We’re all counting down the days until the 2024 NFL draft, and the possibility of the Denver Broncos finally finding their franchise QB of the future.
After the massively disappointing tenure of Russell Wilson — which cost Denver a multitude of high-value picks, including in the trade for Sean Payton to rectify the disastrous hire of Nathaniel Hackett — Denver is at long last back on the board with a first-round selection this year.
But before Denver sends in their draft card for the hopeful savior of the franchise, let’s look back at the rookie campaigns of Denver’s 2023 draft class.
Round 2, Pick 63: Marvin Mims Jr., WR
Selected with the 63rd pick, after trading up from 68, Mims was a Pro Bowl and All-Pro kick returner in his rookie season, averaging 26.5 yards per return, which was fifth-best among returners with at least 10 kickoffs received. He was also one of only four players to return a kickoff for a TD.
Mims was equally arguably even more dangerous in the punt game, where he averaged 16.4 yards per return, which was the best among all returners with 10 punts received.
That said, Mims’ role was limited as a receiver in his first season under Sean Payton. He was primarily deployed as a clear-out option, running vertical routes to open up space underneath, or as a gadget player on screens and end-arounds.
On the season, Mims was only targeted 32 times, which was 19th among all rookie receivers, and had 377 receiving yards, ranking 15th.
While the numbers may be a bit underwhelming, the glimpses we saw from him as an elite downfield weapon were fantastic. He averaged 17.1 yards per catch which came in second among all rookies and 17th among all active receivers.
The Broncos have lacked an explosive difference-maker in both the return game and wide receiver room for a long time. While he didn’t have the breakout season other second-round receivers have had in recent years, Denver should feel pretty good about their selection of Mims going forward. Hopefully, we see his route tree blossom in year two under Coach Payton.
Round 3, Pick 67: Drew Sanders, LB
The Broncos’ second third-round pick was standout linebacker Drew Sanders, out of Arkansas.
A bit more of a project, Sanders only played one season at off-ball linebacker, after transitioning from EDGE during his time with Alabama, where he played prior to his transfer.
Sanders possesses an enticing athletic profile with a 6-foot-4 frame, weighing around 235 pounds, with great blitzing capabilities and lateral quickness to help him cover in space.
Coming into the season it was a question how many defensive snaps Sanders would receive, as he himself needed time to put on NFL weight and learn the complexities of the position, combined with the fact that 3 serviceable linebackers were slotted ahead of him. But, after injuries to Jonas Griffith and Josey Jewell, Drew Sanders was thrust into action in Week 3 against Miami.
Sanders, along with the rest of the Broncos defense, struggled mightily, giving up 70 points in the record-breaking performance for the Dolphins offense. The growing pains that the coaching staff had hoped to iron out in practice were on full display. Shoddy tackling, lapses in coverage, and an overall lack of comfort at the position led to Sanders being benched by Week 6.
He’d spend the next weeks as a primary special teamer with reduced snaps, until Week 12 against the Browns.
This time, however, he was deployed as a rotational EDGE to give the Broncos a slight boost against the run on the outside. He played 126 snaps over the final weeks generating a total of five pressures on opposing QBs, according to Pro Football Focus).
Needless to say, it’s hard to feel there is much upside as a full time EDGE defender for Drew based on his play in 2023. It’s possible we see him improve his pass rushing as he grows into his NFL body, but based on the tape and his overall athletic makeup, it still appears he’s best suited playing off-ball linebacker, even with his disappointing results last season.
Linebacker is a position similar to tight end, which typically requires a season or two of coaching before you’re ready to take the field. This combined with Sanders’ need to fill out his frame gives some hope for his future going forward.
But none of that matters if he’s pushed to the EDGE like George Paton has eluded to this offseason.
Regardless, here’s hoping Sanders can find a home on defense to garner snaps somewhere on this defense. Otherwise, Denver may have used one of their very few top-100 picks since the Russell Wilson trade on a special-teamer.
Round 3, Pick 83: Riley Moss, DB
The most aggressive move Denver made in last year’s draft was trading a 2024 third-round selection and pick 108 to move up for Iowa DB Riley Moss with pick 83.
Moss is an experienced versatile defender with savvy instincts in coverage and comfort playing a lot of deep zones which led to teams questioning whether he’d better fit at CB or safety at the next level.
Unluckily for both Denver and Moss, Riley had to go through core muscle surgery early in the offseason program. Arguably the most valuable time for a rookie is his first offseason with the coaching staff and Moss was forced to sit out for its entirety including the preseason.
It wasn’t until Week 3 of the regular season when fans finally got their first glimpse of Moss, but it wasn’t patrolling the secondary as many hoped. It was as the gunner on the punt team, opposite Tremon Smith. Throughout the year Moss got better and better as a gunner, helping Denver to improve towards having one of the top special teams units across the NFL in 2023.
As for his defensive snaps, Moss didn’t find his way onto the field until Week 11 where he was deployed as a slot and dimebacker in sub packages. This would be his role until Week 18 where he received his first three snaps at outside corner opposite PS2.
In total, Riley Moss played a total of 25 defensive snaps during his rookie season. On those snaps, regardless of how few there were, he looked fine. He’s fairly sticky in coverage and spent those reps mostly manned up on shallow crossers. He plays with enough physicality to be a factor in the run game, and his tenacity on the punt team provides optimism for his development at cornerback.
Still, it’s hard to not be fairly disappointed in Moss’ inability to force his way onto the field.
Denver’s defense desperately needed playmakers all season, especially at corner, and their rookie pick, who cost the equivalent of an early third-round pick, still wasn’t utilized.
Missing the entirety of the offseason practices surely cost Moss a lot of valuable information and learning opportunities, so hopefully spending an entire offseason healthy and developing leads to more playing time for Moss in 2024.
Round 6, Pick 183: JL Skinner, S
JL Skinner was one of my favorite safeties in the 2023 pre-draft process after his astounding career at Boise State. He brings a lot of size and is a punisher on the backend of any secondary with ball skills and the ability to play in the box and matchup on tight ends.
Skinner was reportedly a top-100 consideration going into the pre-draft process and looked pretty decent at last years Senior Bowl, but sadly he endured a torn pectoral training which took away his chance at combine and pro day testing.
This caused the safety to slide into Day 3 of the draft, all the way down to the 183rd pick, where Denver snatched him up.
He was basically given a redshirt season to recover, only seeing the field for 10 total snaps, 9 of which were on special teams.
It’s hard to put much stock into what he showed from his rookie campaign but after the release of Justin Simmons, and a week 17 ACL tear for Delarrin Turner-Yell last season, Skinner has the opportunity to take hold of the fourth safety spot going into the season.
With the uncertainty of Caden Sterns’ health, and Vance’s enjoyment of three safety formations, it’s possible we see Skinner a lot sooner than fans might think.
In a year where Denver is enduring the largest dead-cap hit in NFL history, players like Skinner need to be given opportunities to showcase their value. It’s an evaluation year in Denver and Skinner, along with the other Day 3 picks who have seen limited opportunity, need to be given a fair chance to be evaluated.
7th Round, Pick 257: Alex Forsyth, C
The Denver Broncos’ seventh-round draft pick, Alex Forsyth, was a fantastic pass protector in his final season at Oregon, and, coming in at 6-foot-4 and 320 pounds, he’s built exactly how you’d expect a Sean Payton interior linemen to be built.
In his rookie campaign, Forsyth didn’t play one regular season snap, whether on offense or special teams. He did play in the preseason, tallying over 100 snaps in their three exhibition games, and looked impressive as part of the Broncos reserve unit against mostly third and fourth stringers.
He possesses quick feet, and good balance with a strong understanding of leverage, but his lack of plus athleticism limits his ceiling quite a bit.
But, after the departure of the Denver Broncos’ four-year starter at center, Lloyd Cushenberry, to Tennessee, Forsyth has garnered a lot of buzz as the potential starting answer next season at center.
Right now, he and Luke Wattenberg (who seems to be thought of by the coaching staff as a guard or swing lineman on the interior) are the only players capable of playing center on the roster, outside of Quinn Meinerz, who won’t be moved from the position he was nearly an All-Pro at.
We’re through the initial days of free agency and Denver chose to opt out of paying market price for a starter. With plenty of offseason remaining, the question becomes, ‘does Denver look to add an established veteran on the trade market or in the later stages of free agency, or do they decide to look towards the NFL draft for their solution at center?’
Conclusion
Without having a first or second-round pick, Denver’s 2023 draft class was always going to be underwhelming in comparison to the rest of the league.
Even so, they managed to find key contributors on special teams, along with some possible building blocks for the future. Most of these players will get the chance to show their stuff in the coming season, so it’s a bit unfair to pass too much judgment until then.
Still, for a team that was aware of its lack of resources, and a team that desperately needs talented players on cheap contracts. Fans will be right to be a bit concerned about the lack of production from the Denver Broncos’ rookie class, as the franchise enters a rebuilding stage.
