The Denver Broncos have made some home run picks in the first round of the recent NFL Drafts. Let's look at their previous five first-round picks. The Broncos have found some success in the NFL Draft in recent years, and that's thanks to the sharp eyes of George Paton and Sean Payton.
Many of the team's best players were their own draft picks, so the talent evaluation and coaching have truly been working hand-in-hand. As we get closer to the 2025 NFL Draft, the mock drafts are abundant, and the Broncos first-round plans are different depending on where you look.
Let's look at the team's previous five first-round picks.
2025 NFL Draft: Here are the Denver Broncos last 5 first-round picks
2024: Bo Nix, QB
Bo Nix was the Denver Broncos 12th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and was unquestionably the right selection. Nix threw for 29 touchdown passes as a rookie, which ranked fifth in the NFL. He helped lead the Broncos to 10 wins and a playoff berth.
There is reason to believe that Nix is going to hit the year two jump that many top QBs in the NFL have. In fact, it might be hard for Bo Nix to not play even better in 2025. He seems wholly obsessed with winning and perfecting his craft.
The Broncos are in great hands with Bo Nix.
2021: Patrick Surtain II, CB
The NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2024 and the best defensive back in the NFL, Patrick Surtain II was George Paton's first ever draft pick with the Denver Broncos. Surtain is one of the highest-paid cornerbacks in the NFL now and is only set to enter his age-25 season.
Through four years of his NFL career, Surtain is absolutely on a Hall of Fame pace, and that is not an exaggeration.
2020: Jerry Jeudy, WR
Jerry Jeudy was traded to the Cleveland Browns last offseason and had the best year of his career in 2024. There has been a good bit of debate about whether the Broncos were right to trade Jeudy, but it seemed like he truly did not want to play for Denver anymore.
Both teams made the move and the trade is done - Jeudy signed a nice extension with the Browns and was a 1,000-yard player in 2024. Good for him for hitting his potential. He was a top WR prospect in the 2020 NFL draft from Alabama.
2019: Noah Fant, TE
Noah Fant was shipped to the Seattle Seahawks in the Russell Wilson trade and is still with them. He's emerged as a decent receiving tight end but is really not all that of a special player at this point. Fant was still on pace to be one of the better tight ends that the Denver Broncos would have had, as the team has struggled to find competent TE production in recent years. Fant played his college football at Iowa.
2018: Bradley Chubb, OLB
The Denver Broncos infamously passed on Josh Allen in the 2018 NFL Draft in favor of Bradley Chubb, who is on the Miami Dolphins and who has struggled to stay healthy. There would have been no guarantee that Allen would have been able to develop into the QB he is today had he been taken by the Broncos.
This was likely the right pick when it was made.