The Denver Broncos had a few players that did not seem to live up to expectations in 2024. Let's dive into them here. At the end of the day, some players just do not cut it in the NFL and do not develop into what people think.
The 'bust' label is never a good one to have, and while some of the current Broncos' players aren't necessarily busts, they did not meet expectations in 2024. I don't believe this is a bad thing, though, as it makes it abundantly clear just where the Broncos need to add this coming offseason.
Now that they are officially eliminated from the postseason, they can truly dive headfirst into a crucial offseason. Let's look at three players who did not live up to expectations in 2024.
3 players who did not live up to Broncos' expectations in 2024 season
Javonte Williams, RB
One of the biggest 'misses' of George Paton's career with the Denver Broncos was when he took Javonte Williams in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft. A season-ending knee injury in 2022 seemed to steer his career off the rails, and at points in 2024, Williams did not even feel playable at times. He has averaged less than four yards per carry in each of the last two seasons and only rushed for 513 yards in 2024.
Likely drafted to be an every-down back, that just has not been the case for the fourth-year player. The Broncos should let him hit the open market and take to the 2025 NFL Draft to find someone who can be a RB1 for them. It's been a disappointing career for Javonte Williams in the NFL.
Greg Dulcich, TE
Greg Dulcich showed a good bit during his brief rookie season in 2022 but caught a handful of passes in 2023 and is now not even on the team here in 2024. Heck, he was cut weeks and weeks ago. Drafted back in 2022, Dulcich seemed to never fully get over nagging hamstring injuries, and the Broncos clearly had enough with him when they said goodbye.
Another George Paton NFL Draft miss, whiffing on Greg Dulcich does force the Broncos to perhaps take to the 2025 NFL Draft to fix this unit once and for all, but the neat thing here is that this coming NFL Draft class at the position does appear to be very strong, so the Broncos should be able to find someone here.
PJ Locke III, S
I am not sure what most of us were hoping to see from PJ Locke III this year, but it seems like he left a lot of meat on the bone. He allowed a passer rating of well over 100 this year and just never really stood out on defense. The Broncos did essentially replace Justin Simmons with Brandon Jones, which proved to be a great move, but it kind of felt like they didn't want to do much else at the position.
I would hope that the Broncos look to find an upgrade over PJ Locke for 2025 and beyond. He seems to be a good player in a more rotational role, but being an every-week starter in the NFL might not be what he can handle. The Broncos do seem to have the CB room pretty much situated with Patrick Surtain II, Riley Moss, Ja'Quan McMillian, and Kris Abrams-Draine, but I would love to see a stronger investment at safety.