How the Broncos can turn this into a great draft for 2021 and beyond on Day 2

The NFL Draft is finally here and filled with drama. Between rumors of Aaron Rodgers being on the move, two of the top five quarterbacks falling out of the top 10, and the unexpected run on defenders near the end of the first round, there was plenty to talk about for football fans in the Mile High City on Thursday night.

While Patrick Surtain II wasn’t our highest rated player on the board when the Broncos made their selection at No. 9 — that was quarterback Justin Fields — the versatile Alabama cornerback was the highest-rated defender and one of the safest prospects in the entire class.

There will be lots more to get into when it comes to Surtain and Denver’s decision to select him instead of a gunslinger, but for now, we’re looking forward to Friday and Day 2 of the draft. Day 2 tends to make or break a draft class, and for a team with a couple of glaring needs like the Broncos, it could be the difference between competing in 2021 and beyond. With that in mind, here’s how the board stacks up with the remaining talent on the board.

Broncos BPA

Let’s exclude the receivers, centers, and outside corners at this point, especially after the Surtain selection. So, what we’re left with is 17 players with second-round grades or better on my board: three edge rushers, three offensive tackles, three off-ball linebackers, three safeties (Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah swings both of those) one running back, and three defensive linemen.

Those are all major needs remaining on the board for Denver, here are the best players available.

13. Azeez Ojulari, EDGE, Georgia  

15. Teven Jenkins, RT, Oklahoma State 

22. Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, SS, Notre Dame  

36. Samuel Cosmi, OT, Texas

37. Javonte Williams, RB, North Carolina

38. Joseph Ossai, EDGE, Texas  

39. Ronnie Perkins, EDGE, Oklahoma  

41. Christian Barmore, DT, Alabama

42. Carlos Basham, DE, Wake Forest

43. Levi Onwuzurike, DT, Washington

45. Spencer Brown, RT, Northern Iowa

50. Quincy Roche, EDGE, Miami  

56. Jevon Holland, S, Oregon

60. Trevon Moehrig, S, TCU

61. Chuba Hubbard, RB, Oklahoma State

62. Pete Werner, ILB, Ohio State

65. Baron Browning, OLB, Ohio State

The Steals

There’s an obvious remaining big three for the Broncos, all with incredible appeal.

Ojulari has Micah Parsons-like athleticism, with a more defined position, and no off-field red flags. His issues are the late medical red flags stemming from an ACL injury suffered during his senior year of high school. Since his redshirt freshman year, though, Ojulari hasn’t missed a game.

Despite the injury history, he’s shown promise moving in space, even in coverage; but more importantly he took over games in the fourth quarter this year with his electric first step. Gamble on the injury and you might’ve just found an heir to Von Miller.

Teven Jenkins is another steal. A prospect who legitimately should have been in the conversation with Rashawn Slater as the second tackle selected, Jenkins would bring an identity to the Broncos line — a gritty, nasty, athletic identity.

With a quarterback room that needs help, adding Jenkins would be huge. It would give Denver a dynamic duo on the right side with him and Dalton Risner, and finally fill the long-term hole at right tackle.

The wildcard here is Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, an explosive, versatile playmaker who could fit very well next to Alexander Johnson at middle linebacker or as the future replacement for Kareem Jackson at strong safety. He could even fill the rover position—which he played at Notre Dame and fill the role Will Parks played in sub-packages the last two seasons. 

If Vic Fangio or Mike Munchak are pounding the table for any of the aforementioned three prospects, they’d all be worth moving up for.

Depth and develop

If hoarding picks is the mission, then the talent here can be mined, especially if one of those top three prospects isn’t around by No. 40. 

No interior defensive lineman has gone yet and there will be a steep drop-off once our top three are gone. Baramore, Onwuzurike, or Basham would all add some significant juice to get after the quarterback from the interior — a key to dominating on defense in the modern game.

Developmental offensive tackles, edge rushers, and linebackers abound as well.

Especially raw, but talented, Spencer Brown or Samuel Cosmi could be big gets on the offensive line with drastically different skill sets. Brown is a hulking tackle with some real talent as a run blocker, while Cosmi is a natural mover with great upside as a pass protector, even if he lacks ideal length.

Don’t sleep on these edge rushers beyond Ojulari either, as Ossai, Perkins and Roche are quality players with starter upside at a key position.

We haven’t talked about the safeties yet and in a defensive-back room that’s beyond deep, the need isn’t necessarily there. Still, you never know so keep an eye on Oregon’s Jevon Holland, a quality playmaker defending the slot who fits what Fangio loves.

What about the backfield?

We haven’t mentioned Javonte Williams, the star running back from North Carolina who runs like a train with no breaks. Williams has some jets and is a powerful runner with good contact balance. If developed as a receiver his impact could be similar to the two backs we saw selected last night.

The conversation with the quarterbacks is different, as the value isn’t great in the second round—or even the third round per our rankings. However, there’s plenty of intrigue with the top three remaining signal callers below.

103. Kyle Trask, QB, Florida 

120. Davis Mills, QB, Stanford  

121. Kellen Mond, QB, Texas A&M

Trask might not be a star athlete but he lit up the SEC since becoming the starter at Florida. Smack in between Mac Jones and Zach Wilson you’ll see Trask as the passing leader in an SEC-only schedule. Trask possesses good size, is accurate, throwing with anticipation and placement, and has some deceptive arm strength with the ability to get the ball in the right spots despite less than perfect footing.

Davis Mills is a former five-star recruit with tons of tools but due to injuries early in his career, he has never started a full college season. While he didn’t look his best in a shortened-COVID season out west, he has size, good mobility and is an accurate rhythm thrower, plus he has the arm talent to push the ball beyond the numbers. In the right situation, his tools are there to be developed into an NFL-level starter.

Kellen Mond is undeniably intriguing with the arm and athleticism combined with some sound decision-making. He just never let it rip, never let his tools shine. Instead, becoming more of a robotic game manager as his career progressed. If someone can get him to find that happy medium he’d present tons of value.

Luxury picks

The best available players on our board at non-positions of need. These guys are in our top-55 and would present nice value, but would also be unclear fits. If after a tumultuous rookie season, the Broncos are unconvinced of second-year center Lloyd Cushenberry both Humphrey and Dickerson could present long-term solutions.

Wide receiver isn’t a need but playmakers like Rondale Moore could be offensive weapons that would be incredibly entertaining to watch play at a Mile High. With Surtain, corner isn’t a need at all but there are nickel defenders or potential safeties here with lots of talent.

18. Creed Humphrey, OC, Oklahoma

35. Landon Dickerson, OC/G, Alabama  

28. Rondale Moore, WR, Purdue

30. Elijah Moore, WR, Ole Miss

40. Terrace Marshall Jr., WR, LSU  

48. Israel Mukuamu, CB, South Carolina 

49. Elijah Molden, CB, Washington

54. Asante Samuel Jr., CB, Florida State