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Denver Broncos Column
By:
Jay Amado
5/5/08
We now know who the Broncos took in the
2008 draft, and you know what that means…time for some analysis.
In the first round, Ryan Clady was the
best case scenario for the Broncos and that was exactly what
happened. While some liked Vanderbilt’s Chris Williams and/or
Branden Albert, from Virginia, more than Clady there’s no doubt that
Ryan was the right pick for Denver. Clady moves very well for his
size, and will be a perfect fit in the Broncos zone-blocking system.
Left tackle became a giant need for the Broncos when Matt Lepsis
decided to hang it up after a long and decorated career in Denver.
Clady won’t have a lot of competition for the starting spot, and it
wouldn’t be a total surprise to see him spend a year at right tackle
learning the offense before the Broncos move him over to where he
will eventually be. With Jay Cutler in place, and now Ryan Clady
coming to protect his blindside, the Broncos have the two most
important positions in football filled for years to come.
The first "WHAT THE HELL!?" moment of
the Broncos draft came in round two, when the Broncos selected
Virginia Tech wide receiver, Eddie Royal with their pick. With Dan
Connor on the board, and Nike Koutouvides as the only middle
linebacker on the roster now that D.J. Williams will be going back
outside, it made it hard to understand what the Broncos were doing.
Even when you look at the receiver position, where Denver needed
help, Eddie Royal still doesn’t make sense. Devin Thomas, Malcolm
Kelly, Limas Sweed were possibly the three best receivers in the
draft, and all were still available. Royal does bring a decent
return game to Denver, but even then: DeSean Jackson is even better.
I still don’t know what Denver was thinking taking Eddie Royal at
this pick.
The Broncos didn’t have a third round
pick, but made up for it with two picks in the fourth round…kind of.
With the first pick (9th in the round) the Broncos took
center, from Bowling Green, Kory Lichtensteiger. Lichtensteiger is a
capable run blocker who can play either guard or center.
Unfortunately, the Broncos didn’t need a center which is where his
future will ultimately be. Tom Nalen is still in Denver, and Casey
Wiegmann is dependable and a perennial pro bowler who was brought
in. Denver still had other huge needs (linebacker, safety,
cornerback) that they could have filled here but instead went with
Kory. Later in the round (20th), Denver made a very good
pick when they drafted Kent State’s Jack Williams. While most people
haven’t heard of him, he’s still a great pick. He’s not going to
start right now, and Denver doesn’t need him to with Dre Bly and
Champ Bailey already there. He’ll likely compete with Dominique
Foxworth for the nickel back spot and will see a lot of time on the
field this year. With a reported 4.32 40-time, Jack Williams was a
nice pick here; I thought he would be gone by the end of the third
round.
I didn’t like what the Broncos did at
all, in the fifth round of the draft. Again, they had two picks.
With the 4th pick in the round, Denver took running back
from Arizona State, Ryan Torain. Torain was good as a junior, but
was all banged up last year: foot, ankle, and calf injuries all kept
him off the field. While I can see what the Broncos liked in Torain,
he’s a great one-cut, north-south runner that fits the Broncos
running back mold, there were still probably better backs out there
(paging Chauncey Washington). Not a horrible pick, but the team
already has Travis Henry, Selvin Young, Mike Bell, Cecil Sapp, and
Andre Hall on the roster. With the 13th pick in the
round, Denver went with another Virginia Tech Hokie: defensive
tackle, Carlton Powell. Powell wasn’t even a productive college
player (5 ˝ career sacks), and played in a pro style defense there.
There were a few defensive tackles with more upside here, and Letroy
Guion from Florida State could have been just what the doctor
ordered for Denver---a decent pass rusher who also is a solid
tackler from the defensive tackle spot. In terms of pure strength
and size, Frank Okam was also available and would have provided more
help than Powell will. I hope that this time next year, I’m eating
my words; but I seriously doubt it.
In the final two rounds, Denver did a
great job---probably better than anyone else in those same two
rounds---safety, Joshua Barrett put up great numbers at Arizona
State and showed amazing speed at his pro day and the combine. He
had legitimate third round talent and was still available in the
seventh. A rival of his in college, Spencer Larsen was taken in the
6th round and the middle linebacker was one of the
players (along with Barrett) Denver could have picked in one of the
two rounds before. They closed out their draft taking fullback,
Peyton Hillis from Arkansas. Hillis cleared the way for two first
round running backs---Darren McFadden and Felix Jones---and is very
similar to Cecil Sapp. Hillis can run the ball, and is also a very
willing run blocker. He has a "complete fullback game" (and, yes…I
did just make that up.)
In summation, the Broncos drafted
started out very good when they landed Ryan Clady. However, that was
a no-brainer pick and they made some questionable decisions in the
middle rounds before putting together a great second half of the
second day. Right now, it wouldn’t be a stretch at all to say that
all three of their 6th/7th rounders will make
the final roster.
If you have any questions you want
answered, any comments about this article, or simply want to harass
me about the review, my e-mail address is:
amado.jay@gmail.com Everything is welcome,
and check back often for updates.
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