3 Broncos' draft picks who may be in their last season with the team in 2024
The Denver Broncos have made their share of bad draft picks over the last few seasons, and some of these players may be in their last season with the team. Denver Broncos' General Manager George Paton does deserve some credit for some of the notable draft picks he's made like Patrick Surtain II, Quinn Meinerz, and Jonathon Cooper.
However, there are a few former draft picks that stick out now as just not at all panning out, and we can go as far as to say that they could be in their last year with the Broncos in 2024. Let's dive into those three players.
3 Broncos draft picks who may be in their last season with the team in 2024
Javonte Williams, RB
Having averaged less than four yards per carry in 2023 and now less than three yards per carry in 2024, Javonte Williams has been one of the most inefficient running backs in the NFL this year and simply does not need to get anymore carries at this point. He's got value in pass protection, but when rookie RB Audric Estime returns from IR, Williams should lose his spot in the rotation.
Frankly, Denver should consider making him inactive and rolling with a RB trio of Estime, Jaleel McLaughlin, and Tyler Badie on gamedays. A second-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, Williams had a major knee injury in 2022, so we're now two years removed from that injury. If Williams is still this efficient even being two year out, I am not sure there is any hope remaining.
He's a free agent following the 2024 NFL Season and is surely not someone the Broncos plan on bringing back.
Baron Browning, EDGE
Baron Browning has never played more than 14 games in a season and will not be able to hit that mark in 2024. He's just never been able to consistently stay healthy. He was a third-round draft pick of the Broncos back in the 2021 NFL Draft and accumulated 9.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, and 22 QB hits in 38 games for the Broncos across the 2021-2023 seasons.
Browning does have some value as a rotational pass-rusher, but the inability to stay healthy may just force the Broncos to led the player hit free agency in 2025. The team did draft Jonah Elliss in the third-round of the 2024 NFL Draft, so perhaps that was the beginning of the end for Browning.
Fellow 2021 pass-rusher Jonathon Cooper is also a free agent in 2025, but he's quickly turning into one of the best pass-rushers in the NFL this year, so my guess is that Denver locks him up for the long-term and lets Browning hit the market.
Greg Dulcich, TE
Another former draft pick who just cannot stay consistently healthy is TE Greg Dulcich, who played in just 12 games for the Denver Broncos across the first two seasons of his career. Well, Dulcich has played in all three games for Denver in 2024, so the health has been there, but he's just not a viable blocker at the position and is not developing into the receiving threat many thought he could be.
My guess is that a huge reason why Denver did not do much at TE this offseason was because they were hoping that Dulcich could take a huge leap for 2024. That has not been the case, so I could see a scenario where the Broncos try to get some sort of pick swap for Greg Dulcich or simply just cut him in 2025 when the inevitably make some more notable moves at the position.