The Denver Broncos have the No. 62 pick as their first selection next Thursday, and that's actually their sweet spot.
The Denver Broncos know this particular draft will be different. The Broncso come into Thursday’s NFL draft as a championship-caliber team that nearly went to the Super Bowl, and they also don’t have a first-round pick after making the Jaylen Waddle trade.
That doesn’t mean the Broncos don’t have high expectations. But finding players with those restrictions requires a different approach, along with some creative thinking, according to GM George Paton.
“Our expectations are the same — I mean, they’re high,” Paton said in a piece written by Luca Evans of the Denver Post. “We think there’s good players in this draft, we think there’s good players where we’re picking at 62, we have two picks up in the top of the fourth, and we feel good what’s going to be there. And so, we like it.
“We know we still have flexibility with the seven picks to move up, or move back and get more picks,” Paton continued, speaking on the Broncos’ current draft arsenal. “And so, we have experience with this. We’ve gotten good players with lesser picks.”
Paton added that the Broncos have focused on a half dozen players who could fall into the 45-75 range as they try to figure out their pick with No. 62. The Broncos have done draft visits with the likes of defensive tackle Caleb Banks and tight end Eli Stowers, but Evans added that Denver’s pre0draft visits haven’t coordinated with who the Broncos actually end up selecting lately.
“We like to draft high-trait players, and maybe they lack a little polish, and it’s going to take some development,” Paton said.
Evans also said the Broncos tend to lean toward Day 2 players with a high upside, and he cited a trade they made to get up to the end of the second round and take All-Pro returner back in 2023 with No. 63. The writer also cited the selection of linebacker Nik Bonitto back in 2022 with No. 64.
“We’ve done well,” Paton said, “in that realm.”
Finally, Paton rejected the notion that the lack of a first-round pick puts more pressure on the Broncos with those later picks. Which makes sense, because having a team that went 14-3 that’s locked up nearly all of its key players takes a lot of pressure off.
“We’re going to go through our process,” Paton said. “Our process has worked. And it continues to evolve, but I think it’s better. I feel more prepared for this draft than I was for last year’s and the prior draft.”