2020 NFL Draft: Grades for each of the Denver Broncos selections
By Jason Truitt
The Denver Broncos had a busy three days throughout the 2020 NFL Draft. Let’s dive in and take a look at how they solidified their roster with grades for each pick.
The Denver Broncos went on a bit of a free agency splurge prior to the 2020 NFL Draft, making massive splashes on both sides of the ball with top-notch players such as cornerback A.J. Bouye and running back Melvin Gordon.
Vic Fangio and company entered the 2020 NFL Draft with ten picks; they did not trade and stayed put with all them, bringing along ten fresh faces to the depth chart.
Heading into the virtual event, the Denver Broncos were well aware of what needed fixing. Their top needs consisted of the secondary, receiver and offensive line. They used their initial four picks to address those issues- the right call indeed.
Throughout Elway’s front-office tenure, he’s been commonly obligated to target a quarterback high in the draft. Did finally finding a comfortable leader under center in Drew Lock improve his approach and selections in the 2020 NFL Draft? Find out as I get my red pen out and critique his performance.
Jerry Jeudy. player. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. WR. Alabama. 15. 829
Courtland Sutton had to be frustrated from over-leading the charge for the Denver Broncos pass-catching unit in 2019 as he consistently faced double-coverage down the stretch. Even with Sutton’s stellar season, the Denver Broncos passing attack finished at bottom of the league. Backup for Sutton was painfully obvious and expected.
The Denver Broncos did not let the latest injury concerns for Jerry Jeudy bother them one bit, taking advantage of his fall down the board and selecting him at 15 overall in the 2020 NFL Draft.
Jeudy will be an absolute game-changer for Pat Shurmur’s offense. He was my number one receiver coming into draft day. Jeudy’s college performance even sparked debate about him being acclaimed the best receiver to come out of Alabama since Julio Jones. This guy is the real deal.
Believe it or not, this is the first player that Elway has took from the powerhouse that is the Alabama Crimson Tide during his nine years as a general manager. Jeudy will demonstrate to the man in charge that he should’ve done so earlier.
Juedy has the highest floor out of any weapon in the 2020 NFL Draft class and will start immediately. Jeudy can make plays from both the outside and slot. He is a human joystick with his eye-catching change of direction with and without the ball in his mittens. He packs along threatening 4.4 speed with his vast route tree and impressive catch-radius. Extremely familiar with the end zone as he scored 24 touchdowns throughout his final 28 games at Alabama, also finished with back to back 1,000 yard seasons.
The receiver’s plethora of traits will allow him to excel with the deep ball at the next level. He averaged 17.2 yards per reception in his college career.
Simply put, this pick was nothing short of phenomenal. Jeudy and Sutton should be a special receiving tandem for years to come.