The Denver Broncos traded a first and third-round pick to the Miami Dolphins for Jaylen Waddle. On one hand, getting Waddle in the picture does take this offense where it has needed to go for years now, but on the other hand, the Broncos are out two notable draft picks.
They were able to move up in the fourth round, as the Dolphins and Broncos swapped those selections, and Denver also has the New Orleans Saints fourth-round pick from the Devaughn Vele trade, so all in all, there is still some capital here.
But the Broncos of note do not have a first or a third-round pick. It's going to be nearly impossible for Denver to get back into the first round during the draft, but they could have their eyes on a more modest, but still notable, move up.
Denver Broncos could be poised to get into the third round of the NFL Draft
Insider Mike Klis was recently on with Denver Sports and said pretty confidently that he'd be shocked if the Broncos only had one:
"I think the hole they want to fill is in the third round. That's still a starter round... I would actually be surprised if they only had one pick on day two."
For context, here are the Broncos picks for the 2026 NFL Draft:
2nd Round - 62nd
4th Round - 108th
4th Round - 111th
5th Round - 170th
7th Round - 246
7th Round - 256
7th Round - 257
Day two of the NFL Draft are rounds two and three, so Klis seems rather confident that Denver is going to find a way to get back into the third round, which actually may not be that hard. The third round goes to the 100th overall selection, which is held by the Jacksonville Jaguars, so it's not an insane jump.
And if we do some math here, that only further proves this point. This NFL Draft pick value chart, the Jimmie Johnson model, gives a numerical value to draft picks. The first overall pick is worth 3000 'points,' and the 50th overall pick, for example, is worth 400 points. The Broncos own the 108th and 111th overall picks, and if you combine those values from this chart, you'd get 150 points, which is worth the value of the 88th overall selection, well in the third round range.
There is a chance that Denver could simply package two fourth-round picks to move up into the middle of the third round, which would give the team two picks on day two. The Broncos could also still trade future draft capital here into 2027, but that class is expected to be rather stacked with talent.
And in this year's class, the overall talent isn't that great at the top, but there is some nice value to be had on day two, so that has to be a primary motivation of Denver apparently wanting to get into the third round.
Some prospects who could hover in that 80-90 range where Denver may want to get into include defensive tackle Darrell Jackson Jr., running back Jonah Coleman, safety Bud Clark, and wide receiver Skyler Bell.