Leading up to the draft I broke down film on players I thought could be a good fit for the Broncos, and Josey Jewell from the University of Iowa was a player I targeted as one who I think could help right away. An on going trend among Denver's draft picks this year is they are all high character guys, and that streak isn't broken on Jewell. He was voted team captain multiple times, and was a leader on his team. Jewell is a player who isn't going to blow anyone away by his workout numbers. At 6'1 and 238lbs he ran a 4.8 in the 40. When you hear those numbers you get the picture of a pretty average inside linebacker, but then you put on this kids film. He has football instincts that are second to none. Jewell simply has a knack for making plays.
Brandon Marshall is the only guaranteed starter at inside linebacker. I think Todd Davis is vulnerable to Josey Jewell if Jewell comes in, picks up the playbook, and creates more plays than Davis. Jewell has that intangible ability to make the big play that you either have, or you don't. At Iowa it seemed as though he was always batting passes down, creating fumbles, and just making plays. Big plays are something that Denver's defense lacked last year. He understands angles so he is able to cover running backs out of the backfield, and he is a great tackler. What do I expect from Jewell this year? I think he will largely be a special teams contributor, and be able to step in should Davis or Marshall go down. To be completely honest though, I also would surprised if he beat out Todd Davis for the other inside linebacker job opposite Brandon Marshall. Jewell has a bright future with the Denver Broncos, and I will not lie, it does feel good to have a player I personally looked into get picked up by the team.
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