O-Line

[beastlyskronk]

I don't know how Paton will be but under Elway the Broncos always felt that Center was a position that you could fill without paying a premium and so far they have been right. They let both Paradis and McGovern go after their rookie contracts were up and they could not keep them cheaply.

This is true, but neither of those guys have the ceiling that Cushenberry does IMO. If he starts to tap into that potential this season I definitely think he’ll get a second contract from us.

[CheyennePress]

BYU pro day is today and T Brady Christensen is one I really like. He could be a really good one to rotate in. If he weren't an older prospect I think he would be going much higher than projected.

I think we are going to have a couple of top rated bookends myself, but a guy like Christensen could be a solution in the near future.
I believe James is going to earn his salary this year, but next year and beyond I don't know that we can tie that money up.

Note- sounds like we have shown interest in BYU WR Dax Milne. He's one to watch at their pro day today as well.

Christensen had a very nice pro day. 4 89 in the 40 and 34 inch vertical with a 30 on the bench.

https://247sports.com/college/byu/Ar...aft-163130860/

This year's OT class seems pretty deep and is really athletic, as well. I hope we finally land a solid OT.

See Rashawn Slater at 4.88 in the 40, 33 on the bench and 7.48 on the 3 cone.

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/...top-prospects/

Dillon Raduntz also had a nice pro day. 5.11 in the 40, 32 inch vertical, 7.27 in the 3-cone (equal to Ezra Cleveland), and 24 on the bench.

https://247sports.com/college/north-...unz-162287393/

Sam Cosmi also another nice pro day, with a 4.84 and 36 reps.

Tristan Wirfs was 4.85 last year.

[atwaterandstir]

Thanks for those links CheyennePress -
I was having a hard time believing that Christensen would fall as low as he was being projected. This pro day only solidifies my belief.

If he didn't serve his 2 year mission for his church and was the same age as these other guys, I really think he would be looked at with the other top OL. I would love to have him in Denver, but I think we would have to use our early 2nd to draft him. (or perhaps a second we receive by trading back if the DBs look like they are falling)

[johnlimburg]

This is true, but neither of those guys have the ceiling that Cushenberry does IMO. If he starts to tap into that potential this season I definitely think he’ll get a second contract from us.

Cushenberry by all accounts was viewed as a solid prospect coming out as he was solid in a variety of areas, a well-rounded guy, but wasn't really great or exceptional at anything. After his first year in the NFL, as great as it was that he was available, just like Paradis was during his stint here, Cushenberry was arguably terrible for the majority of the season. I don't agree with Elway not placing value on the center position by way of example saying he allowed Paradis and McGovern to go, neither of them were great either or worth the contract they recieved, but I don't see Cushenberry really with a ceiling above either of those guys to be honest.

[welderhead]

Sewell won't be there, short of trading Estes Park to Cincinnati, but I'm interested in Slater who will most certainly be available at 9th. And can't we trade down a little and still get him? On the other hand we would be passing on a great corner or linebacker.

[skeeter01]

Sewell won't be there, short of trading Estes Park to Cincinnati, but I'm interested in Slater who will most certainly be available at 9th. And can't we trade down a little and still get him? On the other hand we would be passing on a great corner or linebacker.

Daniel Jerimiah has Slater as the top rated Tackle.......

[FR Tim]

Jeremiah also has the Broncos taking Sewell at #9 in his latest mock draft.

I can live with that.

If that were to happen, it would be interesting to see what they chose to do with James. Keep for depth or find a trade partner. Could they even make a deal and for what is intriguing.

Despite the contract and last couple seasons there might be a team that would trade a late rd pick and take on his contract. He is still a talented OT. On the other hand, having him ( or Sewell ) as the backup could be a really nice depth move if all the egos can be controlled.

[CanDB]

Yes, Slater may even surpass Sewell, and if not, he will likely be there at 9. But there is more talk about GMs liking Slater a little more.

Two is better than one, if we're looking.

[broncolee]

Jeremiah also has the Broncos taking Sewell at #9 in his latest mock draft.

I can live with that.

If that were to happen, it would be interesting to see what they chose to do with James. Keep for depth or find a trade partner. Could they even make a deal and for what is intriguing.

Despite the contract and last couple seasons there might be a team that would trade a late rd pick and take on his contract. He is still a talented OT. On the other hand, having him ( or Sewell ) as the backup could be a really nice depth move if all the egos can be controlled.

James is probably okay with being a backup as long as check stays the same. The ego would probably be related to the money.

[listopencil]

Cushenberry by all accounts was viewed as a solid prospect coming out as he was solid in a variety of areas, a well-rounded guy, but wasn't really great or exceptional at anything. After his first year in the NFL, as great as it was that he was available, just like Paradis was during his stint here, Cushenberry was arguably terrible for the majority of the season. I don't agree with Elway not placing value on the center position by way of example saying he allowed Paradis and McGovern to go, neither of them were great either or worth the contract they recieved, but I don't see Cushenberry really with a ceiling above either of those guys to be honest.

Let's see how he does with an off season of weight training. As I understand it he needs to gain functional strength to perform at an NFL level.

[FR Tim]

Let's see how he does with an off season of weight training. As I understand it he needs to gain functional strength to perform at an NFL level.

As do most rookies. Also an off-season of the most focused coaching he may have ever had in his life. Not just about strength but gains in technique and leverage concepts. To understanding the playbook and his expectations in a million and one scenarios.

I think we often forget how big a leap these young players are making from being a college student standout to being abused by NFL professionals. It’s a grown man league from the players to the business side of things.

Hopefully his year of experience has made a huge difference in how he does this year. IMO it will, but he has to prove it on the field.

[Rich_C]

As do most rookies. Also an off-season of the most focused coaching he may have ever had in his life. Not just about strength but gains in technique and leverage concepts. To understanding the playbook and his expectations in a million and one scenarios.

I think we often forget how big a leap these young players are making from being a college student standout to being abused by NFL professionals. It’s a grown man league from the players to the business side of things.

Hopefully his year of experience has made a huge difference in how he does this year. IMO it will, but he has to prove it on the field.

There is no forgetting what kind of leap it is for me. Truth be told I am not putting this 100 percent on Cush for his 1st year. We, as a team, really did this to ourselves. We seem to keep holding onto guys until the end of their contract but never draft a backstop to develop behind them. We had that for a while but once we let Paradis go it was downhill from there at OC. I also think it is fair to look at others from this class at OC. I have not done so yet but I suspect that at least 1 or 2 did better than Cush did.

[FR Tim]

There is no forgetting what kind of leap it is for me. Truth be told I am not putting this 100 percent on Cush for his 1st year. We, as a team, really did this to ourselves. We seem to keep holding onto guys until the end of their contract but never draft a backstop to develop behind them. We had that for a while but once we let Paradis go it was downhill from there at OC. I also think it is fair to look at others from this class at OC. I have not done so yet but I suspect that at least 1 or 2 did better than Cush did.

Just took a quick look at other "centers" ranked and drafted near Cushenberry. He stacks up well.

He started all 16 games. for the Broncos. And could have been replaced by Glasgow at any time Munchak wanted. Before the start of last season that was one of the questions. Was Glasgow signed to be C or G. Still have that option if needed.

Other Cs from the draft class were Ruiz and Hennessey,. Both played G for less starts and less games.. Biadasz played C but only a few games. Centers like Williams, Harris, Cabral or Hanson never played in a game. I possibly missed some later round or UDFA Cs but none are going to beat 16 starts. He improves and the C position is set for years.

[samparnell]

Just took a quick look at other "centers" ranked and drafted near Cushenberry. He stacks up well.

He started all 16 games. for the Broncos. And could have been replaced by Glasgow at any time Munchak wanted. Before the start of last season that was one of the questions. Was Glasgow signed to be C or G. Still have that option if needed.

Other Cs from the draft class were Ruiz and Hennessey,. Both played G for less starts and less games.. Biadasz played C but only a few games. Centers like Williams, Harris, Cabral or Hanson never played in a game. I possibly missed some later round or UDFA Cs but none are going to beat 16 starts. He improves and the C position is set for years.

Lloyd Cushenberry is an intelligent and hard working young man. He put the ball in play on 100% of Denver's offensive snaps last year and got a ton of experience doing it. He is under contract through 2023 at a little over $1 million/yr. Connor McGovern (2020) and Matt Paradis (2019) are both on three year $27 million deals and, as you have pointed out, Lloyd was probably the best rookie C in 2020. He has a great coach, makes the line calls and can pull. If he has been working on strength in the offseason, we'll see if he can block a nasty 0 tech one-on-one. If he will do that, he'll be set.

[Hadez]

Jeremiah also has the Broncos taking Sewell at #9 in his latest mock draft.

I can live with that.

If that were to happen, it would be interesting to see what they chose to do with James. Keep for depth or find a trade partner. Could they even make a deal and for what is intriguing.

Despite the contract and last couple seasons there might be a team that would trade a late rd pick and take on his contract. He is still a talented OT. On the other hand, having him ( or Sewell ) as the backup could be a really nice depth move if all the egos can be controlled.

Only problem I have with top 10 OT is we can trade back and get a good OT plus other stuff. OT may be the deepest position in this draft not just the top 2 rounds but even further. Recent analytics are showing there is actually not that much difference between a 2nd round player and a 1st round player in terms how many snaps teams are getting from college picks. That does not seem to show quality of snaps from what I saw on the Broncos youtube channel tho.

If we can not get the trade partner then go for it imo