Finding Broncos: Five Offensive Prospects Who Might Fall

Pros

• Elite production with 58 touchdowns to five interceptions since coming to Tennessee. 
• He completed over 68% of his passes each year at Tennessee, with over 75% adjusted completion percentage. 
• Ball placement was consistently on point. 
• The mechanics are clean and need little adjusting or reworking. 
• Good size and mobility. 
• He is enough of a threat with his legs to add an extra level of complication for the defense. 

Cons

• He will be a 25-year-old rookie coming off a severe injury that could sideline him his whole rookie season. 
• Scheme at Tennessee doesn't translate well to the NFL with easy and simple reads/throws. 
• The simplicity of the scheme helped the high completion percentage. 
• He needs to learn to protect himself when he is running the ball. 
• There are times the ball did get away from him. 
• Mechanics, when throwing on the move, will need the most work. 
• Can he make throws consistently through NFL throwing windows? 
• Can he handle the NFL slate of reads and progressions? 

Fit with Broncos

Hooker was considered an easy first-round pick, despite being 25 years old until he tore his ACL. Both of those going against him is exactly why he could fall in the draft, even though reports are he is coming along extremely well with his rehab. 

There are concerns about the scheme he was in at Tennessee, but pairing him with Sean Payton could be huge for his development, with Payton working his system to fit what Hooker can do. Hooker does make sense, as Russell Wilson has to turn it around this season or could be on his way out. That allows Hooker the season to recover and grow, with Jarrett Stidham backing up Wilson and potentially taking over in 2024, depending on what happens. 

Pros

• Experience on both sides, with over 2,500 snaps played between both tackle spots. 
• Consistently great as a run blocker. 
• He loves to finish the rep with his man on the ground in the running back. 
• He has good lateral quickness and covers ground quickly with his kick slide. 
• Has good fluid movement skills. 
• Has positional versatility and could work in multiple schemes. 
• He keeps his head up and rarely lunges into blocks. 

Cons

• The execution wasn't consistent, with 55 pressures and 13 sacks allowed in his career. 
• He consistently talked about being a guard in the NFL and not a tackle, and he lacks exposure as a guard. 
• Doesn't have the quickest drop to anchor. 
• The pass protection technique is rough, especially with his hands. 
• He had 19 penalties between 2020 and 2021 but cut it down to three in 2022. 
• He opens his chest to defenders when he goes to punch. 
• Hands will drop and aren't quick to come up and reset. 

Fit with Broncos

The fact he has constantly been mentioned as a guard with his issues in pass protection could be why he falls. That could benefit the Broncos, especially if they view him as a tackle. He has experience on both sides, and they still need a swing tackle. If they view him as a left tackle in the NFL, he is an eventual replacement for Garett Bolles. If they consider him as a guard, he still makes sense as a versatile depth piece, but there isn't a clear line to a starting job within his first two years in the NFL. 

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Pros

• He has excellent power throughout his body. 
• He was praised for his leadership, work ethic, and football IQ. 
• Better mover than you'd expect. 
• Colossal frame, with a massive build and eating up plenty of space in the gaps. 
• Naturally strong and a naturally powerful anchor. 
• Plenty of experience from multiple spots. 
• He can start immediately as a rookie in a gap scheme. 
• He has plenty of drive power in his lower body. 

Cons

• Loves to finish blocks quickly and can use more sustain. 
• He needs to play with a lower pad level consistently. 
• While his mobility is surprising, it isn't the smoothest and doesn't have great range. 
• Can lose focus and get lost with twists/stunts and delayed blitzers. 
• The punch technique needs to be cleaned up to weaponize the power better. 

Fit with Broncos

Avila has plenty of power and so many traits to draw NFL teams. Being only an interior offensive lineman who may not do well in zone schemes could see him fall. However, that would still be a surprise with how valuable he is for gap-schemed teams. 

With the signing of Ben Powers, Steve Avila doesn't make as much sense as he is a natural guard in the NFL. However, if they want to go heavy on power inside, they can look at Avila as a center, where he has the collegiate experience, or even Quinn Meinerz. 

Pros

• NFL size and frame. 
• Rushing production is great.
• Only had six career fumbles, with four of them coming in 2021.  
• Swift feet with excellent lateral cuts. 
• He breaks through tackles at a good rate, and arm tackles do nothing. 
• Very elusive running style, but has solid power as well. 
• Maintains balance through contract extremely well. 
• He has good burst to get up and through holes quickly. 
• Noticeable improvement in pass protection resulting from the cleaner and improved technique. 

Cons

• He doesn't have much experience as a pass catcher, but he has shown well there on his 62 career catches.  
• Doesn't have great breakaway speed. 
• He needs to be more patient and willing to take what is given. 
• He suffered from eight drops on 83 targets. 
• He had a bad habit of going off the beaten path to try and get outside the tackles. 
• He is upright as a rusher and takes away some of his power. 
• He can do better to protect his body, especially his lower half. 

Fit with Broncos

With the status of Javonte Williams up in the air, the Broncos need more help in their running back room, even with Samaje Perine signed. The lack of experience and not the extra home-run hitting gear are why he could fall on top of playing a lesser-valued position. The issue is that the Broncos need that reliable receiving ability and home-run gear to balance out Perine and Williams if/when he sees the field this year. Ultimately, other running backs are a better fit and could be a better value than Bigsby. 

Pros

• A great athlete with the mold of a prototypical tight end. 
• Excellent upside to be a complete tight end with a higher upside as a receiver. 
• He is versatile for his role and can work in any scheme. 
• Can handle contact while remaining focused on making the catch. 
• Effort blocker that wants to do great. 
• He works to pick up yards after the catch. 
• Excellent catch radius with the good body control to adjust to the ball. 

Cons

• Hands were not the most reliable, with 12 career drops. 
• He missed some time with an injury. 
• Still coming along with the technique and needs time to develop. 
• Didn't face the toughest level of competition. 
• Scheme got him open a lot in college. 
• He has the desire as a blocker but has to rework the technique completely. 

Fit with Broncos

The injury he is dealing with and the tight end draft class being so strong could see Kraft fall. However, when it comes to the Broncos, they already have two tight ends in a similar mold as Kraft with Greg Dulcich and Albert Okwuegbunam. They needed a reliable blocker as the number two guy and signed Chris Manhertz to fill that role. 

While Kraft could develop into a good number-one guy with solid blocking, the odds are there will be another prospect that bitter fits the Broncos' needs and desires than a tight end.