The Denver Broncos kicked off their 2026 NFL Draft class by taking Texas A&M defensive lineman Tyler Onyedim, and they reeled in one of his teammates as a top undrafted free agent as soon as the draft finished up: Taurean York.
If there is one position on a loaded Denver Broncos roster that feels like it's pretty wide-open in terms of the depth spots on the roster, it's got to be at linebacker. The Broncos used the final pick of the 2026 NFL Draft on Buffalo tackling machine Red Murdock, and along with Taurean York, the Broncos might have done the best "bargain shopping" at the position of any team in the league.
This year's linebacker class was phenomenal from top to bottom, and the Broncos got a guy in York who is going to be coming into the league with a big chip on his shoulder after producing at a high enough level to get drafted.
Denver Broncos steal LB Taurean York as top undrafted free agent pickup
Regardless of whether or not York was the Broncos' highest-priced undrafted free agent pickup, he seems to have an early inside track to making the roster.
The Broncos' linebacker group is currently made up of starters Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad, along with 2024 3rd-round pick Jonah Elliss who is making the switch from the EDGE position to off-ball linebacker. Behind those three guys are a number of other former UDFA players, none of which had the pedigree coming up to the NFL level that York has.
Not even 21 years old yet, York was a two-time captain at Texas A&M and started 39 games in the SEC. He was immediately impactful on a loaded Texas A&M defense, earning Freshman All-American honors back in 2023, then leading the team in tackles in both 2024 and 2025.
Even though he's undersized at 5-foot-11, 226 pounds, his productivity and tackling abilities were never a question mark for the Aggies. He made 25.5 tackles for loss and even played on kick coverage in college.
One of the things that helps York overcome his size deficiencies compared to other players at the position is the way he plays instinctively. His reactive speed is outstanding and he plays with intensity every single snap.
The Broncos could have taken York in the 5th or 6th round (if they had a pick in the 6th) and nobody would have batted an eye. Although it felt like it would be extremely difficult for a bunch of rookies to come in and make this Broncos' roster going into the draft, you can't help but feel like they have a lot of guys now between the 7-player draft class and 13-player UDFA class who have a really good shot.
And York might have the best shot out of all of them.
It's not going to be easy as an undrafted player to crack a roster in the NFL, even with a bunch of other former UDFAs essentially competing for those roster spots. Levelle Bailey, Jordan Turner, and Karene Reid are the only other inside linebackers on the roster going into this process outside of the aforementioned top 3.
York is going to come in and impress as a special teams ace. He's going to put in the work to get up to speed on the defense quickly. And after not getting drafted, he's going to come in with that extra motivation to prove the rest of the league wrong for passing on him.
The Broncos got a really good one to develop here, and his story is going to be fun to watch unfold over the offseason program.
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