The Denver Broncos have the roster they will head into the 2022 season with, though there still could be some tweaks here and there.
The Broncos selected nine players in the 2022 NFL Draft and then signed 14 others as undrafted free agents following the selection process. The team now has a complete roster to evaluate over the next couple of months until training camp opens in late July.
The Broncos shocked the NFL world by trading for Russell Wilson to be the team’s new starting quarterback, a move that had it not been made, the team would be seen as a distant fourth in the AFC West right now.
That move brought the Broncos back into the conversation of relevant NFL teams and since then, general manager George Paton has tried to fill the holes on the roster as best he could. How has he done? That’s what is going to be graded here.
This will be a position-by-position report card for the team’s current roster, highlighting the strengths and weaknesses of the team.
Broncos Quarterback (4): Russell Wilson, Brett Rypien, Josh Johnson, Eric Barriere
The Broncos finally have a quarterback that can be counted on to make plays and put the team in a position to win on a weekly basis. That is something that has not been around since Peyton Manning was the quarterback and was still effective.
Russell Wilson is going to be so fun to watch with this team and he is going to be the main man counted upon to bring the Broncos back to the playoffs and into contention for Super Bowls. Hopefully, though, the team doesn’t have to count on any of the players behind him for any meaningful snaps.
There will be a competition this summer between Josh Johnson and Brett Rypien as to who the backup quarterback is going to be but the Broncos have one of the weaker backup quarterback situations in the league.
Eric Barriere is an undrafted free agent out of Eastern Washington and he will be the proverbial “camp arm” this summer.
The quarterback situation is strong because Wilson can be a top 5 player at the position, but the team could do a lot better with the options behind him.
Grade: A-
Running back (5): Javonte Williams, Melvin Gordon, Mike Boone, Damarea Crockett, Tyreik McAllister
I was surprised to see the Broncos bring back Melvin Gordon but they were able to do so with a deal that wasn’t too costly, so the move makes sense, though I would have preferred to see the team target a player in the draft.
Gordon will still get a lot of work in his third year with the Broncos but the bulk of the carries absolutely must go to Javonte Williams, one of the most exciting pieces on the team.
Mike Boone is also another interesting player who the team should turn to much more in 2022 than it did last season. Boone did spend a good part of the season hurt but he was hardly used at all.
Damarea Crockett and undrafted rookie Tyreik McAllister will have an uphill battle to make the team but it’s also a good idea to have four running backs on a 53-man roster so the two of them could be competing with each other for a roster spot.
Grade: B
Wide receiver (13): Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, Tim Patrick, K.J. Hamler, Kendall Hinton, Seth Williams, Tyrie Cleveland, Travis Fulgham, Montrell Washington, Trey Quinn, Brandon Johnson, Jalen Virgil, Kaden Davis
On paper, the Broncos have a fantastic wide receiving group. On the field, that has not been the case. Poor play at quarterback is the reason most given, but that will need to be different in 2022.
In the case of Jerry Jeudy, for instance, there can be no more excuses.
Hopefully this is the year that Jeudy breaks out. Hopefully Courtland Sutton is right there with him and the two can put up the kind of numbers that D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett did with Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks.
Behind Sutton and Jeudy, the Broncos have a legitimate No. 3 option in Tim Patrick and as long as K.J. Hamler can be healthy, he can be a great deep threat for the quarterback who probably throws the best deep ball in the NFL.
This is a good group for the Broncos. Fifth-round pick Montrell Washington and the well-traveled Travis Fulgham should be interesting options to watch as well.
Grade: A
Tight end (8): Albert Okwuegbunam, Greg Dulcich, Eric Saubert, Eric Tomlinson, Andrew Beck, Dylan Parham, Eric Tomlinson, Rodney Williams, Shaun Beyer
This was definitely one of the weaker groups going into the draft and that is why Paton spent a third-round pick on UCLA tight end Greg Dulcich.
After sending Noah Fant to Seattle in the Wilson deal, the Broncos were thin at tight end, moving Albert Okwuegbunam into the starting role. But the selection of Dulcich gives the team a solid combination and then players such as Andrew Beck, Eric Saubert and Eric Tomlinson can compete for the blocking tight end role.
Okwuegbunam will be asked to step up in a major way in 2022 and that could bring a lot of pressure for the 24-year old who has just 44 career receptions.
But Wilson has always made the most out of his tight ends so there is no reason to believe that Okwuegbunam will not rise to the occasion. Dulcich should get his number called plenty of times as a rookie as well and this position group could go from being a big weak spot to a really strong one once the season gets underway.
Grade: B-
Offensive line (17)
The Broncos have a slew of offensive linemen on this roster with perhaps just one of the spots settled at starter, with Garett Bolles as the starting left tackle.
There should be competition everywhere else although the team only drafted one offensive lineman, selecting Luke Wattenberg in the fifth round. Wattenberg should compete with Lloyd Cushenberry and Quinn Meinerz at center.
Billy Turner, Calvin Anderson and Tom Compton should be the potential options at right tackle, a position the team notably skipped on in the draft.
Graham Glasgow and Dalton Risner may be penciled in as starters but both players will have to solidify that over the summer.
Netane Muti and Ben Braden will be players to keep an eye on as well.
It’s not the strongest offensive line in the league and it would have been nice for the team to get someone like Abraham Lucas in the draft. But Paton did bring in a good number of players to create some competition and give coach Nathaniel Hackett and his staff plenty of options to form the best possible group when the season opens.
Grade: B-
Defensive line (9): Dre’Mont Jones, DJ Jones, DeShawn Williams, Mike Purcell, Eyioma Uwazurike, McTelvin Agim, Jonathan Harris, Marquiss Spencer, Matt Henningsen
If there were a unit on this team where the Broncos needed to upgrade, it would be right here. There are a lot of question marks on the defensive line and the team will have to hope Dre’Mont Jones and free-agent signing DJ Jones can carry the bulk of the load, though other players will need to step up.
It was good to see Paton dedicate two picks to the defensive line and I do feel that the fourth-round selection of Eyioma Uwazurike was the best value pick the Broncos made in the entire draft. He offers some pass-rush ability from the position.
Beyond that, the Broncos have several players who need to step up including Mike Purcell and McTelvin Agim. Both of those players have left much to be desired recently and if Agim doesn’t do something significant soon, he’s going to find himself on the Broncos’ all-time draft busts list.
Second-year player Marquiss Spencer should compete for some snaps this year and DeShawn Williams is a player who has made the most of the snaps he has been given during his time with the team.
Grade: C
Edge rusher/Outside linebacker (9): Bradley Chubb, Randy Gregory, Nik Bonitto, Malik Reed, Jonathon Cooper, Andre Mintze, Aaron Patrick, Chris Allen, Jonathan Kongbo
This is an area in which the Broncos are going to have to get good production from due to the fact that Paton has placed such an emphasis on it.
I was obviously high on the free-agent signing of Randy Gregory and feel like he could be a beast for this team, but the guy under the most pressure will be first-round pick Bradley Chubb, who has had too many health issues to ever be considered great.
Malik Reed has been a fantastic option off the bench when players have been unavailable (mostly Chubb) and second-round pick Nik Bonitto could push the pass-rushing unit over the top.
Jonathon Cooper was tremendous in his rookie season and undrafted free agent Chris Allen should have a really good chance to make the squad as well.
The Broncos could have one of the best pass-rushing units in the entire league if all of these players come through but even if there are some injuries or bumps in the road, there is plenty if quality depth to fall back on as well.
Grade: A
Inside linebacker (8): Josey Jewell, Baron Browning, Alex Singleton, Justin Strnad, Jonas Griffith, Barrington Wade, Kadofi Wright, Kana’i Mauga
As good as the team looks on the outside/edge, this is the spot I will be most critical of and that will be a consistent theme since the draft.
Baron Browning is listed here but there has been talk of playing him at the outside. The Broncos may choose to keep him on the inside in most formations because quite frankly, the team is just not very good in this area.
Josey Jewell and Alex Singleton should be able to hold their own for the most part but in the passing game, they will both be taken advantage of. The team will need to count on Browning to step up in that regard.
Jonas Griffith has some promise and the team seems to have high hopes for him. Beyond that, the rest of the players are practice squad guys at best.
Before the season starts, the team should strongly consider bringing back one of the inside linebackers from last year’s roster.
Grade: C-
Cornerback (11): Patrick Surtain, Ronald Darby, K’Waun Williams, Michael Ojemudia, Damarri Mathis, Essang Bassey, Faion Hicks, Blessuan Austin, Donnie Lewis, Ja’Quan McMillian, Cortez Davis
This might be the most difficult position group on the team to assess. What do the Broncos have here?
It seems that the team knows it has a future star in Patrick Surtain. Ronald Darby is an experienced veteran but he missed time last year. K’Waun Williams was signed as a free agent rather than to bring back Bryce Callahan and then there’s Michael Ojemudia, who missed almost all of his second season in the league.
Fourth-round pick Damarri Mathis is one of the most intriguing players on the roster and if he lives up to billing, should see as many snaps as every corner on the team not named Surtain at some point.
The rest of the players on the roster will be competing for back-end roster spots or slots on the practice squad. Most of that will come down to which players perform the best on special teams.
In the AFC West, where every team can throw the football around, the secondary is going to have to be solid and could be one of the things that decides who wins the division, who goes to the playoffs and who sits at home and watches.
This group is going to have to be good? But good is it?
Grade: B-
Safety (7): Justin Simmons, Kareem Jackson, Caden Sterns, Jamar Johnson, P.J. Locke, J.R. Reed, Delarrin Turner-Yell
Perhaps because he was worried about the lack of depth at safety, Paton chose to re-sign Kareem Jackson late in free agency. With Justin Simmons, that gives the Broncos a great one-two punch at the position heading into 2022.
Paton has also used three fifth-round picks in the last two drafts on the safety position, possibly looking toward a future without Jackson with those choices.
Caden Sterns is full of promise but the players behind those three are all question marks and will need to show something in camp and preseason games to secure a spot and meaningful role on the roster.
But with the talent at the two starting spots, similar to the quarterback position, this is one that you have to grade high. Simmons is one of the best all-around safeties in football and Jackson is a crafty veteran who may be a perfect sidekick to Simmons.
Grade: A-
Specialists (4)
Kicker: Brandon McManus
Punter: Sam Martin, Corliss Waitman
Long Snapper: Jacob Bobenmoyer
There isn’t much to address here and the only position that has any competition, at least currently, is at punter.
Sam Martin would have to really look bad to lose the job to Corliss Waitman but stranger things have happened. The Broncos signed Waitman shortly after the regular season ended but Denver will be his fifth team in the league and he’s likely just around so that Martin doesn’t wear out his league in training camp practices.
Brandon McManus remains one of the better kickers in the league and he still offers the ability to come on for a 60-yard field goal in the thin air of Denver.
Grade: A
Overall Grade
Overall, the Broncos have a solid roster from top to bottom. How it stacks up against the other teams in a loaded division is a fair question to ask and one we likely won’t have a good feel on until those key AFC West battles next season.
Inside linebacker and defensive line could be upgraded but other than those two positions, there isn’t a very long list of stuff to complain about here.
Overall roster grade: B