It’s the end of March, spring is in the air, and the concern over who will be the Broncos left tackle is growing rapidly. With less than a week until OTAs start in Denver, John Elway and Vance Joseph have made it clear that they don’t know who will be anchoring the left side of the offensive line once the season starts in September.
At the NFL owners meetings taking place this week in Phoenix, however, Joseph is as cool as the other side of the pillow when it comes to his starting left tackle vacancy, saying “I’m not overly concerned with it.”
“It was a possibility that we weren’t going to have [the left tackle position] filled [by now],” Joseph added on Tuesday. “You talk through every issue that’s possible with free agency and with your roster. I’m not surprised that we are sitting here without a known left tackle. But again, [Donald] Stephenson has played some left, [Menelik] Watson has played some left, so I’m not overly concerned with it.”
While Stephenson and Watson are both true right tackles, until other options are added to the roster, it is widely expected that both will get an opportunity to start on the left side, with Stephenson likely getting the first shot. However, there is still a significant chance that the starting left tackle isn’t on the roster now—as Elway and Joseph haven’t ruled out that possibility—and that very well could come in the form of a first-round pick in the draft.
When asked if the Broncos could find a starting tackle in this year’s draft class, Joseph simply responded, “Absolutely.”
“Tackles, rushers and corners are the three positions that everyone wants,” he said. “We are picking [at number] 20 [overall], there may be three to four tackles that are first-round graded or quality, and they may not fall to us. So we have to go in the draft with an open mind as far as taking the best player for our need. It’s a combination of both, it’s not only the best player, but it’s your need. If a tackle is there that deems a first-round grade from us, then absolutely.”
Fortunately for the Broncos, many mock drafts don’t have a single tackle taken before Denver’s pick, let alone three to four gone by their selection. If Denver truly does want to add a left tackle in the first round of the draft chances are favorable that a player with a first-round grade will be available.
It is widely regarded that the top three tackles in the draft are Cam Robinson, Ryan Ramczyk and Garett Bolles, in no particular order. Joseph confirmed that the Broncos spoke with all three at the combine, but would not confirm recent reports that Denver has a pre-draft visit scheduled with Robinson.
If Denver does not look at the draft for a starting tackle, it is also possible that they could pick one up as players are cut after the draft and into the summer months. What is not certain is who the Broncos’ starting left tackle will be. What is known is they have their eye on the draft for a potential blind spot answer.
