3 positions the Denver Broncos need to avoid with their top pick in 2023

The Denver Broncos don't pick until the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but just because they have to wait a long time for their first selection doesn't mean they can't be selective. In fact, the Broncos really have to be selective with their top pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. There are certain position groups where this team already has depth, or young players needing development, and other position groups where more depth or younger players are actually needed.

So what position groups do the Broncos need to actively avoid with their top pick(s) in the 2023 NFL Draft? Of course, the "best player available" strategy trumps all, so if there is a prospect sitting there who simply shouldn't be there, this list is irrelevant, but if all of the players on the board are in a similar range on the Broncos' draft board, then these three positions should be largely ignored with the team's top selections.

3 positions the Denver Broncos should avoid with their top 2023 NFL Draft pick

1. EDGE rusher

We've got to talk about the Denver Broncos' current situation at EDGE rusher. Of course, the team traded Bradley Chubb last year to the Miami Dolphins, which has prompted many to think that EDGE has suddenly become a top need for this roster in 2023. If that were the case, the team might have gone a little harder after EDGE help in NFL Free Agency. Let's look at why the team should actively avoid picking this position with one of its top picks in the 2023 NFL Draft. Again, as long as most of the players on the board are around the same "grade" by the team.

The Broncos moved Baron Browning from off-ball linebacker to EDGE in 2022, and that position switch seems to have been a success so far. Browning needs continued development at that position and the Broncos certainly shouldn't give up on him as a starter. The team also signed Randy Gregory as a big-money free agent in 2022, and even though he was injured for most of last season, they simply can't throw in the towel on that investment yet.

Those two players will likely project as the Broncos' starters for 2022, but there are players behind them the team has invested in as well. Nik Bonitto was the team's top pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, and the Broncos just hired his former position coach at Oklahoma -- Jamar Cain -- to come in and work with the pass rushers in 2023. At some point, you have a bit of redundancy at this position with guys like Browning, Bonitto, and even 2021 seventh-round pick Jonathon Cooper, who has shown flashes of being a solid option off the edge as well.

The Broncos also traded a fourth-round pick for pass rusher Jacob Martin of the Jets last year at the trade deadline. Aaron Patrick is coming back from an ACL injury. Christopher Allen -- a top undrafted free agent pickup in 2022 -- is also going to be in the mix.

Again, there's a level of redundancy when you're picking guys in the 50s, 60s, and beyond of the NFL Draft. Top-flight edge prospects don't typically fall there, and that's a position group you'd likely prefer to find someone within your top 20 or 30 prospects with the group the Broncos have.