Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - MOCK DRAFT: Denver Broncos IGNORE Conventional Wisdom to Draft Colston Loveland In Round 1

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Denver Broncos are going to be building a Super Bowl contender, putting the final touches on a roster that can truly compete in the AFC. They've got to get some playmakers around Bo Nix. They've got to add some pieces to the defense. We're going to be doing exactly that. And our final 2025 mock draft on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. You are Locked on Broncos. Your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day.

Starting point is 00:00:32 Rounds one through six, the Denver Broncos have seven draft selections. And with this draft class, the Broncos can put the final touches on a roster that is truly worthy of competing in the AFC. And that's no joke. Broncos country, we're having our final mock draft. And I say final, put a little asterisk next to that because you know me. I love doing my mock drafts. But my final individual mock draft here on the show before, obviously, Thursday night where the festivities begin, the Denver Broncos. Hold the 20th overall pick.

Starting point is 00:01:04 We're going to take a look at that and maybe an interesting dilemma the Broncos face. We're going to talk about plenty of options that this team has in round one. And then we're going to mock rounds two through six as well. Going to give you every single selection for the Denver Broncos in what will be my final individual mock draft on here. Let's have some fun today, Broncos country. And thank you so much for making us your first listen of the day every single day for all of those that already rock with Cody and I. the show every day. You everydayers out there we like to call you. Thank you so much. If you haven't already done so, become an everydayer right now. Just hit subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts,

Starting point is 00:01:42 as well as on YouTube. And today's episode of Lockdown Broncos is brought to you by the all-new 2025 Nissan Armada. Stay tuned for the Armada player of the week later in the show. Let's not waste any time. Let's get right into round one. Okay, I'm using a mock draft simulator and we're going through the NFL draft for the Denver Broncos rounds one through six. Not going to make any trades just for the purposes of getting through this exercise together. So with the 20th overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft in my final individual mock here on Lockdown Broncos, the Denver Broncos select Colston Loveland, tight end out of Michigan.

Starting point is 00:02:22 Now, an interesting dilemma will present itself if the Broncos are on the clock and Colston Loveland is still on the board. Here's my justification for this, okay? Number one, Colston Loveland, if he's on the board at 20, is going to likely be by far the best player on the board. This is not a draft class that is heavy on blue chip talent. But when you talk about guys who are blue chip at their position, Colston Loveland is right up there.

Starting point is 00:02:51 I mean, if not for being in a sling at the scouting combine with an injury, this guy would absolutely 100% be a lock for the top 10, top 12 picks. in my opinion. And I feel like getting him at 20 is a steal. There's plenty of other teams out there that utilize effectively multiple tight ends and a variety of receivers. Go ahead and look at the Baltimore Ravens as a great example of this. One thing we know, Sean Peyton in this Denver Broncos offense,

Starting point is 00:03:19 they're still on the hunt for guys with Joker traits. That includes the running back position. That includes the tight end position. That does not include the wide receiver position. The wide receiver position is not a joke. in Sean Payton's offense. The Joker is a running back or a tight end with elite receiving skills. Colston Loveland is exactly that.

Starting point is 00:03:40 And he's a rare player coming from the college level who can play in line. He can be split out. He can be used in a variety of different ways. And he has truly special past catching abilities. Now, you signed Evan Engram in NFL Free Agency. Why would you go ahead and drafts with your first round pick, Colston Loveland? I think the Broncos really, really do believe in the value of the running back position in this year's draft class. And I also believe, we'll see if they really mean this, I believe that they really do like their wide receiver position.

Starting point is 00:04:13 They're going to extend Cortland Sutton in all likelihood at some point over the course of the next couple of weeks. They're moving forward with Marvin Mims buying fully into the second half of the year that he had last year. They like Troy Franklin, who they drafted last year along with Devon Bailey, who they draft. drafted last year. The name A.T. Perry continues to pick up a little bit of steam as the Broncos develop guys in-house. I think Sean Payton truly believes that if he can affect the middle of the field offensively with the tight end position and the running back position, which we will definitely be getting to in a little bit here, if he if he can affect the middle of the field with those guys in the passing game, it is going to absolutely wreck the way that defenses

Starting point is 00:04:54 game plan for this Denver Broncos team. The Baltimore Ravens, they use. Isaiah likely and Mark Andrews, which was brought up actually by our good friend over there at 9 News, Mike Cliss, who said, hey, the Ravens use Andrews and likely and the bills use Dawson Knox and Dalton Kincaid. Why not the Broncos go get Evan Ingram and then add Colston Loveland to the mix? Evan Ingram, as we know, has not been the model of durability over the course of his NFL career. what happens if at some point this season, the Broncos need another pass catching option for an extended period of time. There are other players in this draft that they could certainly look at. There's no question.

Starting point is 00:05:34 You could go the depth, you could play the depth card at just about any position in this draft, right? So you can say, well, you don't need to take a running back in round one because it's a deep class. You don't need to take a D-Linman in round one. It's a deep class. You don't need to take a tight end in round one. It's a deep class. The fact that you can say this about pretty much every position that is atop the Broncos priority board is such a huge gift for this team as they're looking to put the final touches on a roster that is truly ready to compete with the big boys in the AFC. And I really believe that they are.

Starting point is 00:06:09 The Broncos dominated nine of their 10 wins last year. Nine of 10 wins coming by nine or more points. I only had one win in a one score game and they need to get better in those games. games. How do you do it? You get guys that can consistently move the chains, guys that can consistently come through for you on third down, in the red zone, what have you, extending drives, making teams pay for giving you single coverage. If the Broncos really don't want to go for a premier wide receiver in this class, like Emeka Egbuka, who I would love to see in Denver, or Matthew Golden, or Luther

Starting point is 00:06:45 Burden, or any Tetraea McMillan, if they don't want to go for any of those guys, hey, go get a second pass-catching option at the tight-end position and utilize both him and Evan Ingram. So Colston Loveland, great value, great future projection, definitely feel like he fits the offense as the Joker, which is one of the most valuable positions in Sean Payton's offense. So Broncos country, that's kind of the rationale behind doing something like this. And again, we understand that the Bronco signing Evan Ingraham certainly shifts the focus and attention elsewhere.

Starting point is 00:07:20 Maybe that's exactly what this team wanted. I found it really interesting. I was reading through Mike Cliss's list of nine players that could be selected by the Broncos in round one. Let's list all that we talked about here. He talked about Amerihan Hampton, Trayvion Henderson, and Quinn Sean Judkins, the running backs, three of the top running backs in this class. He talked about Tyler Warren and Colson Love him, the two top tight ends in this

Starting point is 00:07:46 class and he had a handful of defensive linemen in the mix as well, Walter Nolan out of Ole Miss. And then he had Kenneth Grant out of Michigan, Derek Harmon out of Oregon. And then in the kind of here's some other names to keep an eye on mix, Caleb Johnson, the running back out of Iowa, Jihad Campbell, the linebacker out of Alabama. And interestingly, Harold Fanon Jr., the tight end out of Bowling Green. So maybe if the Broncos don't go with Colston Loveland in round one, maybe they go Trayvion Henderson, followed by Harold Fannan in round two. That could be really exciting for this Denver Broncos offense as well.

Starting point is 00:08:24 But because we got a tight end in round one, now on day two of the draft, that running back position is going to be heavily prioritized. We're going to continue attacking playmakers in this final mock draft on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. Today's episode Locked on Broncos is brought to you by Amazon Fire TV. Did you know that your Fire TV is also an Xbox? You can turn any TV into your gaming and entertainment hub with Fire TV Stick 4K devices. No console required.

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Starting point is 00:09:44 TV stick 4K, second generation, fire TV stick 4K max, first and second generation, and fire TV cube third generation. The Denver Broncos need to add to their running back position, and this is the absolute perfect draft class to do so. That's exactly what we're going to do on top of this second day of our final 2025 NFL mock draft here on lockdown Broncos. Once again, thank you so much Broncos country for making us your first listen of the day. Every single day.

Starting point is 00:10:15 You know your boys, Cody and Sayer will have you covered all throughout NFL draft season. Every Broncos selection, every trade, every free agent college signing that they have, we are going to have you covered. And of course, where you make some hay in the NFL draft is very often on day two. And that's where the Denver Broncos absolutely need to make some hay in this year's draft. And I think that it's obvious if they don't go running back in round one, they absolutely have to go running back in round two. And because I went Colston Loveland in round one, my round two pick is going to be Caleb Johnson, the running back out of Iowa. Look, if I can't have Travion Henderson or Quinn Sean Judkins, and you know I love me some of these Ohio State running backs these days, if I can't have one of those guys, give me the Iowa Hawkeye, right?

Starting point is 00:11:07 give me Caleb Johnson. Give me the guy that while he was at Iowa, every single team knew exactly what the Hawkeyes were going to be doing offensively, right? Because they don't have a quarterback that can hit the broadside of a barn. They might as well have me out there playing quarterback and giving them at least sort of some kind of Rudy Rudiger sort of situation. No, they hand the ball off to Caleb Johnson,

Starting point is 00:11:29 the majority of the time, and he's facing a stacked eight or more man box the majority of the time. What does this guy do? He just goes out there, grinds away yardage, breaks tackles, makes people miss in space, make plays as a receiver when he's given opportunities to do so, reads his blocks really well. I've said before that I believe that Caleb Johnson is, he was created in like a Shanahan Kubiak running back lab. I mean, the dude is absolutely cut, rocked up at six feet tall, 220 pounds.

Starting point is 00:12:00 He's the ideal size for an NFL running back. And he's got untapped, unlimited potential. as a pass catcher, the biggest issue here, and it may not even be an issue because you're projecting with a lot of guys. Like, of course, Travion Henderson and Quinchon Judkins, those guys have proven, like they can pass protect, right? Caleb Johnson didn't have to do a lot of pass protecting because there's nobody really passing the ball at Iowa. No, I'm Joe, I joke too much about the Iowa quarterback position, but you get what I'm saying. Those guys have more proven reps there, and they stood out a little bit more in terms of their pass protection and third down abilities.

Starting point is 00:12:38 I do feel like Caleb Johnson has the ability to be a dynamic player on third down. He certainly got the size to be able to stick his nose in there and pass protect and do the dirty work, but he's also got really just untapped potential as a receiver. And the reason for that is is because because Iowa wasn't really ever a threat to throw the ball consistently, and now I'm being serious. I'm not even joking at this point. Because they weren't really a threat to throw the ball, it didn't really give Johnson very many favorable matchups as a receiver out of the backfield. And so we had to watch him create offense when he was given chances. A perfect example of that is a clip that circulates all the time of him against Nebraska

Starting point is 00:13:23 last year where Nebraska just said, you know what? We're going to sell out to stop the run. And And we're not going to let Caleb Johnson beat us that way. We're not going to allow Iowa to even make any semblance of a threat in the passing game. So that's exactly what they did. And they shut Caleb Johnson down in the running game because they focused so heavily on it until late in the game. When he snuck out of the backfield on a passing play, Iowa quarterback slings the ball out to him. And Caleb does the rest. Breaks, tackles, 80 yards to the end zone.

Starting point is 00:13:53 Just an absolutely monstrous run after the catch. and really indicative of that untapped potential that he has there. So if the Broncos can't get an Ohio state back, I'm more than okay with the combination of Colson Loveland and Caleb Johnson in the first two rounds. Could you swap positions here and go with Trayvion Henderson in round one and Harold Fanon or Mason Taylor in round two? Absolutely.

Starting point is 00:14:20 Would love to see that. But I like this combination right here. You get Loveland in the mix. You get Johnson in the mix. two dynamic players that are going to change the absolute, just everything about your offense going forward. So second round, Caleb Johnson out of Iowa, the running back. And in round three is where I could really see the Broncos going a number of different directions, right? Because you've already got the tight end, you've already got the running back.

Starting point is 00:14:49 Now do you want to take advantage of the depth on the defensive line in this draft? We saw the Broncos bring in a couple of guys for pre-draft visits. I think they could go with a number of different players here. But as I'm running this simulation, I'm going to go with Texas A&M defensive lineman, Shamar Turner. Of course, his teammate, Stewart is way more notable at this point in terms of the athletic performance that he put on at the scouting combine. But Shamar Turner has a chance to be a really good pass rushing defensive lineman at the next level.

Starting point is 00:15:22 somebody that the Broncos are going to want to play a little bit early on, but it could be sort of another Jonah Ellis sort of situation, right? It's not the exact same thing, but you drafted Jonah Ellis last year knowing that he's not going to start, but he's going to get on the field quite a bit. And Jonah Ellis ended up being top five amongst NFL rookies last year with five total sacks, which he tied with Dondre Tillman, another Broncos rookie pass rusher who really exploded onto the scene last year as well. So that is an exciting possibility is to have somebody come in and just be part of that wave of pass rushers because right now the Broncos, they have

Starting point is 00:16:03 a really good defensive line. And George Payton said the defensive line and the offensive lines, those were the two highest graded position groups on the team last year. That's a big reason why we saw the Broncos win 10 games because they elevated the level of talent so substantially in the trenches on both sides of the ball. You've got to keep that going. And you probably can't resign all of Zach Allen, John Franklin Myers, Malcolm Roach. Those guys are all free agents after this season. So you hope to keep the band together for another year, but you bring in somebody like a

Starting point is 00:16:39 Shamar Turner or you could go as early as round one with Walter Nolan and those guys, Derek Harmon, Kenneth Grant, any of those guys would present an option for the Broncos to move forward after this year with a cost-controlled player at a position that has become increasingly expensive. And I think we're about to find that out in a big way with how much money Zach Allen is going to get paid this offseason at some point. So we'll find out exactly when that will be. But Broncos country so far, this mock draft is turning out great. In my opinion, we've got Colston Loveland, round one. We've got Caleb Johnson, round two. And now we've got Shamar Turner in round three, a bunch of guys that are going to come in and contribute right away for this Denver

Starting point is 00:17:25 Broncos team and make an impact. But we've still got day three picks left to get to. And the Broncos, they have their fourth round pick. And then they have three picks in the sixth round. How are we going to spend those picks in today's final 2025 mock draft? You're going to get that and much more coming up next, Locked on Broncos. Today's episode of Lockdown Broncos is brought to you by Nissan and the Nissan Armada. The Armada player of the week. It's brought to you by our friends over there at Nissan and the all new 2025 Nissan Armada.

Starting point is 00:17:56 Each week, we're taking a look at our draft prospects to pick one guy that stands apart. It's the guy that we believe showcased strength, power, right? The strength and power that's needed to push the Denver Broncos forward as we look ahead to next season. And this week's Armada and clear-cut player of the week is a guy that I just mentioned Caleb Johnson, the running back out of Iowa, who could be one of the Denver Broncos top two picks in the 2025 NFL draft. And why we chose them for this award? Well, because Caleb Johnson is an absolute dude out there. And he showed that over and over again at Iowa beating stacked boxes,

Starting point is 00:18:34 creating yardage after contact, proving that he could plant his foot in the ground and get forward. And Caleb Johnson, just like the Nissan Armada, right? Heavy duty, rugged, conquers the road. with capability and confidence. Dream big, go big. And when it comes to the Nissan Armada, they say go forth and conquer. And that's exactly what I think Caleb Johnson can do for the Broncos. It's clear that our player of the week,

Starting point is 00:18:58 Caleb Johnson, he's ready to conquer the road ahead with confidence, just like you can in the all-new Nissan Armada or any of their outstanding vehicles. Take the Nissan Armada, the rogue, the Pathfinder, and go find your next big adventure. Shop Nissan.usa.com. We're closing out the final few rounds of our last 2025 NFL mock draft. Well, at least my final individual one here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos.

Starting point is 00:19:26 And thanks so much to all you every dayers out there that make Lockdown Broncos, your first listen of the day. If you haven't already subscribed, feel free to take a couple seconds and do that. We really appreciate every single one of you out there. And Broncos country, we are into the weeds of the fourth and sixth rounds of our final Denver Broncos mock draft here, where I believe if the Broncos go, like we have them going in the first three rounds, Colston Loveland, tight end out of Michigan, Caleb Johnson, running back out of Iowa, Shamar Turner, defensive lineman out of Texas A&M, ultimate, ultimate flexibility here on day three

Starting point is 00:20:01 can really do anything. Some of my favorite strategies at this point in the draft, I love to get a second running back into the mix, and I think the Broncos will look into that. Maybe you take even a little bit more advantage of the depth at defensive line in this class. Maybe you look at wide receivers. I don't know. How much of the Broncos really like those guys that they have? Wouldn't be surprised either to see an interior offensive linemen at some point,

Starting point is 00:20:28 see if the Broncos go after anybody in that regard. But here in the fourth round, you probably figure we can still get a starting caliber player with this selection and an underrated. position group that the Denver Broncos should be looking to address here in this draft is the off ball linebacker position. I'm going to go ahead and take Chris Paul Jr., the linebacker out of Ole Miss, a tackling machine who could jump into that defensive rotation right away. Now, would that necessarily mean great things for Drew Sanders? Probably not. What would it mean great things for Alex Singleton? Probably not. But after you sign Dre Greenlaw and NFL free agency,

Starting point is 00:21:08 you bring back Justin Sernad. You got to hedge your bets a little bit. These off-ball linebackers with the new kickoff rules, they are going to be playing big, big roles on special teams and the kicking game. So wouldn't be surprised to see the Denver Broncos add an off-ball linebacker relatively early and continue to build that position group right there. Round six, we're going to be taking a look at who's still there at the running back position. Is there anybody that we like or do we want to just go with, you know, different position groups here?

Starting point is 00:21:42 Do we want to maybe look to the interior offensive line later in the draft? Well, as I'm doing a simulation, Dylan Fairchild, the interior lineman from Georgia is still available. We're going to take Dylan Fairchild off the board, drafting big men on either side of the ball, never a bad idea. In Broncos country, I already made mention that, look, you rarely, if ever see a draft where teams don't go after defensive backs. And in this particular draft class, in the sixth round, after taking Dylan Fairchild, the Broncos, we are going to be going after Mello Dotson, a cornerback out of Kansas. Mellow Dotson, great ball skills, somebody who could come in, potentially play some special

Starting point is 00:22:25 teams for you, develop into a, you know, maybe a contributor to your defense at some point down the line. At this point, haven't gone with any wide receivers. And he's not on the board. I do feel like at some point here on day three that we will see Tess Johnson's either selected by the Broncos or that they're going to pick him up as an undrafted free agent. There's a number of other guys that are still on the board at the wide receiver position, including both actually all three Colorado wide receivers, Will Shepard, Jimmy Horn, Jr. and then La Jante Webster. But as we're looking at this list right here, there's not a lot of guys that I'm kicking myself if I'm passing on any. of these guys. So we're going to continue looking at other positions, Broncos country.

Starting point is 00:23:10 Running back, do the Broncos need to go there? You know what this team hasn't done? This team has not drafted an offensive tackle since Garrett Bowles in 2017. You know what? Let's end that right now. We're going to go with a Johnny Cornelius, the offensive tackle, to round out this mock draft for the Denver Broncos, six rounds, and really not overly balanced, but we got some defensive picks in there, right? We took a D-Linman in the top 100. That's never a bad idea. That was a John Elway philosophy through and through.

Starting point is 00:23:43 Always spend a top 100 pick on the D-line, and that served him pretty well, especially early in his time with the Denver Broncos. But on day three, here we go. We got Chris Paul Jr., the linebacker out of Ole Miss, could potentially start for you right away. Dylan Fairchild in round six, an interior lineman out of Georgia,

Starting point is 00:24:03 who adds depth to that. unit right there. Melo Dotson adding more depth to the cornerback position, which we know the Broncos. They're always going to be drafting DBs. I think we can expect that at some point in this class. And then a Johnny Cornelius, an offensive tackle who ends the Broncos drought. Now, is this a perfect final mock draft? Absolutely not because we don't know who's all really going to be on the board when the draft rolls around, right? We don't know exactly where the Broncos are prioritizing certain positions like D-Line. Do they want to wait until round three? Or do they feel like there's can't miss guys in the first round. Do they truly want a first round tight end?

Starting point is 00:24:39 You get a pass catching option nonetheless in Colson Loveland and somebody who can play a versatile role for you opening up the middle of the field along with Evan Ingram. You get a featured running back in Caleb Johnson. Now, I don't love that I didn't get a second running back. I don't know if the Broncos are going to actually try to go for two backs in this class, but I do feel like they like enough of these guys. As George Payton has said, they feel like they can get starting caliber players from the second through the sixth rounds. And because he said that, I do believe that a second running back is a legitimate possibility for this team. I don't view Jaliel McLaughlin as a sure-fire lock for the roster or certainly not Tyler Biday or Blake Watson for that matter.

Starting point is 00:25:24 I think Audrick Estime is likely a lock for the team. But other than that, I think the Broncos are open for business. And I think they're open to being impressed by other backs. receiver, we, I would really have loved to have addressed that as early as round one with Emeka Egbuka. Some of my other favorite guys that I love in this class, Jaden Higgins out of Iowa State in round two would not be mad about Trey Harris, who is the only player in college football last year to have over a thousand receiving yards with 80 or less targets.

Starting point is 00:25:54 That guy maximized his targets. And, you know, I think he could do the same in Denver. He's an after the catch demon out there. that's a position group that I really like. I also wouldn't be shocked if the Broncos go linebacker higher than the fourth round, although at the same time, every fiber of my being wants to see Drew Sanders get a shot because you use the 67th overall pick on him in 2023.

Starting point is 00:26:20 And I just feel like that investment warrants at least getting a look at a guy. That doesn't mean you don't hedge your bets. It doesn't mean you don't draft guys that are high on your board. But I would love to see Drew get a chance out there. So ideally, I might pass on linebackers in another mock draft scenario, right, in that fourth round even, just to say, hey, let's double up on running back. Let's get another playmaker there and see what we can find. Also, really believing that the Broncos could double up on D-line in this draft as well.

Starting point is 00:26:49 And that would not be a bad idea. So what are your thoughts, Broncos country? Do you think they would actually go tight end in round one after all the winds have been blowing the opposite direction over the last handful of months? I think that would be really fascinating, but this draft class covers the need to get playmakers around Bo Nix. It covers the need for a potential future starter on the defensive line, somebody that you can develop right away and certainly gives the Broncos a chance to compete in the loaded AFC going forward. But Broncos country, Cody and I'll be back on tomorrow's episode of the show to bring you the latest news content coverage analysis and more for Broncos as we approach the 2025 NFL draft,

Starting point is 00:27:30 which is just a couple of days away. But mile high salute to every single one of you out there. We appreciate you so much for listening today. And every day, we'll catch you on the next one, Broncos Country.

Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - MOCK DRAFT: Denver Broncos IGNORE Conventional Wisdom to Draft Colston Loveland In Round 1

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