Here's how the Denver Broncos' Day 3 picks will fit

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Thanks to a pair of third-round trades on Friday night, Broncos general manager George Paton went into Day 3 of the 2021 NFL Draft with six choices, giving him a total of 10 for the entire class.

That’s a magic number.

“I think we’ll end up with 10 picks. We’re fine with that,” he said. “If you hit on 50 percent of 10, that’s five. Most teams have seven picks, so if they hit on 50 percent, that is 3.5. Just do the math.”

Paton wants “more darts” to try and hit the bullseye. He didn’t find any more on Saturday, standing pat with the picks he inherited and acquired heading into the fourth round.

Here’s a look at the darts he fired to comprise the Broncos’ 2021 Day 3 class — five of which were used on defense.

ROUND 5, NO. 152 OVERALL: S CADEN STERNS, TEXAS

With 4.4 speed and a fearless on-field demeanor, Sterns is ideally suited for an initial role on special teams in kickoff and punt coverage. That gives him a chance to earn a jersey on game days while he would serve as a backup to starters Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson — and time for the Broncos to learn whether Sterns can ascend into a starting role if Jackson does not return in 2022, when he would be set to become an unrestricted free agent.

Simmons is already someone on Sterns’ radar — as a player he studies.

“You can put him anywhere and he’s going to be around the football,” Sterns said. “He’s a good player, and I literally watch him all the time.”

The biggest knock on Sterns is his missed-tackle rate. According to the data compiled by Pro Football Focus, he missed eight of 57 tackle opportunities lat year — a rate of one every 7.1 chances — and had a rate of one missed tackle every 6.0 opportunities over the last three seasons. He acknowledged that tackling was the area in which he needed to improve to succeed in the NFL.

Sterns also fits the Broncos’ recent emphasis on leadership and experience; he was a team captain for the Longhorns last season.

ROUND 5, NO. 164 OVERALL (FROM N.Y. GIANTS): S JAMAR JOHNSON, INDIANA

The Broncos didn’t draft Justin Fields in Round 1. Four rounds later, they drafted the man responsible for 20 percent of Fields’ entire college interception total, selecting the ballhawking Indiana safety.

Johnson picked off Fields twice in the Hoosiers’ 42-35 loss to the Buckeyes last Nov. 21, and when asked to reflect on the significance of that performance in how it created his NFL opportunity, he recalled that he played the game with “a chip on my shoulder” — and that he was in “takeover mode.”

Still, playing time on defense might be hard to find early for Johnson. Like Sterns, he will sit and learn behind Simmons and Jackson. Like Sterns, Johnson spoke with admiration of watching and studying film of Simmons.

And like Sterns — and even Simmons himself in his 2016 rookie season — Johnson will likely need to maximize his work on the third phase to make an impact.

“I played every special-teams [unit] there is. I’m ready to come in and do … whatever to help my team,” Johnson said. “I’m just going to be a Swiss Army knife when it comes to that.”

Williams isn’t a burner; his 4.5 speed is sufficient. But he is one of the best prospects in this year’s class in terms of making contested catches — particularly in the red zone. He scored 12 times in the last two years, including 8 touchdowns during the 2019 campaign.

He joins a position group that is the deepest on the offense — and, along with cornerback, on the entire roster.

“It feels great to join a group of receivers that has already established themselves in the league. [They have] some talented guys,” Williams said. “I look forward to learning some stuff from the guys.”

One area in which he will need to improve is in his drop rate. Among 199 receivers with at least 50 targets last season, his drop rate of one every 6.88 receptions was 180th. But an outsized number of Williams’ targets came in the red zone, where he was dealing with tight coverage, and his ability to make catches in traffic allowed him to emerge as a reliable red-zone target.

However, Paton noted that special teams was the primary reason why the Broncos locked in on Williams.

The selection of Williams makes it five consecutive years in which the Broncos have taken a wide receiver on Day 3 of the draft. Just two remain: 2018 fourth-rounder DaeSean Hamilton and 2020 seventh-round choice Tyrie Cleveland. Williams will have to beat out one — or perhaps both — of those veterans to find a spot on the 53-man roster come September.

ROUND 7, NO. 237 OVERALL: CB Kary Vincent Jr., LSU

Slot cornerbacks can often be found late in the draft or in the undrafted pool of college free agents, and with Vincent, the Broncos might have found a slot cornerback of the future. Most of his work at LSU came in the slot — 1,191 slot snaps from 2017-19, according to Pro Football Focus.

But being a slot defender in the NFL means more than just taking on an inside receiver on short-area routes. It also entails providing run support. To that end, Vincent said that one point of emphasis in recent months has been working on his technique to better shed blocks.

“Being able to go and play man-to-man in the slot. [That’s] something I’ve worked this offseason,” he said. “I know I need to improve to be able to stay and be a guy in the league. Being able to shed blocks and make plays like that.”

If he can do that — and improve his technique — he could have a future in Denver. Vincent had six penalties in 2019, his last full season in college before he opted out in 2020. If he grabs a bit less and continues to show the ability to make plays on the ball in 2019, when he had four interceptions, the Broncos might have unearthed a gem.

ROUND 7, NO. 239 OVERALL (FROM N.Y. GIANTS): Edge rusher Jonathon Cooper, Ohio State

For the second consecutive year, the Broncos used a seventh-round pick on a pass rusher, selecting Cooper with the second of their three Round 7 choices. Cooper will find a friendly face when he arrives for rookie camp in May, as he will reunite with Buckeyes teammate Baron Browning, selected with the 105th overall pick Friday night.

“That’s my dawg,” Cooper said of Browning during a Zoom conference after the Broncos selected him.

Cooper and second-year edge rusher Derrek Tuszka could find themselves in a battle for a roster spot at outside linebacker behind starters Von Miller and Bradley Chubb and third-year veteran Malik Reed, who notched 8 sacks last year. Tuszka started last year on the practice squad before working his way onto the 53-man roster, and it would not be a surprise if Cooper follows a similar path.

And although Cooper projects as an edge rusher, he will have to drop back in Fangio’s scheme — an aspect on which he’s been working since the end of the 2020 season.

“The thing that I probably need to work on the most is being comfortable with dropping back in space,” Cooper said. “That’s the main thing that I’ve been focusing on this offseason.”

ROUND 7, NO. 253 OVERALL (FROM CLEVELAND): DE Marquiss Spencer, Mississippi State

Pressure is the name of the game for Spencer, and he did a fairly good job at generating it in the last two seasons. According to the data compiled by Pro Football Focus, Spencer averaged one pressure every 10.04 pass-rush snaps in the last two seasons.

He believes he can do better.

“I need to work on my hands and studying the offense [more] than I did in college,” Spencer said.

Spencer is also one of the smartest prospects in this year’s class; he is a three-time SEC Academic honor-roll choice, earning that honor in 2017, 2019 and 2020.

The practice squad might be the most likely path forward for Spencer in 2021, although if he pushes 2020 third-round pick McTelvin Agim, he could eke his way onto the 53-man roster.