Regrading Denver Broncos' 2023 draft class one year later

JL Skinner, S, Boise State- Grade: C

2023 stats:
None

It's hard to assess JL Skinner following his rookie season, which was as close to a "redshirt" year as it gets. It was still a good pick to grab Skinner in the sixth round as his potential value was much higger and he still projects well to fit into this defense.

But it definitely would have been nice to see something from him this past season.

That is particularly the case when you consider all of the issues the Broncos had at safety this past season with the season-ending injury to Caden Sterns and the multiple suspensions of Kareem Jackson. Instead, the Broncos turned to P.J. Locke and Delarrin Turner-Yell to fill in the holes.

Now, Justin Simmons is no longer around and even though the team signed Brandon Jones in free agency, there is going to need to be much more help from the safety spot. Sterns, Locke and Turner-Yell are still around, but the true wild card is Skinner.

The Broncos see something in him and know that teams around the league could as well. If not, they would have just placed him on the practice squad last season and used the roster spot on another player. Instead, they protected him from being poached off of the practice squad and just made him a healthy inactive nearly every game of the season.

Skinner still has the potential to turn into something good for the Broncos and turning this into a better grade but for now, it has to be somewhere in the middle.