2023 draft picks Broncos already regret making (and who they should’ve picked)

4. Used a 6th-round pick to trade for TE Adam Trautman, could have drafted K Anders Carlson

One move that was really exciting during the 2023 NFL Draft for the Denver Broncos was the trade of a 6th-round pick to get former Saints tight end Adam Trautman. Trautman was a third-round pick by the Saints back in 2020, and felt like he could thrive in Denver in Sean Payton's offense.

We have yet to see if Trautman is capable of making a bigger impact on the offense, which could happen over the course of the season, but the Broncos could have potentially avoided a very odd situation that transpired with Brandon McManus in the 2023 offseason (as well as trading draft capital for Wil Lutz) if they would have just drafted Anders Carlson.

Anders Carlson is the brother of Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson, and he's been perfect up to this point for the Green Bay Packers, who pulled the trigger on drafting him right before the end of the sixth round.

Carlson has a big leg, and has made all seven of his field goal attempts so far for Green Bay. He's made all 10 of his extra point attempts as well. Perhaps taking a kicker isn't the most exciting move, but it certainly would have saved the Broncos some offseason drama and headache to know there was a long-term plan in place. The whole situation with Brandon McManus felt very much like the Broncos were being reactive instead of proactive.