Broncos 2025 mock draft: Getting greedy on defense and making Bo Nix happy

53rd Overall Pick - Danny Stutsman, LB, Oklahoma

Danny Stutsman may be the first linebacker who hears his named called in the 2025 NFL Draft. He's one of the best in the country and a do-it-all player. Frankly, while the Broncos' ILB play has been solid in recent years it's been nothing special overall, and I truly believe one of the last pieces this defense is missing is a true impact player at ILB.

Heading into 2025, the Broncos could realistically have a hard reset at the position, and with Alex Singleton tearing his ACL, Denver really could start fresh. Cody Barton has been a nice addition thus far and Justin Strnad of all people played his rear end off in Week 4, but Strnad is mostly a special teams guy. ILB Drew Sanders tore his Achilles and is probably out for the entirety of the 2024 NFL Season as well.

It would not shock me me to see Denver re-sign Barton, get Sanders back healthy, move on from Singleton, and get someone like Danny Stutsman in the NFL Draft next April. Since the start of the 2022 college football season, Stutsman has 269 total tackles, six sacks, three interceptions, eight passes defended, and 29 tackles for loss.

He is a menace and is all over the field. At 6'3" and 230lbs, Stutsman also has very good size for the position. I can't imagine what defensive coordinator Vance Joseph could do with a player like Stutsman.

The ILB position is interesting, as the free agent market is usually filled with capable but sometimes washed-up players. The Broncos may have two of them on their practice squad in Kwon Alexander and Zach Cunningham. But all of the very best defenses in the NFL typically have a game-changer at ILB, so it's a position that Denver could pour some resources into in 2025 and beyond.