Broncos' Draft Needs: Will this be the year Denver goes inside linebacker in the first round?

Vic Fangio is one of the best linebacker coaches in NFL history. In 1979, Fangio got his start in coaching at his alma mater, Dunmore High School, as their linebacker coach. Seven years later, in 1986, Fangio landed his first gig in the NFL as the New Orleans Saints’ linebacker coach.

During his nine year stretch in New Orleans, Fangio led one of the best linebacking corps in NFL history known as “Dome Patrol,” which featured four Pro Bowlers.

In Fangio’s two years leading the Broncos, he’s had top talent at outside linebacker with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, but the team hasn’t had a major investment at inside linebacker under Vic’s watch.

Will this be the year Denver uses significant draft capital at inside linebacker for Fangio? Here’s how the Broncos’ roster at ILB stands entering the draft and where Denver could land an inside backer for Vic.

Special thanks to Andre Simone for providing draft input.

Current players on the roster

Starters:

• Alexander Johnson
• Josey Jewell

Depth:

• Josh Watson
• Justin Strnad
• Natrez Patrick

Level of need entering the draft: A complete mystery

Strength of position in draft: Top-end talent, but scheme fit provides questions

Round(s) targeted: 1-2, if at all

Top players in the draft: Micah Parsons (Penn State), Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (Notre Dame), Zaven Collins (Tulsa)

In Fangio’s final year with the Bears in 2018, Chicago used a top-10 pick to select insider-linebacker Roquan Smith. The next year, with Fangio in Denver, the Broncos passed on using a top-10 pick on Devin Bush.

Last year, Denver rolled with a physically-gifted undrafted linebacker and an instinctual fourth-round pick on the inside. Trying to pinpoint exactly what Fangio is looking for in his inside linebackers has become near impossible.

After exploding onto the scene in 2019, Alexander Johnson plateaued a bit in 2020, while Josey Jewell thoroughly impressed Fangio his first full season as a starter. The play from Johnson and Jewell were serviceable in 2020, especially for their inexpensive salary. However, there’s certainly room for improvement, which is why a top pick could absolutely be in play for George Paton this year.

This offseason, Paton and the Broncos have invested significant resources on every level of the defense outside of inside linebacker. Is that because Fangio has identified his guy in the draft?

First-round talents Micah Parsons and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah would be Week 1 starters and give Fangio an ultra-athletic linebacker to help in the pass game. Viewed as one of the top talents in the draft, Denver could use their ninth-overall pick on Parsons.

However, significant character concerns could also knock him back to the latter part of the first round, which is where Owusu-Koramoah is projected to be selected as well. If Denver trades back in the first round, both could be viable options.

Another potential hesitation with the top three prospects is their scheme fit in Denver’s 3-4 defense. Teams may very well view Parsons and Zaven Collins to be best suited as outside linebackers, while seeing Owusu-Koramoah best at safety due to his 6-foot-1, 215-pound frame.

There’s also a wild card on Denver’s roster — 2020 fifth-round pick Justin Strnad. Before suffering a season-ending wrist injury in training camp, there was hope Strnad would be able to develop into Fangio’s athletic linebacker. If that hope still exists, the Broncos could stay away from drafting a linebacker altogether, rolling with Johnson and Jewell as the starters as they develop Strnad.

In the Fangio era, no position on the Broncos has been more unpredictable than insider linebacker. The Broncos will take that mystery into April’s draft.