Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Roster Is LOADED As Jaylen Waddle Boosts Offense

Starting point is 00:00:00 After the NFL draft, the Denver Broncos, they are loaded on this roster as they prepare for the 2026 NFL season. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the locked on podcast network, your team every day. It is Friday, Broncos country. I'm Cody Rourke, joined as always by Sarah Beninger. Today show is brought to you our friends over there at Fandu. And right now, new customers can bet just $5 and get $150 in bonus bets if your first bet wins. head to Fanduil.com to get started. As we talk about this year's roster here for the Broncos,

Starting point is 00:00:40 it is a strength perceived by many to be one of the strongest rosters in the league. Our friends here at the Lockdown Podcast Network said that the Broncos draft in terms of talent acquired ranks 28th. We'll tell you why we disagree with them. Plus, there are a handful of players after the draft who have so much to prove at a couple of important positions here for Denver. We're going to kick things off by diving into a little bit of a too early roster outlook for Denver on offense and on defense.

Starting point is 00:01:04 And Sarah, I feel like we should probably start here on the offensive side of the ball for Denver, led by Bo Nix, who's obviously returning. Denver's returning primarily everybody from last year. But the best part about this, there was that one shiny upgrade. Jalen Waddle changes everything when we talk about the outlook of Denver's offensive side of the ball. 100%. Jalen Waddle is the tide that raises all boats in the harbor when it comes to the Broncos skill position players. Obviously, Bo Nix is the, you know, a stir that's

Starting point is 00:01:32 draws the drink. But when it comes to the other skill players, Jalen Waddle is the one guy that I think defenses are going to have to circle when they get to, you know, facing off against the Broncos and looking at, okay, now we're not going up against Sean Payton's offense. We're going up against Davis Webb's version of Sean Payton's offense. And the Broncos now have Jalen Waddle, who is elite in a number of categories. He's elite at separating. He's an elite route runner. He's elite at creating separation downfield and winning vertically against defensive backs. Yards after the catch, guess what? Jalen Wattel is one of the best in the NFL.

Starting point is 00:02:07 So all of those different factors contribute to making everybody else better in the offensive weaponry arsenal. You have plenty of playmakers who have done a great job with, you know, I guess we could say grading on a curve, you know, with Cortland Sutton and Troy Franklin and Pat Bryant last year in his rookie season, Marvin Mims, when he gets opportunities. I think that the Broncos have all of the makings to be the most improved offense in the NFL. Cody, I had to think before I said it because I want to make sure, I want to make sure I rack my brain here.

Starting point is 00:02:39 We'll keep it fair. But the most improved offense in the NFL, I would be shocked if it's not the Denver Broncos because of the Jalen Waddle pickup. I agree. And look, since Sean Payton has come over, the offense has improved year over year. And there's still some glaring questions that we have. However, to your point with Jalen Waddle, the run game, you and I have talked about it has been the biggest area of concern with this team in terms of consistency. Now, last year, J.K. Dobbins went healthy. He was one of the best running backs in the NFL.

Starting point is 00:03:08 He was top five going into week 10 before he suffered that Liz Frank injury that ended things. He's back. R.J. Harvey had 12 plus touchdowns last season as a rookie kind of out of the backfield and as a runner. He was valuable in that move around role that Sean Peyton likes. Notice how we call it a move around role now, Brockos country. You may like that. So, you know, bear with this here. But I also think the addition of Jalen Waddle, I think it creates more opportunities for the run game to succeed because now defenses aren't going to be necessarily stacking the box all the time because if you are stacking the box, you know what that means? That means you're getting man-to-man coverage. You got eight players in the box and they're trying to protect the run. They're trying to sell out against that. That

Starting point is 00:03:45 means that Cortland, Jalen, whoever else is out there at receiver, they're going to get one-on-one matchups with corners and safeties. And I like Denver's ability. I think Jalen Waddle is going to be the most elusive weapon that Denver has here in terms of being able to beat man in zone coverage vertically. And also, if guys are playing off, he can win the short, the out routes, the in-breaking routes, he's going to open things up. And on paper, theoretically, the offense, Sarah, you are right. It should be the most improved offense. And it should be a top 10 offense this upcoming season. Granted, everybody stays healthy. Your thoughts on that. You want to add anything to that? Because, I mean, really, it's everybody coming back.

Starting point is 00:04:23 Bo Nix getting the same offensive line that he had since he entered the season, his rookie year in the NFL just three seasons ago. This is a very important area for Denver, for this offense to be better. And I even think, too, now we factor in the additions in the NFL draft. I mean, Justin Jolie, you talk about Jonah Coleman. These two guys right here have a chance to play right away as well in the rotation, in the mix here. To me, they are better, at least on paper. Yeah, when you upgrade number one, you get a top end talent who the trickle down effect of that is, as we mentioned with Jalen Waddle, he makes everybody else better just by being on the field. But then you upgrade number two, you'd upgrade the depth of these position groups.

Starting point is 00:05:04 Because remember last year, we're talking about guys like Mercedes-Lewis coming in as a street-free agent, getting called up and shuffled up off the practice squad, Elijah Moore getting brought in, called up, shuffled up off the practice squad, Michael Bandy, mid-season, you go back and bring back Lil Jordan Humphrey, and he plays a substantial role. I mean, you could rattle off a lot of names, right? I mean, we talk about Tyler Badegh, Jaliel McLaughlin, you lose J.K. Dobbins. So it was the, I mean, ultimate test of your depth last year. And what did the Broncos find out?

Starting point is 00:05:37 Our depth isn't good enough. And that was abundantly clear. So they went out, upgrade the depth this offseason, like you mentioned, Jonah Coleman, Justin Jolie, even down Bentley in the seventh round with zero drops last year at Utah. Really, really like this draft class, Cody, really like the approach to value. and I think that speaks to a topic that we'll discuss later. But I do love the roster improvements that are made overall, especially offensively where we were hopeful that it was going to be a quicker solution.

Starting point is 00:06:07 But ultimately, the NFL draft, you know, all as well, that ends well, right? So it's, it's, you know, no big deal in hindsight. Now, even though the Broncos, they did go out and make that big splash move that the fans had asked for. Defensively, that's where you're really taking on, okay, there was a hole, in the ship, right? John Franklin Myers left for the Titans and free agency. So how do we fill that? Luckily, we've prepared with Savian Jones, but then

Starting point is 00:06:34 you take Tyler O'Neum with your top pick in this year's draft. I just feel like the Broncos elite defense is only going to get better because these guys have three years in the scheme. They've been together for a long time. They're bringing most of the band back together. And I think they can replace what JFM

Starting point is 00:06:50 left behind, even if it is by a committee. Well, and last year's Broncos team defensively was the inversible we're talking about now, right? Like the offensive depth last year for Denver wasn't in a great spot, maybe outside a receiver. They love the young guys that they had there. But now it's like, why was Denver able to have success? George Peyton and Sean Peyton have kind of pounded the table by saying the reason we're as good as where we are last year and we were able to turn those one score games around was, hey, like our depth, our depth helped us win games. And that

Starting point is 00:07:19 strength in terms of your depth last year, it wasn't offensively. It was your depth that you had on the defensive side of the ball. And I would say maybe you can make the argument of, you know, depth offensively at some positions. I would say Alex Pouchesky filling in graciously when Ben Powers went down with an injury. I would highlight that as one of those things. But aside from that, it was the defensive depth. Now Denver goes out there.

Starting point is 00:07:40 They upgrade not only their talent, but I think the overall value that they got in terms of depth options on offense makes them instantly better. And I'm so curious to see how all of these guys are going to use. You didn't necessarily need to go out. there and go crazy in terms of adding depth defensively this year if you were Denver because you have that. You did that with Tyler O'Neudam, as you mentioned, that you're going to supplement the loss of JFM with He, In Yomo Uazirike, and you're going to go through Jordan Jackson's going

Starting point is 00:08:08 to be in the mix, but Savian Jones, who was a late round three pick last year that Denver traded back up to get. They are playing this, the long game. They're playing very smart. They're playing chess while everybody else is playing checkers. And I'd say that they're in a better spot now to the point like once again i don't like to give too much credence to national rankings but i would say i've seen post draft rankings where people say like hey our team just your overall power rankings of teams not necessarily their drafts Denver is viewed as number two right behind the los angeles rams right now for a lot of major outlets yeah which i think is justifiable right and it's kind of funny how it's worked out like that because honestly i mean just three

Starting point is 00:08:48 years ago the broncos were being discussed actually it was even two years ago the Even after the first year of Sean Payton's, you know, tenure with the team, people are talking about this Broncos roster as maybe the worst in the NFL. And Sean Payton's like, hey, just watch. Like, we're going to go out there and we're going to make playoffs, essentially, right? So I love the way that this has been done. I just think it's so impressive with the Russell Wilson dead cap, with not having any first rounders in 2022 or 2023 and now 2026, right?

Starting point is 00:09:20 not even a second rounder in 2026. So you've built this incredible assembly of talent, resigning your own guys, bringing in free agents who have gotten second contracts. I mean, it's, you don't want to throw around the term masterclass, Cody, because ultimately I think that would be the case if you win a Super Bowl. But on paper, I mean, there's not many more rosters in the NFL that are as balanced, that have the level of top end talent, that have the continuity, that the Broncos just really didn't have many needs going into this offseason.

Starting point is 00:09:50 other than getting a big time playmaker, and they did that. So they've really jolted themselves in terms of, okay, we were a Super Bowl contender last year, maybe by way of overachieving. Now we're a Super Bowl contender because we're just better than mostly everybody else. Yeah, there's nothing better on saying, you know, we're better than you and we know it. Only real ones are going to understand.

Starting point is 00:10:11 Yes, only real ones are going to understand where that movie reference is there. But, look, Brock goes country, share us your thoughts here on Denver's roster outlook. Do you feel like they improved offensively? I agree with Sarah that they should be the most improved offense in the NFL. Do you agree or disagree with us? Let us know here on today's episode of the show. But coming up next, we're going to go through after the NFL draft, talking about the strengths of this roster in general.

Starting point is 00:10:33 There are positions and there are players because of the Broncos looking to get better that have the most to prove. And it's the tight-in room that will tell you why they should be the most concerned. Brockos Country, today's episode, show is brought to you by our friends over there at FanDual America's number one sportsbook. NBA playoffs, they are here, and every possession matters in every game. If you're looking to get even closer to the action, well, Fandu, they have a great offer to get you started.

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Starting point is 00:11:53 2026 NFL draft class specifically at the tight end position and maybe a couple of others. We're going to talk about that on today's episode. Locked on Broncos. And to all you every dayers out there that make us part of your day, not only Dakota and I appreciate you so much, we want to thank you for rocking with us every day throughout the offseason especially. And if you haven't done so already, man, we'd love it if you'd check out the everydayer club. There's a couple of different tiers you can check out there. For the Everydayer Club, bonus content, all 22 breakdowns from Cody on the incoming draft class, ad-free episode of the show, and much more. Check out lockdownbroncos.com or the link in the show notes.

Starting point is 00:12:29 It means the world to us that you'd consider supporting the show in that way. So, Cody, let's talk about players with the most to prove here as we get into kind of the meat of the offseason with mini camp, rookie minicamp on Mother's Day weekend, OTA's upcoming here. obviously there's going to be roster battles with every team. But for the Denver Broncos, it kind of feels like there's going to be some scraping and clawing for maybe the final like seven or eight spots on the team. It doesn't feel like there's too many spots that are necessarily up for grabs right now if you want to put it that way. But I do think there's a lot of players who have maybe maybe even been favorites of this coaching staff over the last two to three years who could be on some thin ice as we welcome in this 2026 rookie class. Yeah, I think you have to look at maybe the positions that Denver drafted to.

Starting point is 00:13:18 I think defensive line, not necessarily much of a worry there, especially with Tyler, Oneyetam going in the third round. I don't think there's anybody else that you're looking at and saying, you know what? There's some questions here whether or not they're going to make the roster. I think Savian Jones, Enjoma, Owasarrique, and O'Neum are going to make the roster. If anyone was kind of on notice, maybe Jordan Jackson a little bit, he was on the practice squad for a large portion of last season for Denver. But let's go to like the most obvious ones, right?

Starting point is 00:13:43 tight end. Denver, they double-dip in the NFL draft. They take two tight-ins, Justin Jolie and Dalin Bentley. And when you look at them, two different styles of tight ends. And you look at how the Broncos use that position, they have different roles, the F-type role, which Jolie plays, and then you have the in-line Y, which Bentley plays there. To me, the players with the most approve automatically go toward Nate Adkins, Lucas Crowell for including him in that category. And then obviously, I would say Caleb Loner, who was drafted in the seventh round last year. three players at tight end have the most to prove and probably have the most to lose at this point considering these new draft additions.

Starting point is 00:14:20 I would say so as well. I mean, I think when you look at Caleb Loner even versus Dallin Bentley, right? I mean, those are two very different seventh round picks. Like it's one guy as a developmental former basketball player, still kind of finding his way, even with a leg up as, you know, having a year in the offense and being on the practice field and being with the team, like Dallin Bentley just has a huge advantage. because of his time on task. I mean, honestly, that's just the reality of the situation.

Starting point is 00:14:47 So vastly different, even perceptions of seventh round guys. Plus, when you think about players like Lucas Krull and Nate Adkins, you have to consider the fact that they're only on one-year deals right now, whereas these two rookies that you're bringing in, I mean, they're going to have four-year contracts. So that's a huge advantage in the depth department. And yes, you're maybe sacrificing a little bit when it comes to guys who have experience or guys who have been in your offense or even that versatility that. like a guy like Adkins brings to the table where he can play special teams.

Starting point is 00:15:16 You can, you know, move around the formation, play fullback for you, do all sorts of different things. Well, you've got two guys now like Justin Jolie, for one, who you also feel like he can move around the formation, that he can block on the perimeter that, I mean, honestly, does Justin Jolie not do the stuff that you want and you ask for from Nate Adkins? So I think that that's where the Broncos right now are in a very, like you said,

Starting point is 00:15:39 you drafted to certain positions where now certain guys are on, they're on notice. They've been saying, hey, this is a make or break off season because we just drafted two guys who have four years of team control and you've got to step up because over the last two, three seasons, it just hasn't cut it. So that's where I'm, you know, eagerly anticipating the competition because we saw last year what that kind of pressure did for somebody like J. Kwan Macmillan, who wasn't necessarily a, you know, bottom of the roster cut candidate type

Starting point is 00:16:08 of guy, but you draft Jada Baron in the first round. and it's like, well, he's going to obviously play. So, you know, Jayquan Macmillan seems to be the low hanging fruit for the guy who's not going to play. And then he ends up playing the best season that he's ever played. So it'll be fascinating to find out how these players and veterans especially respond to these rookies coming in. Well, now we're going to go to the running back position. I mean, automatically, Jonah Coleman is so exciting. Like Broncos country, most people have been telling me like, hey, I'm so excited to see what Jonah Coleman can do.

Starting point is 00:16:36 And I agree. I think you and I are both in the same boat as them. But automatically that puts Duke. Fawn, Cody Schrader, Jelil McLaughlin, Tyler Biday, four different backs really on notice that have a lot to prove. They're going to have to have a really undisputed offseason, training camp, preseason to really justify making hard decisions here as to whether or not Denver keeps four guys on the roster or three at the running back position. To me, I'm very curious to see what that approach is. For some of those guys, their best bet is going to have to be like in the return game as a

Starting point is 00:17:08 kick return option there. Can they do that? Jonah Coleman, comes in and brings past protection value, which obviously Denver liked with Tyler Badee, but he's going to bring more value, I think, as a thumper as a downhill runner in terms of physicality compared to Badee, even though I think Badee's got good ball skills that Denver didn't use last year in the run game. I thought he was fast, athletic, quick cuts. It could make guys miss from time to time. We didn't get to see that last year. All of those guys instantly get put on notice because of the addition of Jonah Coleman. Yeah. And so like you mentioned, the question is really do they keep three or four running backs?

Starting point is 00:17:42 And can one of those guys force that issue? Because I think right now your top three on the roster is, is for sure going to be J.K. Dobbins, R.J. Harvey and Jonah Coleman. And that's not to say that one of those other guys can't necessarily push Jonah down the list in terms of the depth chart, but I don't think that's going to be the case. So the question now is, can you force your way onto the roster? Can you force the Broncos hand and say, hey, they're going to have to keep four running backs because I'm playing this well during the offseason program, during training camp, during

Starting point is 00:18:13 preseason games. That's going to be the big thing. And then how does that affect the rest of the roster outlook like we're talking about, Cody? So I don't know if I see it happening with the current group of guys. I think the Broncos brought in Jonah Coleman because they're ready for fresh blood. They brought back the other guys because I think they want to create the best possible competition for whoever was going to be that draft pick that they made. But while there's going to be great competition, I ultimately feel like,

Starting point is 00:18:38 you know, if they keep three backs plus a full back, that leaves all of those guys that you mentioned as kind of the odd man out. Oh, and look, it's a good problem to have. I mean, the fact that we're sitting here saying, oh, like, I just don't know how it's going to go. The depth is so good. Who's in? Who's out? I mean, this is a great problem for Denver to have right now. But like, to your point, with these players who we perceive is kind of having the most to prove, there's so much pressure I feel like just inherently to not make a mistake.

Starting point is 00:19:05 The more mistakes that happen, like let's say a running back puts the ball on the ground. It's like, ah, you do that once. Okay, we'll see. You do that twice. All right, you're probably not going to make the roster. You're off this board here. And hopefully it's none of your premier guys like JK RJ or even Jonah at this point that are doing that. I think the change is contextually based on those circumstances.

Starting point is 00:19:24 But for these guys that are on one-year deals or practice squad guys last year, their room for error probably isn't as built in as some of these other guys that we talk about here. Linebacker, another one obviously with the move of Jonah Ellis to offball linebacker. The Broncos have already come out and said that they expressed their belief in Justin and Alex is the two starters here. We'll see if there is competition there at first starting job. I doubt it. We'll see, though. Behind him, Lavelle Bailey, Karenne Reed, and Jordan Turner were on the roster.

Starting point is 00:19:52 All undrafted guys, Jordan Turner, I like, I feel like offers a little more upside than the other two. But now you go and you get Red Murdoch as Mr. Irrelevant, who's got tremendous ball skills, tremendous ability to punch the football out. And then a very interesting, undersized, undrafted rookie, Taurine York who's going to have an opportunity to prove himself a rookie minicamp and maybe get that invite to training camp. Things could change drastically with those three guys. They could be on the outside looking in.

Starting point is 00:20:18 Absolutely. I mean, you know, one year they're the high priced, intriguing, undrafted free agents themselves. And then the next year, it's like, hey, somebody's coming in to take your spot. And so like we've mentioned, that can create great competition. But the Broncos did raise the level of talent with the guys that they brought in. There's no question. I mean, even if you look at it.

Starting point is 00:20:37 Even if you don't subscribe to consensus, big boards, and things like that, the value of players like Red, Murdoch, and Tori and York is obvious when it comes to the comparison of, oh, Karenne Reed was a relative unknown for everybody in the NFL draft process. Jordan Turner is a relative unknown. Lavelle Bailey, as productive as he may have been, not on the same level as these guys in terms of as a prospect coming out. So you're really going to have to lean on the experience that you have in the defense and letting that really shine. during this off-season program because ultimately the Broncos brought in guys who are valued, even as seventh rounders and undrafted free agent types, you know, they're valued more highly

Starting point is 00:21:17 when it comes to their talent and what their long-term projection is. And once again, the contract situation does matter. When you have the team control on players like that, you reset the clock, it definitely puts pressure on those other guys to take that next step. Well, and even when you're looking at guys who are undrafted practice squad guys that we've been on the roster, let's say for two years, you know, if there's someone better, like the NFL, unfortunately, it's a business of, if we can find someone better with higher upside, that guy's going to come in and be our focus. That might be the next developmental

Starting point is 00:21:46 boom, so to speak here for the team. So we'll see how it all goes here. Broncos country, let's know your thoughts on the players with the most approved. If we missed one, hey, let us know here on today's episode of the show. But coming up next, our colleagues over here at the lockdown network after the NFL draft, they got it wrong when it comes to ranking the talent acquisition the Broncos got in a 2026 NFL draft. We'll tell you why. 28th. 28th is what the Denver Broncos were ranked by hosts of the locked on college network.

Starting point is 00:22:17 Obviously, a lot of the shows that did all the pre-draft buildup for their prospects, as voted on by them. And locked on NFL hosts voted on the overall talent acquired by teams in this year's NFL draft. Sarah, when I got the notification, when we finally got the results, like we all participated in the survey. When I got the results, I was kind of blown away. My first immediate thought was this is blasphemy here. And for folks that don't know, the Broncos, they were voted on top ranked draft talent

Starting point is 00:22:47 by Locked on College and NFL hosts. They came in 28th just ahead of the Vikings, the 49ers, the Jaguars, and the Los Angeles Rams in this conversation. Sir, in my voting, I put them as fifth. I felt like Denver had kind of a top five overall draft here considering where they're at and without a first round pick without necessarily, you know, after they traded away their second round pick,

Starting point is 00:23:13 for them to come with the hall that they did, I felt like from a talent standpoint, it was good. Where did you vote for them when you did the survey? I can't remember the exact number, Cody. I think it was like 17 or 18 or something like that just because this wasn't. The juicy one, man, I gave them top five. That's crazy.

Starting point is 00:23:30 I like it. Crazy pilt. Everyone said 28. You said 70. I'm like, man, am I just like looking too strongly at this? I don't know. No, no. I think that when it comes to the draft talent, obviously, like, I wasn't factoring in the Jalen Waddle trade.

Starting point is 00:23:47 I don't know if that was part of your evaluation. It was. Okay. So yeah, I did not factor in the Jalen Waddle trade with the draft hall in terms of the talent that the Broncos selected other than, I mean, if you factor in the Jalen Waddle trade, I don't see how you could give them. the Broncos anything other than an A plus grade on paper because ultimately nobody, in my opinion, got better value on day three than the Denver Broncos at just about every turn. I mean,

Starting point is 00:24:11 they won day three of the draft. That's why I think so many in the fan base are so excited about this draft. But then you factor in the Jalen Wattle trade. Well, if you used a first and third round pick on Jalen Waddle and you won day three of the NFL drafts, how could you not have one of the best grades in the NFL? Because did the Cleveland Browns or New York Jets a quarter? why are anybody who's going to be as impactful as Jalen Waddle? Those two teams are the top of that list. I don't think so. And neither just George Payton because George Payton was talking about even the

Starting point is 00:24:41 Carnel Tate pick. He's like that the first receiver came off the board at four. He's like, yeah, we like Jailen Waddle. So I think that the Broncos feel like they've got the best receiver and the best use of a draft pick on a receiver in this class. I really do disagree with the 28th. I just don't, I've seen, you know, like the C plus or the C minus grades from other outlets.

Starting point is 00:25:04 I think here's what I think happened, Cody. And I mean this with all due respect to our colleagues around the network. I love doing the crossovers, love talking to the other hosts. I think that the Broncos not having a first or second round pick, people just wrote their draft off and said, okay, how low can I, like, where can I slot the Broncos? Like they're like a free space on the bingo card because they didn't have a first or second. It requires no critical thinking to actually dig into their picks. So I'm not saying that I'm not saying the other guys didn't consider.

Starting point is 00:25:35 But like I actually racked my brain of all these draft classes and tried to rank them like fairly. And that's why I came up with like a middle, middle of the road in terms of just the players they selected. So that's what that's what I think happened. I don't know if you agree with me. Yeah. No, I think that's very valid. To the point, I think a lot of that context was kind of left out on this. Like what I liked about like when we did the survey, it included next to the team name including every pick, every player that they added.

Starting point is 00:26:01 I went through and I formulated it. I felt like for the most part, I had the Jets first. I had the Browns like fourth. I had the Cowboys as like third. And then I had Denver at fifth in this whole entire rankings thing. I think the chiefs added some draft picks, but here's the thing in the context of the chiefs.

Starting point is 00:26:21 They came in what? Eighth in this poll in this ranking here. Which of these guys outside of the corner is going to be a starter? None of them. None of them are going to be a starter. day one outside of the corner that they drafted out of LSU. Peter Woods isn't going to start unless they release Chris Jones. That's probably not going to happen.

Starting point is 00:26:39 So to me, I just, I think there's so much. And I understand not everybody looks into all other 31 teams in the NFL, but I just felt like Denver for where they're at, factoring in the Jalen Wattle trade, factoring in, hey, they added some really dang good depth that to an already strong roster that people literally before the draft were saying, maybe the biggest hole for Denver is that they don't have really any holes.

Starting point is 00:27:04 That was the criticism. So for me, for them to come in at 28th, that was like absolute blasphemy, in my opinion. You take a look at maybe some other teams in this rankings. You know, look at the L.A. Rams. They came in at 32nd. The Jaguars approach wasn't necessarily great either, especially with the tight end they selected in round two.

Starting point is 00:27:22 And Sarah, I must ask you this question. Do we feel like when we fill out these surveys and when other people feel these surveys. Do we feel like it has to be the flashy, the sexy name? I feel like that's what a lot of people pay attention to. It's the splash. It's the flash. It's the big name. I don't look at it from that. I'm like, where are the holes? Did those holes get filled? Did they add value depth if they didn't have many holes? Like for Denver, not many holes, but man, we talked about it earlier in a show. They went out and they added impact depth for this team that makes them even better on paper than they were last year. And it seems like even if you want to say, well, the consensus board,

Starting point is 00:28:01 you know, the Broncos, blah, blah, blah. The Broncos, I guess, were more in alignment with the consensus this year than really any previous year of the Sean Peyton era. Like, if you go look at all the picks they made, the NFL draft community loves Jonah Coleman. The NFL draft community loves Justin Jolie. The NFL draft community loved Red Murdoch, like, Alan Bentley, all these different players that they selected on day three, especially. So I just think that that's one of the areas that I take issue with is, and I love, I look at this list, Cody. I love that the Broncos are ahead of a couple of teams that actually had first round picks and, you know, in the Vikings and the Rams. And I think that those are valid, you know, criticisms of those teams like the Jaguars, which is interesting because ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler said the Broncos were interested in Nate Borkature as a prospect for their, you know, draft class as well.

Starting point is 00:28:52 But you know what he said? he said that the Broncos were interested in him in the fourth round. The Jaguars took him at 50-something. So the Broncos, I think, were more in alignment with everybody else this year. And I just, I mean, even if you feel like the Tyler-owned Yetom pick was a reach by 15, 20 picks, which it wasn't according to, I know Dane Bruegler had him 74th. The Broncos took him 66. So it was not even really a reach overall.

Starting point is 00:29:17 And I just, I don't know. I don't, obviously we're talking about a draft class on paper before these guys ever. play it down, Cody, so we get that. But with that considered, I mean, then people should be thinking, well, the Broncos used a first rounder on Jalen Waddle, because they got the, they got instant impact from a veteran who is elite at his position.

Starting point is 00:29:38 That's where I'm confused as if, okay, so if you align with the consensus, you should be giving the Broncos a much higher ranking because they stole guys on day three. But if you're taking into account Jalen, I mean, it's just none of it makes all that much sense unless people are just, throwing the Broncos at the bottom of their list because they didn't have a top 64 selection.

Starting point is 00:29:57 And if that's the case, I would say if common, I guess common sense isn't a flower that blooms necessarily in every garden for people that do it, right? There's some people doing. I always try to do my best when we fill out these surveys and these rankings. I always try my best to contextualize, especially like when we do our weekly power rankings here. Okay. Like even if the team played a, you know, a tough game against a perceived bad team. Did they find a way to win? Was it in the clutch?

Starting point is 00:30:25 Like, how does that influence power rankings? Every game, every ranking for that matters in terms of that context. With the draft, I understand in terms of talent acquired, we all knew coming into this draft, as the Bronco said, this was a acquired depth draft. This wasn't a, we're getting a day one starter type of draft here for Denver. And that's a testament to their roster that they already had, where it was an argument going into the offseason. They got the best roster.

Starting point is 00:30:49 Now that Jalen Wado trade, wow, boom, that pushes them all the way to the top. And I'm just curious. I'm just curious. I want to know sometimes. I wish there was like an audio like, you know, in the NFL top 100, when guys sit there and they sit down, they tell kind of why they voted for this player, there needs to be like a locked on tell all reveal episode where we figure out what people truly thought about this team. I think that's something that should happen. But we'll figure it out, my friend. But I strongly disagree with our colleagues, respectfully. 28th, I feel like it's too low. Maybe I pumped them up a little bit at fifth. but that's kind of how I thought considering the Jalen Waddle trade.

Starting point is 00:31:25 But you know what? It ease what it ease. It is. Yeah, I think that you're right on, Cody. It's especially because you considered Waddle in your overall evaluation. I mean, I think you could even make an argument for being higher on the list because ultimately the Browns and Jets each had at least two first round picks on this list. And, you know, the Cowboys, they got great. The Cowboys did get really good value.

Starting point is 00:31:49 I like the Cowboys that high. The Raiders did a good job. the giants. I don't think the giants are the fifth best. The Bucks had a better draft from the Giants. I just, yeah, we could go up and down this list and have our discrepancies with all of it. But when you factor in Jalen Waddle, none of those teams got a more impactful, at least right away, player than the Denver Broncos did. So I think you could make a serious argument. And not having a top 64 pick, yeah, that might push your value down a little bit. But 28th, I mean, come on. I mean, what do you say, Cody? That's a pound sand kind of take. That is a first draft in the league.

Starting point is 00:32:25 Come on. Yes. I just, you know, I'm going to put that in our team's chat. I'm going to say, hey, factoring in the J and the Waddle Trade, what would you guys rank Denver's? Like, and then we're going to see who the ball novers truly are here going forward. But with us at Broncos country, enjoy your Friday. Hope you have a great weekend ahead of you. Sarah and I will be back next week as we get ready for the Broncos.

Starting point is 00:32:42 They're going to begin their offseason program. And then at the end of the week next week, it is Broncos rookie mini camp. I'll be there at practice and we'll have our first look at some Broncos rookies. but in the meantime, we'll have it covered every day, every step of the way here on lockdown Broncos. We'll catch you next time.

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