Day 2 of the NFL Draft is in the books and, once again, Denver used their lone selection of the day on a premium position. Denver selected the 21-year-old EDGE from Utah, Jonah Elliss, with the 76th pick, adding another athletic pass rusher to an edge room brimming with potential.
Guys like Jonathon Cooper, Baron Browning, and Nik Bonitto have shown a ton of promise over their tenures in Denver but only Bonitto is under contract beyond this season. With question marks looming around the futures of Browning and Cooper, it makes sense for Denver to restock the shelves in the pass rush department.
Jonah Elliss is still fairly inexperienced, as he’s played only 1,085 snaps through three seasons at Utah, but he still managed to generate meaningful production in that limited action.
2023 was the first year we got to see Elliss in a full-time role and through the first twelve weeks of the season, he led all Power-5 schools in sacks, with 12. Elliss looked well on his way to securing a top-50 selection before enduring a season-ending labrum tear in his shoulder following a game against Washington, forcing him to miss most of the pre-draft process outside his pro-day.
At the Utah pro day, Elliss exploded, posting a 38-inch vertical and a 6.69 3-cone drill which would’ve been the best 3-cone of any defensive end in the RAS database, though the nature of pro day testing dings the validity of those number some.
Nonetheless, his elite lateral quickness and change of direction are evident on tape from his wide array of rush moves. Elliss has arguably the best spin move in the class and continuously used this go-to rush to generate numerous pressures on inexperienced tackles. He combines that inside spin with other moves, ranging from ghosts and arm-overs to generic speed-to-power rushes.
This variation of counter moves combined with a strong understanding of rush sequencing allows Elliss to consistently keep tackles off-balance. When added to a rotation that already has players with get-offs like Browning and Bonitto, that will result in a devastating pass rush rotation for opposing offensive tackles and quarterbacks.
Outside of the impact he brings in the passing game, Elliss will need to develop physically and mentally if he wants to be utilized on early downs.
He plays in a slightly undersized frame and doesn’t possess a lot of lower body strength to withstand run blocks. This also limits his ability to move inside as a pass rusher in sub packages as he possesses the quickness to win initially, but lacks the strength to finish reps against 300-pounders.
Luckily for Elliss, he’s playing under Vance Joseph, who should deploy him properly in his demonic third-down blitz packages (which likely sounds sarcastic if you know Joseph, but hear me out).
Joseph loves an athletic tweener with the ability to get after the quarterback but also the ability to drop into coverage over the middle. These types of players allow him to send pressure from all over the field and confuse opposing offensive lines as they never know how many rushers to expect. Utah’s defense is fairly similar, giving Elliss a lot of experience rushing from different alignments and even some experience dropping into coverage — which he’s shockingly capable of doing.
Elliss’ role in year one may be limited, but I’m excited to see his development and selective usage throughout his rookie season. The Broncos’ defense will struggle to stop the run this season, as has been the case since Fangio left, but I expect a really strong season out of the pass defense. They have an explosive group of pass rushers, including some in contract years, a true interior threat in Zach Allen, and a secondary loaded with talent, headlined by the best CB in the NFL.
I think we see a true Vance Joseph defense this season for better or for worse and that is only further cemented with players like Elliss being added to the team. This team wants to pound the rock on offense and frustrate opposing passing attacks on defense.
Here’s hoping it works out.
