Denver
Broncos 7 Round Mock Draft 3.0
Well Broncos fans we have one day to go until the 2016
NFL draft kicks off. The Broncos have
several roster holes that they will look to fill in the draft. The Broncos would probably love to get a
quarterback in the draft but after the recent trades by the Rams and Eagles it
looks like it will be hard to get a QB who is worthy of a first round
pick. Now that we know Jared Goff and
Carson Wentz will be going first and second overall, Paxton Lynch will become a
hot commodity and I would be surprised if he got out of the top ten. After Lynch there really isn’t a QB who is
worthy of a first round selection so hopefully the Broncos will go with best
player available at #31. Obviously the
Broncos could be affected if they are able to acquire another quarterback at
some point in the next several days. Time
to get this mock draft started!
Round 1 (31st Overall)
Robert
Nkemdiche- DE Ole Miss
This is a pick that I made in my first mock draft and
I felt like I needed to bring it back. I
considered having the Broncos taking a safety at this spot but this is such a
good year for defensive linemen that I had to have the Broncos snag at least
one in the first couple of rounds.
Nkemdiche has top five talent but effort questions and some off the
field issues may cause him to fall in the draft. If the Broncos can grab him and get him
working with Bill Kolar, Nkemdiche could develop into an all-pro. The Broncos have never shied away from taking
players that have some off the field issues and Nkemdiche could end up being a
steal in the draft. The Broncos roster
has plenty of good leaders that could teach Nkemdiche how to be a
professional. If he can get his act
together and show consistent effort on the field this will be a great pick by
the Broncos. The really good thing is
that the Broncos would not have to ask him to start right away and could use
him as part of a rotation with Vance Walker and Jared Crick. Just watch Nkemdiche last year against
Alabama and you will see the ability that he has. He was a one man wrecking ball against one of
the most talented offensive lines in the country.
Other potential first round picks- Chris Jones, DE Mississippi State, Karl Joseph S West Virginia, Cody Whitehair G Kansas State
Round 2 (63rd overall)
Dak
Prescott- QB Mississippi State
I think John Elway will realize that there is not a
quarterback that is worthy of being a first round pick and waits until round
two to draft a developmental quarterback.
Prescott is someone that has tremendous potential but is incredibly raw
as a quarterback. He reminds me a little
bit of Cam Newton coming out of Auburn.
Newton was a much more polished passer than Prescott but they are both
quarterbacks who showed the ability to run and pass in college. I think if he is given a few years to develop
Prescott could turn into a very good NFL quarterback. The problem is that he is not ready to start
this year and probably for several years.
He struggles with reading defenses and does not make anticipation throws. He often waits for receivers to be open
instead of anticipating throws. Given
time to develop he could turn into a quarterback in the mold of a Cam Newton or
Russel Wilson, with the ability to make all of the necessary throws and escape
the pocket if there is nothing there. The
Broncos would love to get a guy like Prescott to develop behind Sanchez or
someone else if they make a trade for another quarterback.
Other potential second round picks- Christian Westerman, G Arizona State, Andrew Billings DT Baylor, Sheldon Day DT Notre Dame
Round 3 (93rd Overall)
Justin
Simmons- S Boston College
Time to fill another position of need for the
Broncos. While they have their starting
safeties set for next season depth is a major concern going forward, especially
when you consider that both T.J. Ward and Darian Stewart missed games last
season with injuries. Simmons could
immediately play a big role on this team.
I see him playing a similar role to David Bruton last year. He can come in and contribute on special
teams and on obvious passing downs he can come in and match up with tight
ends. He has the ability to be very good
in man to man coverage. He tested very
well at the combine and he has the stats to back up his combine workouts. In his two seasons as a starter at Boston
College he had 7 interceptions. Given a
year or two to really fill out his frame he could eventually slide into the
role of starting safety.
Other potential picks- Maliek Collins, DT Nebraska, Max
Tuerk, C USC, Domonique Alexander,
LB Oklahoma
Round 3 (98th overall)
Connor
McGovern- G Missouri
I was really tempted to have the Broncos select RB
Paul Perkins out of UCLA but after re-signing Ronnie Hillman last week I do not
think they will use a draft pick on a running back this high in the draft. As it stands I think the Broncos will
continue to bolster the trenches, this time going with Connor McGovern out of
Missouri. McGovern profiles very well as
a linemen in Gary Kubiak’s zone blocking scheme. He is a bit undersized but he compensates for
that with incredible strength. This is
one of the strongest linemen in the draft this year and that is something that
should get the Broncos attention. They
could use a little more toughness on the inside and McGovern is someone that
will bring that to the table.
Other potential picks- Paul Perkins, RB UCLA, La’Raven
Clark, OT Texas Tech, T.J. Green,
S Clemson
Round 4 (136th overall)
B.J.
Goodson- ILB Clemson
Time to get the Broncos another linebacker prospect to
come in and compete for the job vacated by Danny Trevathan. The Broncos have several in house options to
fill the spot but they will be looking to bring in several more players to
compete. Enter Goodson who was a very
solid player at Clemson and a player who did himself a lot of favors with his
test results at the combine. He was also
a captain at Clemson for his senior season so he will bring good leadership
qualities to the team. If Goodson can
stay healthy he could end up being a really solid player for the Broncos.
Other potential picks- Scooby Wright, ILB Arizona, Jayron
Kearse, S Clemson, Sean Davis S
Maryland
Round 5 (144th overall)
Jaylon
Smith- LB Notre Dame
Here is the real wild card of the draft and a guy that
I have had the Broncos taking in multiple mock drafts now. He is just such an unknown in the draft that
I have no idea what is going to happen with him. He is a top five talent who suffered a major
injury which could be bad enough that he may never play football again. Then again he could make a full recovery and
turn out to be the best football player in this draft in a few years’ time. His draft range is also something that is
hard to gauge as the injury muddies the water.
Reports are that some teams have dropped him from their draft board completely
believing that his knee will never fully recover. While I acknowledge taking Smith is a huge
risk it is a risk I think the Broncos should be willing to take. This is a team that could afford to let Smith
sit out a year to let his knee heal, and if he does recover then they
essentially get a top five talent for the 2017 season. If his knee never does recover then you only
lost a fifth round pick which is worth the risk in my estimation. Smith could turn out to be an all-pro player
for years to come if the knee recovers so I say it is a risk worth taking.
Other potential picks- Ben Braunecker, TE Harvard, Blake
Martinez, ILB Stanford, Kolby
Listenbee, WR TCU
Round 5 (157th overall)
Joe
Thuney- G North Carolina State
Another pick for the Broncos along the offensive
line. Thuney has shown the ability to
play both guard and tackle in college which makes him a valuable
commodity. I think in the NFL he
profiles more as a guard due to his shorter arms which usually prevent linemen
from being tackles. The good news is
that he was a very productive player at both guard and tackle so the Broncos
will gain flexibility on the offensive line if they add Thuney which is a good
thing. He also tested very well
athletically at the combine which is always a good sign when entering a zone
blocking system. I think if he is given
a year or two to develop Thuney could turn into a very good guard in the
NFL.
Other potential picks- KJ Dillon, S West Virginia, Wendell
Smallwood, RB West Virginia, Willie
Beavers, OT Western Michigan
Round 6 (219th overall)
Cody
Kessler- QB USC
Time to take a chance on a guy who was once considered
a first round draft pick. After 2014
Kessler was thought of as one of the top quarterbacks who would be available in
the 2016 NFL draft. However following a
disappointing 2015 season his stock has fallen dramatically. I personally think that Kessler is getting
way to much criticism and I still think he is a very talented player who could
be successful in the NFL. I think the
Broncos should take a chance on Kessler and see what he can do. He shows tremendous accuracy on shorter
throws but doesn’t have the top flight arm strength that many NFL teams want
from their starting quarterbacks. While
he may not have a rocket for an arm I think he has plenty of arm strength to
make all of the throws in the NFL.
Other potential picks- Jeff Driskel, QB Louisiana Tech, Joe Haeg, OT North Dakota State, Rashard Robinson, CB LSU
Round 7 (228th overall)
Dan
Vitale- FB Northwestern
Another pick from my previous mock that I am going to
stick with in this one. Kubiaks offense
requires a fullback to fully function and in my opinion Vitale is the best one
available in the draft. Not only is he a
very good lead blocker he has also shown the ability to be a receiving threat
out of the backfield. Many Broncos fans
will remember Howard Griffith and that is who Vitale reminds me of. He isn’t going to wow you with athletic
ability or make tremendous plays but he is a blue collar player who is going to
do his job on every down. Having Vitale
in the fold would allow Kubiak to open up the playbook entirely.
Other potential picks- Keith Marshall, RB Georgia, Glenn
Gronkowski, FB Kansas State, Bryce
Williams, TE East Carolina
Round 7 (253rd overall)
Drew
Kaser- P Texas A&M
Last but certainly not least is punter Drew Kaser of
Texas A&M. This pick will be Mr.
Irrelevant for the 2016 NFL draft but Kaser is someone who may not be
irrelevant at all for the Broncos. He
would be able to come in and compete with Britton Colquitt for the starting
punter job right away. While he may not
win the job right away I think he could spend a season or two on the practice squad
and eventually take over for Colquitt.
Punter is a position that is hard to transition to straight out of
college so I don’t expect Kaser to make the roster but I think eventually he
could develop into a very good punter.
Other potential picks- Nelson Spruce, WR Colorado, Eric
Striker, OLB Oklahoma, Mac McCaffery,
WR Duke
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