As the country locks down to combat the corona virus the NFL continues to do business, and news continues to be made. One of the bigger moves of the off season came when former Los Angeles Chargers running back Melvin Gordon signed a 2 year 16 million dollar contact to play for the Denver Broncos. Gordon was the running back who held out until the Chargers game on October 6th against Denver in hopes of getting a contract that paid him north of the 5 million he was set to receive. With the 13.5 million dollars he got guaranteed over two years he got paid a fair amount, but you have to wonder if he would've been paid more had he not held out, and put up similar numbers to his 2018-2019 season.
The first thing I thought of when Gordon was signed was "we already have a number 1 back in Phillip Lindsey". There are people who think Lindsey is too small to continue get a lot of carries in the NFL, and there are people who believe he can get the job done despite his smaller size. I am in the group that believes he can get the job done. Today's NFL almost requires that you have multiple running backs on your team. Despite his toughness Lindsey was still suspect with his pass blocking, and pass catching abilities last season. I have no doubt those issues were due to the wrist injury he sustained the season before, and had surgery to correct. There is no doubt that as Lindsey heals he will improve in both of those areas. Known to be one of the hardest workers both on the team, and in the league, I believe with the added competition of Melvin Gordon both players will end up being better for it.
Something I didn't think about immediately was that with the new collective bargaining agreement NFL game day rosters expanded from from 46 players to 48 players, with the only catch being that one of those two players has to be an offensive linemen. This means teams have an extra roster spot to play with. It makes sense that teams would use that roster spot to add another top quality running back on offense. The NFL is a league that constantly evolves, and over the last 10 years the running back position changed from a position you build an entire offense around, to one that is largely filled with role players outside of an elite few. Even for those elite few the lifespans of their careers are not very long. When you stop and think about it adding another top tier running back to the team makes total sense. While I do not think that the signing of Melvin Gordon is something that made Phillip Lindsey happy, I think they will push each other, and new Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Pat Schurmur will take full advantage of being able to have two top tier running NFL running backs to create mismatches against defenses with.
Saturday, March 21, 2020
Thursday, March 19, 2020
My First 2020 Denver Broncos Mock Draft
Today is Thursday March 19th, and as of now the NFL draft is still scheduled to happen. I wouldn't be shocked if they postponed it, or at least changed the layout drastically to eliminate as much human interaction as possible. With that being said the NFL draft will take place at some point, and the Denver Broncos have 5 picks in the first 3 rounds. These are the players I believe Denver should try and draft at each position.
"With the 15th pick of the first round of the 2020 NFL draft the Denver Broncos select......Kenneth Murray, Inside Linebacker from the University of Oklahoma. Murray is exactly what the defense needs in the middle. He is big, smart, and extremely athletic. Murray ran a 4.52 40 yard dash at the combine, and has shown on film that he is able to cover both tight ends, and running backs. Todd Davis and AJ Johnson are the current starters at inside linebacker for the Broncos. Both are solid tacklers, and physical players, but they are absolute liabilities in pass coverage. If your inside linebackers cannot cover tight ends, and running backs your defense will be at a severe disadvantage, and will be taken advantage of. Kenneth Murray has the ability to be a premier inside linebacker for years to come.
Denver's pick in the 2nd round is pick number 46.
"With the 46th pick in the 2020 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select Tyler Biadasz, Center, University of Wisconsin." One of the Broncos biggest additions this off season was offensive lineman Graham Glasgow. He is able to play both center, and guard, but I think ideally he would be a better fit at guard. Having Dalton Risner at left guard, Tyler Biadasz at center, and Graham Glasgow at right guard would give Denver potentially the best interior offensive line in the NFL.
Denver then has 3 picks in the 3rd round, 77, 83, and 95.
"With the 77th pick in the 2020 NFL draft the Denver Broncos select Denzel Mims, Wide Receiver, Baylor University". The Broncos need to add a legitimate number 2 receiver to play opposite of Courtland Sutton. Denver is also severely lacking in speed, and Mims will solve both problems. Mim's is a 6'2 205lb receiver who on film seems to catch everything thrown his direction. Mims turned in a blazing 4.38 40 time, and has shown the ability to get behind a defense to make a big play.
"With the 83rd pick in the 2020 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select DaVon Hamilton, defensive tackle, Ohio State Univeristy." Hamilton is a 6'3 327lb beast in the middle of a defense. Most guys his size are typically known simply as run stuffers, but Hamilton can get after the quarterback as well. He had six sacks in 2019, and also put up the most amount of 225lb bench reps at the combine with 33 reps. Adding Jurrell Curry helped bolster the Broncos line, but all 3 starters from last year are being replaced. Adding Hamilton would give Denver a player who can play nose tackle, or the defense end/defensive tackle spot the 3-4 defensive scheme Denver runs.
"With the 95th pick in the 2020 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select AJ Dillon, Running Back, Boston College." If I had to describe AJ Dillon in one word it would be violent. Dillon is 6' and weighs 247lbs. He ran a 4.53 40 yard dash, and has shown a good ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. Denver has a running back in Phillip Lindsey who has elite speed, and cutting ability. Every time Lindsey has the ball he is a threat to score. However, last year we saw a re-emergence of the bigger, power type back with a guy like Derrick Henry for the Tennessee Titans. Dillon is a back poured from the same mold. When you watch Dillon's tape you can see he runs with an aggression not shared by many. Dillon would be a fantastic change of pace back to Lindsey. Dillon would especially come in handy when it is late in the game, Denver has the lead, and is trying to run out the clock. AJ Dillon would look fantastic in Broncos Orange.
As of right now Denver has 10 draft picks. It will be of vital importance that John Elway is able to find multiple players who can contribute this year if we want to beat KC for the division. I think getting these 5 players in the first 3 rounds could potentially be one of Denver's best draft classes ever.
"With the 15th pick of the first round of the 2020 NFL draft the Denver Broncos select......Kenneth Murray, Inside Linebacker from the University of Oklahoma. Murray is exactly what the defense needs in the middle. He is big, smart, and extremely athletic. Murray ran a 4.52 40 yard dash at the combine, and has shown on film that he is able to cover both tight ends, and running backs. Todd Davis and AJ Johnson are the current starters at inside linebacker for the Broncos. Both are solid tacklers, and physical players, but they are absolute liabilities in pass coverage. If your inside linebackers cannot cover tight ends, and running backs your defense will be at a severe disadvantage, and will be taken advantage of. Kenneth Murray has the ability to be a premier inside linebacker for years to come.
Denver's pick in the 2nd round is pick number 46.
"With the 46th pick in the 2020 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select Tyler Biadasz, Center, University of Wisconsin." One of the Broncos biggest additions this off season was offensive lineman Graham Glasgow. He is able to play both center, and guard, but I think ideally he would be a better fit at guard. Having Dalton Risner at left guard, Tyler Biadasz at center, and Graham Glasgow at right guard would give Denver potentially the best interior offensive line in the NFL.
Denver then has 3 picks in the 3rd round, 77, 83, and 95.
"With the 77th pick in the 2020 NFL draft the Denver Broncos select Denzel Mims, Wide Receiver, Baylor University". The Broncos need to add a legitimate number 2 receiver to play opposite of Courtland Sutton. Denver is also severely lacking in speed, and Mims will solve both problems. Mim's is a 6'2 205lb receiver who on film seems to catch everything thrown his direction. Mims turned in a blazing 4.38 40 time, and has shown the ability to get behind a defense to make a big play.
"With the 83rd pick in the 2020 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select DaVon Hamilton, defensive tackle, Ohio State Univeristy." Hamilton is a 6'3 327lb beast in the middle of a defense. Most guys his size are typically known simply as run stuffers, but Hamilton can get after the quarterback as well. He had six sacks in 2019, and also put up the most amount of 225lb bench reps at the combine with 33 reps. Adding Jurrell Curry helped bolster the Broncos line, but all 3 starters from last year are being replaced. Adding Hamilton would give Denver a player who can play nose tackle, or the defense end/defensive tackle spot the 3-4 defensive scheme Denver runs.
"With the 95th pick in the 2020 NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select AJ Dillon, Running Back, Boston College." If I had to describe AJ Dillon in one word it would be violent. Dillon is 6' and weighs 247lbs. He ran a 4.53 40 yard dash, and has shown a good ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. Denver has a running back in Phillip Lindsey who has elite speed, and cutting ability. Every time Lindsey has the ball he is a threat to score. However, last year we saw a re-emergence of the bigger, power type back with a guy like Derrick Henry for the Tennessee Titans. Dillon is a back poured from the same mold. When you watch Dillon's tape you can see he runs with an aggression not shared by many. Dillon would be a fantastic change of pace back to Lindsey. Dillon would especially come in handy when it is late in the game, Denver has the lead, and is trying to run out the clock. AJ Dillon would look fantastic in Broncos Orange.
As of right now Denver has 10 draft picks. It will be of vital importance that John Elway is able to find multiple players who can contribute this year if we want to beat KC for the division. I think getting these 5 players in the first 3 rounds could potentially be one of Denver's best draft classes ever.
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