Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - GAMBLE: Denver Broncos TAKES CHANCE on Caleb Banks to ELEVATE Trenches in 2026 NFL Mock Draft

Starting point is 00:00:00 In one of our final two mock drafts leading up to the NFL draft, we have taken Caleb Banks with the 60-second overall pick, adding instant value to the Denver Broncos defensive line. You are Locked-on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. What's up, Broncos Country? I'm Cody Ork. Join, as always, by Sarah Bedinger. And on today's bonus episode of the show,

Starting point is 00:00:29 we're going to spoil our mock draft a little bit early for all of you, folks. We're going to go through and tell you why Caleb Banks was a plight. player that we selected with the 60 second overall pick and our locked on Broncos 1.0 mock draft here leading up to next week's NFL draft. Keeping the future in mind here, the Broncos inside the trenches, whether or not defensive line makes sense here for the Broncos at 62, especially in round two considering where Denver has other needs. But we're also going to dive into why Caleb Banks would make for a fascinating pick here for the Broncos. Sarah, let's get into it here as we kind of build a player profile and kind of go through the why we

Starting point is 00:01:03 selected Caleb Banks. First off, he is a first round talent. He's an elite level defensive line player who's going to be dropping to the second round because of injuries. He's an very intriguing prospect when you look at his measurables, his testing, and what he could bring to the table. He really is fascinating. I mean, guys at 6 foot 6, 330 plus pounds, just don't, they're not supposed to move like Caleb Banks can move. I mean, we saw at the Senior Bowl, some of his movement skills, just outrageous stuff for a guy of that size. 35 inch arms.

Starting point is 00:01:37 Obviously, his wingspan is outstanding. I think obviously what everybody's thinking about Caleb Banks is roughly the same thing, right? If you can get the most out of him, you might get the biggest steal in this draft on the defensive line where it's not a great defensive line draft. There's maybe going to be one guy in the first round. Some are saying Caden McDonald's from Ohio State could be that one guy in round one. So it's considered a bit of a mild defensive line class. way. But I think Caleb Banks, when it comes to playing different positions on the front,

Starting point is 00:02:10 his upside as a pass rusher, what you can do with that length and the problems that he can present to other teams, just physically speaking, I mean, there's certainly a lot of meat on the bone when it comes to taking a prospect like this. And at the back end of round two, I mean, the juice is worth the squeeze, right? It's a risk reward proposition for a guy who only played three games last year. But certainly, even when considering the injury history or lack of availability this past season, his talent is kind of something that you want to, I guess, I was going to stop myself, but I'm going to say it anyway.

Starting point is 00:02:46 It's something you want to bank on in the second round. I'm going to go there. I'm going to go to that just terrible pun. I didn't even mean to do that, but here we are. You know, it all works out. Well, and here's the thing about banks, too, that I like, Sarah. And I want to preface this by saying what my message has been consistent. across the board. This is a draft where you're adding guys who could potentially start for you,

Starting point is 00:03:08 but also guys that could be depth options. And for a guy like Kayla Banks, with Malcolm Roach, DJ Jones right now as being those main guys that kind of play in the interior, he may not play as much as a rookie here. But also, you mentioned the foot injury. He missed most of 2025 with the foot injury, tested at the NFL Combine, suffered a broken foot, but despite breaking his foot, still tested at an elite level from a RAS standpoint. He is considered a rass hole, as we always like to say for our draft prospects here. But in terms of his metrics, his traits, how people project him to be, he is a blue chip prospect in a couple of key areas where the Broncos could maximize his value here.

Starting point is 00:03:45 They consider him and classify him multiple boards as a blue chip prospect when it comes to his size, his explosiveness, his play strength, and obviously his play traits that he certainly has here. That's what the Broncos need. And I think even though they were one of the best run defenses in the NFL last season, there were some times where teams ran on the interior a little bit. A guy like him, you might be able to get unique with some packages, short-yarded situations where you plug them in and all of a sudden the Broncos,

Starting point is 00:04:13 they stuffed the run on those short-yarded situations a lot better than they did last year from a time-to-time basis. I like the idea of Caleb Banks, but also when people are talking about the concerns with his injuries, Denver has expressed they believe they can get anybody who's had injuries to where they need to be with Bo Lowry and the Broncos sports performance team that they have here. So that is another reason why I like this pick here for Denver. But Sarah and I coming up next, we're going to be discussing whether or not D-Line makes sense for the Broncos in round two and why we have the future in mind with this selection.

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Starting point is 00:07:10 lineman in the second round because of their biggest loss this off season. We're going to talk about that upcoming on today's bonus episode, Locked on Broncos. shout out to all you every dayers out there that make us your first listen of the day every single day. And another way to support the show, check out the Every Dayer Club. We get bonus content, ad free episode of the show. Link will be in the show notes and you can check out Lockdown Broncos. That's supercast.com.

Starting point is 00:07:34 Cody, let's talk about the reason why the Broncos would take a defensive lineman in the second round. I think obviously, you know, and we're going to talk about this in our mock draft episode, but losing John Franklin Myers on the defensive line. line. I mean, you've got to find a replacement there, not just not to say, hey, you got to find a replacement in the starting lineup with the second round pick, but you lose one guy from a unit that has now broken the franchise record in sacks to consecutive years. You've got to make sure that you have depth there to be able to keep that going and to keep that unit a strength as opposed to, okay, you want to say next man up, that's fine. Uwazurike, Savian Jones, you guys

Starting point is 00:08:16 are next next up. But you've got to keep that. to bring in somebody else who can upgrade the overall depth of that unit to keep the floor high. Yeah. And on top of that, you have to look at what deals are expiring for your current roster. Yoma O'Aizureke entering the last year of his deal, DJ Jones. I mean, he's got this year and next year left on his deal. He's 31 years old and he's going to be 32 and the Broncos may look to, like I said, they may look for a future succession plan. Taking this pick right here in terms of Caleb Banks doesn't mean that you're trying to replace Malcolm Roach or DJ Jones this year, heck, maybe not even next year, but can you have a player like Banks that can learn from Malcolm Roach, can learn a little bit from DJ Jones, play opposite at times when asked to from

Starting point is 00:08:59 Zach Allen, from a scheme fit, this is perfect here for Denver because not only do you have a guy who doesn't just specialize as, hey, this guy can only play a one technique, he can thrive as a one technique, he can thrive as a three technique. He can even play outside as a five technique from time to time and how the Broncos design their cage rush on mobile quarterbacks with Nick Benito and Jonathan Cooper. Well, now you're just asking him to line wide, crash inside, and then you bowl the pocket around the quarterback. That's where this move makes sense for Denver, but also because DJ's deal is expiring after two seasons. I mean, it could even expire after this year. The Broncos could eventually look to even move on. I think DJ brings value to the table, but this is a room

Starting point is 00:09:40 or the Broncos absolutely can add some upside. Caleb Banks brings just that. And we've been talking about it all season long. I'm glad you hinted at it with John Franklin Myers. That loss, I think, is going to be a lot bigger than people think. Devere adds Caleb Banks to the mix here. And he plays, let's say, as a rookie somehow, I'm okay with that. I think that it elevates the room, the floor of that room, the ceiling of it, whatever you want to call it. And now you're getting a player who can plug and play in multiple positions and help your defense right away. And if you just him to go out there on special teams and try to get his hands up, especially with his six foot six height, do it. That is what you want to do here if you are the Broncos. So to me,

Starting point is 00:10:19 D-line makes sense. I feel like for Broncos country, I wonder if there's a debate on if that's position of preference for them. But this is a move, Sarah, that moves the needle for the Broncos defensive line. It keeps them strong in the trenches where both George and Sean Peyton have both expressed that they're always looking to upgrade these sides of the wall. Because in today's game, the offensive line wins you games, the defensive line wins you games as well. a player like Caleb Banks who has that round one upside is viewed widely as a round one prospect, he will add that value right away to what Denver is looking for defensively. And Jamar Kane would be a pretty happy guy to work with.

Starting point is 00:10:52 And you start stockpiling higher draft picks on the defensive line, right? I mean, Savion Jones, you traded up into the back end of round three to get him. Now imagine you add a second round pick into the mix. And you've already got guys that are high priced free agents out there. Like you said, these young players can learn from those guys. just like Zach Allen once learned from JJ Watt, and it helped take his game to the next level. Zach can pass those things on to somebody like Caleb Banks

Starting point is 00:11:18 and teach him how to be a pro. And, you know, Zach was in a similar situation, right? Productive, great college player, big time athlete, comes into the NFL as a third round pick. And now all of a sudden, you're kind of like, okay, we're starting from scratch a little bit. I got to learn the nuances of the game. I think that that can be a huge help is having those veterans

Starting point is 00:11:38 that the Broncos have, it's such an asset for them to have team first players like Zach Allen, DJ Jones, Malcolm Roach, all these guys to be able to pour into the younger players on the roster. So I love that setup, that situation. Caleb Banks needs help with consistency, needs help with, I mean, weight management, all these sorts of things. That's part of why he's falling to round two, but the talent is there. You have players on your team as well as coaches on the staff that can help get the most out of this guy and make him the steal of the draft. So I love this setup for the Broncos, taking a D-Linman in the second round. Makes a ton of sense to me.

Starting point is 00:12:17 Well, and on top of the two, the Broncos have nutritionists. They have individualized plans for players to help them meet their goals because we know Sean likes players of certain positions to be at a certain weight. But like if you bring in a player like Caleb Banks, it's about making him maybe stay at a level where he can also be strong, but also still athletic and mobile. that's the thing about him, which is crazy. When you look at his testing, for him to have a broken foot to still be able to test the way that he did, to move the way that he can, that right there is something you have to take a chance

Starting point is 00:12:46 off. It's right there in your face to say, you know what, if this guy somehow goes somewhere else, he might go thrive. And you don't want to be with the division rival, a team you have to play twice a year. I mean, Denver's going to face some tough defensive lines this upcoming season as is. Why not change the dynamic a little bit, change the storyline to where Denver all of a sudden, And we know how good their pass rush is. But could you imagine if they have a stout defensive line to where nobody can even gain an inch on them to where at times you don't necessarily have to blitz five or six guys.

Starting point is 00:13:13 You can win with getting home with four. That's where I want to see Denver transition to a little bit more. Thanks would be an ideal prospect to develop here under Vance Joseph's defensive scheme. He's got the right coaches in place. He's also got the right players that you mentioned inside that locker room that can help him to me, Sarah. I like this pick in Bracco's country. We want to hear from you on today's bonus episode of the show. So we spoiled a little bit of the mock draft here with this Monday bonus episode here.

Starting point is 00:13:37 But we want to hear your thoughts on Caleb Banks at 62. Do you like it? Do you disagree with it? Let us know here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. But with that said, Broncos country, tomorrow's show, you're going to get the full-on Lockedon Broncos 1.0 mock draft here. We go through all seven rounds. You already know Caleb Banks is the top pick here.

Starting point is 00:13:54 But we go through other key selections, including the Broncos trading up into a round number three for a particular prospect on the offensive side of ball. Stay tuned to tomorrow's episode of the show to find out more. We'll see you then, Broncos country.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - GAMBLE: Denver Broncos TAKES CHANCE on Caleb Banks to ELEVATE Trenches in 2026 NFL Mock Draft

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