The Denver Broncos made a number of pretty huge moves in NFL Free Agency in 2025, including adding a piece to their offense that has everybody in Broncos Country excited. The addition of both Talanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw to the defense might give the Broncos the #1 overall defense in the league, but the signing of tight end Evan Engram to come and be the "joker" in Sean Payton's offense might take Bo Nix to another level as a player.
And that's exciting to think about.
Engram brings something to the table the Broncos have not had at tight end since Noah Fant was around, and even when Fant was around, he didn't bring the same level of ability that Engram does. Engram is a veteran who can do everything well at the tight end position, except maybe play a traditional in-line role on a consistent basis.
As a pass catcher, he's as dynamic as it gets and he nearly set the NFL record for receptions in a season by a tight end two years ago (114).
In his latest 2026 NFL mock draft, ESPN's Matt Miller has the Broncos quickly moving on from Engram with his projected selection of Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers.
Broncos move on from Evan Engram in 2026 NFL mock draft
Here was Miller's defense of the pick:
"Sean Payton has been vocal about wanting to diversify the Broncos' passing game, most notably adding hybrid players he calls "jokers." He signed one in veteran tight end Evan Engram and drafted another in running back RJ Harvey but is looking for more. Stowers is my TE1 and is expected to break out even more after catching 49 passes for 638 yards and five touchdowns last season. He's more of a slot tight end at 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, resembling Engram. Stowers would serve as a younger version of Engram with greater upside, though."
- Matt Miller, ESPN
There's no doubt that the tight end position is still an area of concern for the Broncos behind Evan Engram. It wouldn't be shocking to see them add another tight end in next year's draft, especially with rumors that they were interested in making a move up the board in 2025 for Michigan's Colston Loveland.
The Broncos didn't get Loveland, who went much higher than they would have traded up (10th to the Bears), but they did use a 7th-round pick on a very interesting upside play with Caleb Lohner, a former college basketball player who caught nothing but touchdowns at Utah.
The idea of moving on from Engram after just one year or basically drafting his replacement in the 1st round is not without merit, but even as far away from the 2026 NFL Draft as we are now, you can almost feel the Broncos needing to go after someone for the trenches on either side of the ball.
The team hasn't drafted an offensive tackle since 2017. Starting center Luke Wattenberg is entering the last year of his deal. Ben Powers is in an interesting cap situation next offseason. On the defensive line, three of the team's top four guys -- Zach Allen, John Franklin-Myers, and Malcolm Roach -- are hitting free agency.
I'd be shocked if the Broncos didn't come away from the 1st round of the 2026 NFL Draft with a big man of some sort.