Based on their biggest need, the Broncos have to take a wideout
Apr 13, 2020, 6:32 AM
When it comes to debating what a team should do when it’s their turn to pick in the draft, there are always two schools of thought. The first suggests that a team should take the best player available, regardless of position. The second argues that a franchise should fill their biggest need, with the best player available at that position.
There are plusses and minuses associated with each strategy, which is why the dispute has never been settled. After all these years of drafting players, a consensus hasn’t been formed.
That’s because nobody likes the true answer. In reality, it a combination of the two.
As unsatisfying as that solution is to the question, it’s the correct one. A team should take the best player available unless they’re already set at that spot. If that’s the case, it makes more sense to fill a need.
All of which leads to the Broncos in 2020. Sitting at No. 15 in the first round, there’s a lot of debate about what they should do.
In order to find the answer, it’s best to first determine the franchise’s biggest need.
Some would argue that offensive tackle is the Broncos most-glaring weakness. And at times last season, it certainly looked like that was the case.
After signing a four-year, $51 million contract to become the team’s new right tackle, Ja’Wuan James was injured just 10 plays into the season opener. He returned to play portions of two other games, but didn’t made it into the second half of either contest. All told, he played less than a game’s worth of snaps in 2019.
On the other side of the line, Garett Bolles was the opposite; he showed up for work every week and was on the field for all 1,015 offensive plays. At times, however, Denver probably wished he took the day off. Continuing an ugly trend, Bolles was flagged 15 times during the season, much to the chagrin of everyone in Broncos Country.
Just because there are question marks on both the right and left sides of the line, however, doesn’t mean offensive tackle is a position of need. On paper, Denver has a legitimate starter at each spot.
When healthy, James is a high-quality player. That’s why the Broncos gave him a huge contract. And despite the penalties, Bolles isn’t as bad as people think. By the end of the season, when he didn’t have a statue playing quarterback and the coaching of Mike Munchak had started to pay off, the much-maligned tackle was playing pretty well.
The Broncos have invested heavily in both players. With James, they forked over a lot of cash. With Bolles, they’ve poured a first-round pick and a lot of time into him being the answer.
Only two tackles can play at a time. So if the Broncos draft one in the first round, giving them three costly options, they’ll have someone on the bench who will be a bad investment.
At one point during the offseason, the other side of the trenches looked like Denver’s weak spot. The team’s opening day starters from 2019 were all set to leave via free agency. But as the offseason rolled along, that concern has been mitigated.
Yes, Derek Wolfe departed for Baltimore and Adam Gotsis is no longer with the team. But their replacements are big upgrades.
Shelby Harris returned on a one-year deal, putting him in contention for the starting spot he took from Gotsis last season. Jurrell Casey was acquired via trade from the Titans, giving the Broncos a five-time Pro Bowler in the trenches. Mike Purcell was solid at nose tackle in the second half of last season, while Dre’Mont Jones showed flashes of greatness down the stretch in 2019.
That quartet will provide a solid foundation, giving Vic Fangio a good rotation along the three spots on his defensive line. Denver still needs to add a player or two, or hope that the likes of DeMarcus Walker can finally blossom, but they don’t need to add another star.
In other words, drafting a defensive lineman in the first round would be a wasted pick. He’d see limited action, simply because of a numbers game.
Sticking on that side of the ball, middle linebacker has been a hot topic for quite some time. Heading into last year’s draft, there was a lot of talk that the Broncos would try to replace Todd Davis or Josey Jewell in the first round.
But with Devin Bush sitting there when it was Denver’s turn to pick at No. 10, John Elway traded down and let Pittsburgh select the Michigan linebacker. The move allowed the general manager to eventually land the trio of Noah Fant, Dalton Risner and Drew Lock, three players who look like they’ll be cornerstones of the Broncos offense for years to come.
Since Denver didn’t solve that need a year ago, it would stand to reason that they might try to do it this season. But recent developments suggest otherwise.
During the course of the 2019 campaign, A.J. Johnson supplanted Jewell in the starting lineup and played well. In fact, Pro Football Focus ranked him as the 46th best player in the entire league at season’s end. The Broncos seem content to see how he can develop.
That leaves Davis, who is certainly replaceable. But the fact that he’s still on the roster speaks volumes. Denver could’ve freed up $4.5 million in cap space, a big chunk that would’ve been useful in free agency, had they released him. They didn’t, which suggests they’re comfortable with the veteran as a starter in 2020.
The final position that causes concern when looking at the Broncos depth chart is wide receiver. Courtland Sutton appears destined to be a star, as the third-year wideout is already a Pro Bowl-caliber player. But beyond him, the roster is very, very thin.
Tim Patrick and DaeSean Hamilton are third, fourth or fifth receivers on most rosters. They’re too inconsistent and injury prone to be No. 2 wideouts, plus they don’t possess the game-breaking skills necessary to excel in that spot.
Behind them, things are even scarier. Juwann Winfree, Fred Brown, Kelvin McKnight and Diontae Spencer round out the depth chart.
In other words, the Broncos have Sutton and a bunch of other guys, which won’t bode well for the young star’s development. There’s no one who can take some of the pressure off of him by attracting the attention of the defense; Sutton is destined for non-stop double teams given the current situation.
That’s why taking a wide receiver with the 15th overall pick makes the most sense. It’s the Broncos biggest need.
Quite literally, they don’t currently have anyone worthy of being penciled in as the starter opposite Sutton. The same can’t be said for any other position. Denver may have question marks elsewhere, but at least they have a viable option. Currently, they don’t have one at wideout.
Given that they’re trying to jumpstart an offense that has been anemic the past four seasons, that can’t be the case heading into training camp. The Broncos have to provide offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur with some weapons on offense. They have to give quarterback Drew Lock some targets.
Drafting an offensive tackle, defensive lineman or linebacker would be a luxury. Selecting a wide receiver is a necessity.
