If you have watched any Broncos game over the past eight years you’ll know the offense hasn’t exactly been scary since the Peyton Manning days and that’s why whoever is drafted in the 2024 first round by the Broncos needs to be a playmaker instead of a quarterback (I know, shame on me.)
To put this into perspective according to TeamRanks, the ranks for points per game by the Broncos has been terrible the last nine years, 23’ 20th, 22’ 32nd, 21’ 23rd, 20’ 28th, 19’ 28th, 18’ 24th, 17’ 26th, 16’ 21st and 15’ 18th. The offense lacks a spark, just think back to this offense from the 90s that won back to back Super Bowls you had Terrell Davis you had John Elway and Shannon Sharpe, Rod Smith, Ed McCaffrey, you get the point.
Since Manning elevated players into household names, such as the late Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, Emmanuel Sanders and Julius Thomas, who has been that spark for this offense? How much of it has been the turnstile at the quarterback position in recent years? Sutton had a breakout year in 2019 and has mainly disappointed since his knee injury in 2020, outside of 10 touchdowns last year. Javonte Williams hasn’t been the same since the knee injury. The Jerry Jeudy experiment failed.
My argument is rooted in that if Sean Payton is able to somehow trade back in the first round and acquire a second-round pick that would allow them to safely draft Bo Nix then why not get him a rookie's best friend in a highlight reel offensive playmaker like Brock Bowers or Brian Thomas Jr.? Get the young quarterback someone electric on offense with a premium first-round pick to act as a safety net to get through some of his growing pains.
This year’s first round is packed with talent. Of the top 32 ranked draft prospects according to Pro Football Focus, seven are offensive playmakers, 10 out of the top 50 are offensive playmakers and 28 out of the top 100 are offensive playmakers. If Denver can get a trade package together to get a later first-round pick and an early second-round pick, then this plan works out.
The Denver Broncos need to solve the quarterback question but this offense has lacked a spark for quite some time and I think 2024 is the year to get back on the horse and get a an exciting playmaker who will ease some of the pain of rebuilding.