaking ability, and pass protecting chops.
Williams is not a burner in terms of his speed, but he is extremely physical and is bordering on impossible to take down in the open field one-on-one.
With his elusiveness, he could be a tremendous offensive weapon for the Denver Broncos, who already have a ton of those as it is. This would be your featured RB of the future.
Many Denver Broncos fans love the idea of adding Central Florida safety Richie Grant.
In this particular mock draft simulation, Grant was there in the third round, and I couldn’t pass that value up.
The fact that Grant will be 24 in his rookie season makes me think there is a chance he could slip out of the second round, which would mean that arguably the best all-around safety in the 2021 NFL Draft could fall out of the top 64 picks.
No one really knows what’s going to happen in this draft class, so if this is how the deck falls, who knows?
Last year at this time, it was laughable to think the Denver Broncos could leave Lloyd Cushenberry on the board after their second round pick and still get him, and here we are.
Not that Grant is the same, but again, his age could push him down the board a bit.
The Broncos wouldn’t complain in this particular scenario.
Grant is a starter-ready safety with tremendous ball skills and turnover-creating abilities. He had seven forced fumbles and 10 interceptions in his time at UCF.
He could take over for Kareem Jackson after this season when Jackson is slated for free agency.
I’m not sure exactly who, but this spot (3rd/4th round) feels like a really good one for the Denver Broncos to take a shot on a possible future starting offensive tackle.
The team likes Calvin Anderson quite a bit, so you might see them go even later than this, but with key needs already addressed, George Paton could afford to spend a top 120 pick on a tackle he thinks has a chance to be something.
Stone Forsythe is one of a number of very intriguing names at the tackle position that the Denver Broncos could consider.
At 6-foot-8, 307 pounds, Forsythe has incredibly long arms and good movement skills. He has experience at both tackle positions and the Denver Broncos obviously have some long-term question marks there.
Ja’Wuan James was signed in 2019 free agency in hopes that he could solve an issue that had been plaguing the Denver Broncos for quite some time. Needless to say, that has not yet happened.
George Paton stated at his pre-draft press conference that the Broncos are excited to have James back for 2021 after his opt-out in 2020 and that the expectation is he will be the starting right tackle and that he will play well.
Still, you’ve got to hedge your bets, especially in a 17-game regular season.
Remaining Day 3 Picks
6. Ambry Thomas, CB, Michigan
Ambry Thomas is one of the more underrated cornerback prospects in this draft class. Despite signing Ronald Darby and Kyle Fuller in free agency, I don’t know that the Denver Broncos are out of the woods when it comes to adding at this position.
Michael Ojemudia returns in 2021 with starting experience, as does Essang Bassey (coming off of injury), but the depth was so tested in 2020 that the Broncos can’t afford to pass on the position in this draft class.
I love his aggressiveness, especially as a potential future nickel cornerback.
7. Sage Surratt, WR, Wake Forest
The Denver Broncos so heavily emphasized the Wake Forest program in 2020 that it’s difficult to believe they will completely pass on Demon Deacons in 2021.
Sage Surratt was one of the best receivers in the ACC in 2019 and plays the “X” receiver position but can also line up as a big slot.
I think looking forward at the possibility of losing Tim Patrick after 2021 and Courtland Sutton coming off of injury, this is a guy that could legitimately play in 2021 even as a seventh-rounder in this scenario.
8. Shemar Jean-Charles, CB, Appalachian State
The first FBS first-team All-American in Appalachian State history, Shemar Jean-Charles is on so many NFL team radars at this point that it’s hard to fathom he will last to one of the Broncos’ seventh-round picks.
Over the last two seasons, he had 25 pass breakups and a pair of interceptions. He would be a fun developmental player for this Broncos coaching staff.
9. Dax Milne, WR, BYU
Another “X” type of receiver, Dax Milne would be a fun training camp addition. Zach Wilson made huge waves this past season for BYU, and it was Milne on the other end of many of Wilson’s incredible throws.
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This guy not only makes incredible receptions, he does it with regularity. He would be a fantastic day three selection for the Broncos.