Denver Broncos UDFA sleeper no one is talking about

The Denver Broncos recently announced they had signed a class of 15 undrafted rookie free agents in 2023, many of which were already reported by major media outlets or at least the primary sources of Denver Broncos' information. But since the team waited until its rookie camp to officially announce the signing of undrafted free agents, some names of players slipped through the cracks or flew under the radar to many in Broncos Country.

At least, for me they did.

One name, in particular, that flew under the radar since the 2023 NFL Draft ended was Demontrey Jacobs, an offensive tackle prospect out of South Florida. The Denver Broncos obviously did not use any of their five selections in the 2023 NFL Draft on the offensive tackle position, but they did bring in some interesting candidates to contribute there down the line after the draft including All-American Alex Palczewski out of Illinois.

But Demontrey Jacobs was not a widely reported signing. It didn't generate a ton of hype from Broncos media people. Understandably so, all things considered. This guy is an undrafted rookie free agent out of South Florida (with all due respect).

With that said, a deeper dive on Jacobs indicates that he might be a player worth seriously monitoring considering the Denver Broncos have a need for offensive tackle depth and maybe need a diamond in the rough like this to emerge.

Recruited to Grambling State as a defensive lineman, Jacobs made the transition to the offensive side of the ball and has developed some NFL-level chops playing the tackle position. While he has played both right and left tackle, right tackle was his primary position at USF and the physical attributes translated to some recognition from the NFL scouting community.

Jacobs caught the attention of PFN NFL Draft expert Ian Cummings early in the 2022 season with his ability to bury folks in the running game,

NFL Draft Diamonds had this to say about Jacobs:

"Demontrey has a bunch of physical tools – long arms, big hands, lean frame, and sheer size – that are highly desirable for an NFL offensive tackle. His fundamentals and technique in both phases of the game are raw. With the right coach, he can develop into a good NFL player. "

- NFL Draft Diamonds

The Broncos obviously have a new offensive line coach in 2023 in Zach Strief, the former starting right tackle for the New Orleans Saints. Strief wasn't as athletic coming out of college as Jacobs, but interestingly enough, Strief also boasted outstanding size at the position with 35-inch arms and over 11-inch hands. When you talk about physical traits at a position in combination with the ability to wipe guys off the board thanks to your overall physicality, you can't help but wonder if next year at this time, we could be talking about Demontrey Jacobs as perhaps the team's top swing tackle or maybe even an option as the starting left tackle.

Let's not get too far ahead of ourselves though, he's going to have to take it one practice at a time for now. The intrigue is there. The overall size and athletic profile? Big-time check. The question now is how quickly can Jacobs impress an NFL coaching staff and scouting department? The Broncos lost three key pieces of depth at tackle in the 2023 offseason with the losses of Calvin Anderson, Cameron Fleming, and Billy Turner. There are spots open on this roster now.

Can this UDFA out of South Florida seize a spot?