The Denver Broncos are going to be making some bold roster moves in the coming weeks. Are they prepared to say goodbye to a recent draft pick? Not every draft pick pans out for NFL teams - even the best teams in the league are seen making some awful draft picks from time to time.
Even the great Howie Roseman picked Jalen Reagor over Justin Jefferson in the 2020 NFL Draft, for example. Well, the Broncos are in the same boat, as we could go back to their recent drafts and find examples of players who the team should have taken or took but should have stayed away from.
And has this team heads to contender status, they might be in a position to give up on a draft pick quite early to hopefully find more immediate production from other players.
Are the Broncos going to give up on Audric Estime too soon?
And if they did, would it be the right move? Estime was the team's fifth-round pick back in the 2024 NFL Draft and ended up having an OK rookie season this past year. He rushed for 310 yards on 76 carries. A 4.1 yards per carry is a find average in the NFL, especially for a rookie.
Estime did fumble two times in 76 carries, so that was an issue for sure. Anyway, in the offseason, the Broncos signed JK Dobbins and also drafted RJ Harvey in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft. Both Dobbins and Harvey figure to push Estime down the depth chart a bit.
Furthermore, the team also has Jaleel McLaughlin in the backfield, and while he hasn't amounted to more than an RB3 type of player, he does bring a more diverse skillset to the backfield than Audric Estime does. Look, I am not saying the Broncos have to give up on a player who isn't even 22 years old yet, but you have to wonder since it's Sean Payton - he is absolutely known for making a bold move or two.