Finding Broncos: 5 Versatile OL for Interior Depth

Finding Broncos scouts the 2023 NFL Draft with a group of offensive linemen who can bring depth along the interior.

With the Denver Broncos' improvements on their offensive line, they still need to improve their depth on the unit. There are solid options that can be worth developing for the Broncos. It isn't a strong class, so with only five draft picks, the Broncos need to do their work to find hidden gems. 

Silas Dzansi | OL | Virginia Tech

© Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

Pros

• He has excellent length with good size. 
• He is a solid athlete with excellent good short-area burst. 
• He has experience working guard and tackle on both sides of the line. 
• He has decent movement skills and power for scheme versatility. 
• He kept his play clean and disciplined, with only eight penalties. 
• His punch has excellent power with solid placement. 

Cons

• There isn't great bend in his play, and he struggles to handle leverage. 
• He can struggle to open up laterally and get outside as a puller. 
• His body control is lacking, and he can get knocked off balance when climbing. 
• While he can work as a tackle, he projects best inside, where his heavier feet won't be a significant issue. 

Fit with Broncos

Dzansi is a good fit for the Broncos, and there are a lot of tools to work with. He will need a year on the practice squad before competing for a more significant role and making the roster. However, as an undrafted free agent, there is value in taking the shot. 

Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu | OL | Oregon

© Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Pros

• He has great size and length, with enough to last as a tackle. 
• He is a good athlete, checking the athleticism boxes. 
• His huge frame makes it easy to guard the gaps naturally. 
• He has good experience working on the right side of the line. 
• His large wingspan can be hard to get around with counters. 
• He has good power and decent mobility. 

Cons

• He lunges into contact and lowers his head, opening himself up for a counter. 
• There isn't good recovery athleticism. 
• He isn't overly quick when shifting from gap to gap. 
• There are technical issues in pass protection that lead to consistency issues. 

Fit with Broncos

Aumavae-Laulu has good experience, but there is a concern about how much versatility he has. He can work both guard and tackle on the right side, but is he comfortable flipping sides? Nevertheless, he can be a good fit as a developmental option along the line if the value is correct. 

What happens next on the Broncos? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Please take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

J.D. DiRenzo | OL | Rutgers

© Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Pros

• He has a good size for the interior. 
• He is a solid athlete with good explosion and agility. 
• He has good experience at tackle and guard and quickly picked things up at Rutgers after transferring in 2022. 
• His attitude and demeanor are there for the NFL. 
• The fundamentals with his technique are there and consistent. 

Cons

• There could be more mass on his frame to work inside. 
• He doesn't have the length to be a consistent tackle in the NFL. 
• He does have an issue with being a bit grabby and drawing penalties. 
• He has less than 500 snaps working as a guard, which can lengthen his transition. 
• There may not be ideal power to hand in a gap/power scheme. 

Fit with Broncos

DiRenzo is an interesting prospect with a lot of upside. His foundation with his technique isn't common, and he is a good fit for a zone team. Unfortunately, that team isn't the Broncos, as they go toward a power/gap. 

Brent Laing | IOL | Minnesota Deluth

© Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Pros

• He has solid size and length for a center. 
• There is decent athleticism with burst and agility. 
• He has good movement skills working laterally, pulling, or climbing. 
• He is quick to go from defender to defender when he is able. 
• He does well in using his technique and athleticism to control and direct blocks. 
• He has ideal traits for an outside-zone scheme. 
• His body works in unison between the upper and lower body. 

Cons

• There is a concern with his length and wingspan to control the A gaps. 
• There isn't great power to his game. 
• His hand technique and placement need to be improved, as it is far below NFL standards. 
• His footwork is a complete mess. 
• The competition he faced made things easier for him. 

Fit with Broncos

The Broncos have taken shots on small school prospects on the line with decent success. However, Laing doesn't fit what the Broncos do on offense. 

Henry Bainivalu | OL | Washington

© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Pros

• He has good size, length, and build. 
• He kept his play clean and avoided flags. 
• There are good movement skills to work as a blocker in the screen game, pulling or climbing. 
• He uses his length extremely well to keep defenders off his frame. 
• There is a good technique with his punch and placement with his punch. 

Cons

• He isn't a good athlete, even for his size. 
• He struggles to anchor or hold his own against powerful defensive linemen. 
• There are too many instances of ending up on the ground. 
• There isn't much versatility in position or scheme. 
• He can open his frame for counters and doesn't do well in keeping gaps squeezed. 

Fit with Broncos

Bainivalu is a good fit for teams running zone concepts, where his movement skills and athleticism can shine. The Broncos will likely mix some of those concepts, but not enough to take the shot on Bainivalu. 

The Broncos need to improve their depth because their depth got exposed last year. However, without those improvements on the offensive line, the Broncos can be easily exposed. 

---

Follow Erick on Twitter @ErickTrickel.

Follow Mile High Huddle on Twitter and Facebook.

Subscribe to Mile High Huddle on YouTube for daily Broncos live-stream podcasts!