Versatility and play-making ability helped steer the Broncos toward fourth-round Eyioma Uwazurike

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — First, you can call him “Enyi.” It’s pronounced like “innie,” as in having an “innie” or an “outie” belly button.

Second, No. 116 pick Eyioma Uwazurike can play anywhere on the defensive line. At Iowa State, he worked as a zero-technique, a three-technique — even a five-technique.

“I’m comfortable being looped all around the D-line,” Uwazurike said. “I’ve played every position on the D-line, so it’s all second nature to me at this point, so, I’m just ready to see how that improves over the years. I figure that the better I get, the more useful I’ll be.”

Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett confirmed that moving Uwzazurike around the defensive line would be their plan.

“You want everybody on the inside to play all three positions as much as possible, and he’s a guy that we think can do that,” Hackett said.

And at a position that was a low-key need on the Broncos’ roster in the wake of Shelby Harris being included in the Drew Lock trade, Uwazurike’s play-making prowess could earn him a prime spot in a rotation that will be led by Dre’Mont Jones and free-agent pickup D.J. Jones.

Uwazurike will need time to develop, and in that, veterans like DeShawn Williams and McTelvin Agim have a head start. And he says he will have to improve his pad level and how he uses his hands.

“Small technique things,” he said.

But he can do so on a resume built on big plays.

Uwazurike cemented his bona fides during a splendid senior season at Iowa State, in which he finished with 9 sacks and 12 tackles for loss, earning first-team All-Big XII honors in the process. It capped a six-season career that saw him redshirt as a freshman in 2016, work as a rotational lineman in 2017 and then start the following four seasons.

He took an extra year in 2021 that was granted to players who took part in the COVID-19-impacted 2020 campaign and improved his draft stock with by far his most productive season.

“I’m not just a one-trick pony when it comes to pass rushing. I have a variety of different [moves] that I can use,” he said.

And Uwazurike also has special-teams credentials — something Broncos George Paton says is a Day 3 priority, having blocked two field goals during his time at Iowa State.

That said, he didn’t expect the Broncos to call him.

“I didn’t know that I was on their list at all,” Uwazurike said. “It was definitely shocking to see … When I got that phone call from Denver, I couldn’t believe what I was looking at.”

But he was high on the Broncos’ list — in part because of his work against the run.

“We weren’t good enough stopping the run last year, so, we wanted to get a little more size up front, and he — along with Matt [Henningsen, a sixth-round pick], we feel can help in that area — help our depth up front — where we can stop the run when we need to” general manager George Paton said. “Last year, we couldn’t in four-minute [defense].”

Added Hackett: “To have a big body like that — a guy that can just take one guy and push him all the way back in the backfield — as an offensive guy, you get nervous about.”