5 mistakes the Denver Broncos must avoid in the 2022 NFL Draft
Denver Broncos mistake to avoid no. 5: Completely avoiding risks
If you are trying to build a roster from scratch, taking risks on prospects with perhaps character concerns or issues in their past is likely bad practice no matter what.
If you are a team with a pretty established culture, you can afford to take some calculated risks on certain players if you feel they could thrive in your environment.
Before we get too far into this one, I’m not suggesting that the Broncos go into the NFL Draft and make a bunch of compromises on players who have poor character or players that have made really bad decisions in the past.
I’m not saying they should go into this draft looking to capitalize on players that fall down the board due to injury or off-field issues, either.
What I am saying is that George Paton and company now have an environment with Russell Wilson at the quarterback position and Nathaniel Hackett’s staff to be able to take some calculated risks on certain players.
Let’s say Michigan’s David Ojabo falls to pick number 64 overall. Should the Broncos pass on him just because they might have a more pressing “need” to fill with that pick? I would say no.
There aren’t many specific players with major character risks off the top of my head, but let’s say a great prospect was suspended early on in his career for one reason for another. After interviewing and vetting the player, the Broncos decided he could thrive in their environment.
If you feel like you’re getting a great value and if you feel like you have the environment to support those types of players, don’t miss out on a great prospect.
The Broncos have proven their willingness to go out on a limb, in a way, by signing Randy Gregory to a big-money free agent contract. Gregory has been suspended a wide variety of times by the NFL and has also missed time due to injury.
Choosing him over the other EDGE options this offseason was inherently quite risky, but the Broncos made that bed.
We’ll see if they take any risks like that in the NFL Draft, but I don’t think the Broncos should make the mistake of passing on any and all risks if there’s potential for the prospect to thrive in their environment.