When you think of teams that need to improve via the draft, the Denver Broncos aren’t the first one that comes to mind. The Broncos made it all the way to the AFC Championship game, after all, and they came within a field goal of landing a Super Bowl berth. They’re a tough, battle-tested veteran outfit, and teams like that are usually drafting for depth and positional competition at the back of each round.
But the Broncos do have holes and needs, and Nick Kosmider knows what they are via his ongoing coverage of the team in The Athletic. Kosmider released his first mock draft today, and while at least one of his selections feels like a stretch, he did have a couple of picks at positions of need that are more than a little intriguing.
Round 2, Pick 62: Elijah Sarratt, WR, Indiana
Payton likes to draft wide receivers near the top of his drafts. As Kosmider points out, Payton has picked a receiver in the first four rounds in each of his three drafts since 2023. He’s said good things about Denver’s young wide receiver group, which featured a major step up from Troy Franklin along with a solid debut from Pat Bryant.
But Payton also wasn’t happy about the drops at the end of the season, hence the logic behind this selection. Sarratt isn’t the sexiest name out there when it comes to game breaking speed, but his 15 touchdown receptions in 2025 led the nation. Sarratt also has size and 6’2” 209 pounds, and that would help prevent opposing secondaries from focusing on receiver Courtland Sutton, who’s currently the Broncos biggest red zone threat.
Round 3, Pick 94: Dallen Bentley, TE, Utah
Evan Engram caught 50 passes for 461 yards and a touchdown after signing with the Broncos, which was the biggest output for any tight end since Payton arrived in Denver. But the fan base was expecting something closer to the 114-catch season Engram had in Jacksonville just two years ago, and Engram never really developed into the “joker” role Payton envisioned for him.
While Bentley is a solid selection who has the size to block at 6’4” 264 pounds, he doesn’t really feel like a player who could make that jump, either. He had 48 catches for 620 yards and six touchdowns in his first chance as a receiver at Utah, but that number feels light for what Payton will be after. We’ll make him down as a “possible” for the moment, but it feels like there are better ways to upgrade this position.