Concerning The Broncos......
Q: In a lot of the early mock drafts, the Broncos are picked to take Ryan Clady with their first-round pick. Who do you like better, Clady or Chris Williams? And would they really pick an offensive tackle and skip over Calais Campbell, or Rashard Mendenhall if he's still available? Also, do they have a new person with input in the draft now that (former general manager Ted) Sundquist is gone?
And William Christensen . . .
Q: Do you see the recent events surrounding Brandon Marshall affecting the Broncos draft/ free agent strategy?
A: Tuesday Mike Shanahan also expressed the importance of Travis Henry staying healthy and that it was key for Henry to have a quality offseason program to go into training camp in as good of physical condition as he could.
Since all of the Broncos top three backs had injuries this past season Shanahan says as it stands right now he would rotate backs with the idea he would turn to more of a one-back look if one of the backs showed he's ready and able to carry the ball more.
The most likely candidate for that, given he has also said he doesn't consider Andre Hall or Young every-down backs because of their size, would be Henry. But Henry is going to have to show he has put in the time and the effort to get himself ready to get the ball plenty.
As far as backs in the draft, there is plenty of posturing going on around the league at the moment – this is really the lying season when you're trying to discern who may do what on draft day – with concerns over Darren McFadden's potential off-the-field baggage with an arrest in his background and his public assertions he isn't going to simply disregard the people he had spent time with over the years as well as Jonathan Stewart's recent toe surgery.
That could push those two down the board some – not much because of their talent – but potentially some if teams follow through with the current air of concern on draft day. It's 50-50 at best they will, but it all could move Rashard Mendenhall up the board being he now is the "safest'' pick of the three top backs.
So if the first back goes off the board a little later than expected, one of the top three should be there when the Broncos pick at No. 12. Mendenhall and Stewart fit their offense better than McFadden would.
The bulk of the Broncos attack is an inside zone game and that isn't really McFadden's strength despite his top gear and open-field ability.
Mendenhall was considered a later pick until teams started seeing him work out and really went through his work., He ran 4.45 40 at 225 pounds – some teams had him at 4.41 hand-timed – at the combine. He catches the ball well and from the Broncos perspective, he played in a zone-run scheme at Illinois.
The only concern expressed is some teams believe there may be some maturity issues, but that could be said about many players on the board.
But if McFadden is taken within the top four picks – say, to Oakland – that could start the dominos at the position then all three could be gone by the time the Broncos pick.
I don't think they feel Henry's good health is a slam dunk for '08 given his age, wear and tear and the number of injuries he's dealt with in the last few years, so they would give a back a look though Shanahan has never taken one in the first round in his tenure.
As far as fullback, we said it before and it continues to be true, most teams are simply phasing it out of a seven-round draft board. There were just four invited to the combine this year.
It is not a position many teams consider a draft priority any longer. Fewer offenses are using a true fullback and most teams prefer to wait and grab one as a rookie undrafted free agent. But in this year's class one of the more intriguing players is Furman's Jerome Felton. A 241-pounder he ran an electronically-timed 4.68 40 at the combine.
He also scored 63 rushing touchdowns in his college career, 23 of those in 2006. He also moved the piled at his level of competition with just six negative yards in 2007 and just four negative yards in '06.
As far as tackle, this is the best class – top to bottom – in a long time and some offensive line coaches say ever, so any team will have to give a look. It is simply the best chance to get a quality player almost anywhere on the board.
Both Williams, from Vanderbilt, and Clady, from Boise St., are near the top of the board.
Some scouts are, as you've seen here before and it hasn't changed in recent weeks, concerned because Clady played in a spread offense that what he could do at the point of attack in a traditional run game is still a rather large unknown.
He's tremendously quick, but doesn't have that big-time lower body strength. He could build up that strength, but people still have questions.
Williams is 6-6, he ran one of the better 40s at the position at the combine and his strength numbers are good. And he played in a league full of speed rushers, in the SEC, he's smart and worked at both tackle spots at the Senior Bowl as well as at guard.
There are scouts who continue say they aren't as excited say he doesn't have that nasty streak they're looking for. I think he just played in a power conference against plenty of nasty players and would be a good fit for the Broncos.
That said the Broncos could still get, in this class, a potential starter in the second or third rounds as well.
Right now, Shanahan said Tuesday, if he had to line the offense to play right now Chris Kuper would be the Broncos' left tackle – with Ryan Harris also given the chance to compete for the job – with Erik Pears at right tackle. The Broncos graded out Kuper, who started at guard last season after Ben Hamilton suffered a concussion, highly and believe he has the footwork to make the transition.
He was largely a right guard at North Dakota, but the Broncos believe he moves well enough to kick out to left tackle and that's where he is expected to work through the team's organized workouts in the offseason.
And while Jay Cutler has expressed frustration with Marshall's off-the-field troubles – his severe right forearm injury just the latest – and Shanahan has said the wide receiver needs to grow up as well, the Broncos are currently operating under the assumption that he will be ready for training camp.
The team's doctors continue to give them that projection. If they do look receiver in this draft – in what is not considered a deep class – it would be a player like Michigan State's Devin Thomas, a position player who is also a top returner.
It will be a surprise if they do not take a returner in this draft, almost certainly one they believe could handle both punts and kickoffs.
But again their expectation is that Marshall is going to be ready. If they get to June and have to change that plan, then they may start searching the waiver wire for a player to fill in the gap until Marshall is ready to come back and also be forced to play Brandon Stokley in the starting lineup, something they're hoping to avoid simply to maximize the veteran's output in the slot.
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Originally Posted by WARHORSE
