Denver Broncos 3-Round Mock Draft | Version 4.0

It's time to mock the Denver Broncos' first three draft picks.

Michigan defensive linemen Mason Graham (55) and Kenneth Grant (78) warm up before the start of the game against Fresno State at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. / Kimberly P. Mitchell/Detroit Free Press / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Denver Broncos are hunting for better weapons to surround rookie quarterback Bo Nix. However, as head coach Sean Payton said at his NFL Combine presser on Tuesday, the build-the-nest conversation surrounding Nix isn’t simply about adding an offensive weapon.

“A really good elite pass rusher could help in (Bo Nix’s) development," Payton said. "A really good cover corner—the best player that helps the team get better is going to help in his development. Sometimes when you talk about getting (Nix) weapons, certainly that’s important… but I think we got to look closely at what helps the team because that, in turn, can really end up helping the (quarterback) position.”

So if not a running back or tight end, considered two of the least premium positions in the NFL, where could the Broncos go with the 20th overall selection? Join me for my latest Broncos mock draft.

Round 1, Pick 20: Kenneth Grant, DL, Michigan

The 2025 draft class is flush with top-100 talent along the defensive line. Outside of Texas A&M's Shemar Stewart, there is not likely another defensive front player as freakish in terms of height/weight/speed as University of Michigan’s Kenneth Grant.

Playing alongside the far more polished and likely first interior defensive lineman off the board Mason Graham, Grant possesses more athletic gifts. Measured in at nearly 6-foot-4 and 342 pounds, Grant came in as the third-ranked player overall on The Athletic’s Freak List (Bruce Feldman).

At his weight, Grant is expected to run a sub-5.0-second 40-yard dash and he crushed many other conditioning drills set up by the Wolverines staff. A man as large as Grant should not be able to move as fluidly and explosively as he does on the field.

Grant is large and strong enough to handle playing the nose and anchoring against double teams to help free up defensive front players around him. However, given his explosiveness and movement skills, he can line up across the line of scrimmage from the 5 technique and be utilized in a gap-penetrating style front as well, which is what Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph utilizes.

Grant's size, fluidity, and burst can make him a nightmare for a team utilizing twists and stunts up front. Despite being so large and powerful, he can get too high out of his stance from time to time, allowing offensive linemen to get under him, negate his size and power advantage, and limit him in both the run and pass game.

Grant will need to continue to work on playing low. He also has been afforded to win simply based on being bigger, faster, and stronger than many of his opposition, but he does show a variety of pass-rush moves as well.

With D.J. Jones hitting the market this season, the Broncos roster currently only has Malcolm Roach as a true inside interior defensive lineman. Denver will have to add someone to further fortify the line and eat up snaps vacated by Jones should he depart.

Grant is a physical specimen that can play multiple alignments across different schemes. He would further add talent to an already strong front and would help Denver try to replicate the model most of the perennial contenders have laid out: consistently using premium picks on the defensive front.

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Round 2, Pick 51: Jack Bech, WR, TCU

What’s better than a flex tight end who isn’t necessarily a good in-line blocker but moves and catches like a wide receiver? An actual wide receiver who can block like a tight end.

The “F” role has long been thought of as a team’s second tight end that, in juxtaposition to the “Y," can be moved around and played in an H-back role, motioning pre-snap, or even playing in the slot.

But why play a blocking-only tight end at the Y with poor blocking and inferior athletic upside when a team can play receivers such as Cooper Kupp, Drake London, or Chris Godwin, who can block from the slot just as well and are exponentially better pass catchers?

Insert Bech. As the Senior Bowl MVP, his nuance as a route runner and toughness over the middle of the field in contested-catch situations captured the attention of draft media and elevated the former tight end's profile.

Bech is not an overly explosive receiver down the field. He possesses functional athleticism on tape and a well-built frame at 6-foot-1 and 212 pounds. That thick, strong body plays well in every aspect of the game.

Bech is perhaps the singularly best blocker at receiver in the entire class and looks to punish frail defensive backs in the run and screen game. While not being overly twitchy, he uses his frame and physicality to disengage from defenders and win at the catch point.

Whether Bech's usage is as a Z receiver or in the slot and overtaking the F role, making an offense’s 11 personnel blur the line with 12 personnel, he is the power slot type that many teams covet. He will do the dirty work required of him and, because of his usefulness across many demands of the offense, will be an exceedingly high-floor player.

It also might be worth noting that head coach Payton’s son, Connor Payton, should have first-hand knowledge about Bech. Connor has worked with TCU’s football program and has ties to the staff and players.

Round 3, Pick 85: Jaydon Blue, RB, Texas

It’s hard to do accurate mock drafts before knowing who the Broncos’ have added via free agency or trade prior to the NFL draft. However, given the needs, it’s almost a guarantee the Broncos will be hunting for prospects at tight end and running back.

The Broncos have such a need for the position, and it could be argued the Broncos could double up at one of the positions, if not both, due to the depth of the class.

When it comes to running back, the Broncos could use a more “thunder” style back as well as a “lightning” who can fulfill the "joker" role. Denver has Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estime, but to be honest, neither have shown enough and are such meager investments they should in no way inhibit the Broncos from adding direct competition, if not outright replacements, this offseason.

There are some Deuce McAllister and Mark Ingram-style backs in this class whom the Broncos could have the option to select at pick 85, but in this instance, the team will heed the advice of NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah in his pre-Combine conference call and add a Day 2 joker option at running back in Blue.

“Jaydon Blue in the pass game out of Texas. Like, he’s a legit 4.3 (40 yard dash) guy. And they used him in a bunch of different ways in the pass game. Angle routes, he can snap guys off, he can run up the seam," Jeremiah said. "Even just get him the ball in the flat with his speed, he’s a weapon. I don’t think you have to take him in the second, I think you could get him in the third round but that was one when I was thinking about how they would use the guy. That was one that definitely popped in my head at that position.”

Listed at 6-foot and 200 pounds, Blue is an electrifying playmaker with the ball in his hands who emerged as one of the best pass-catching running backs in all of college football last season. He was routinely used in various routes or as a checkdown option and pulled away from SEC defenders for explosive plays in the passing game.

Blue would rather make a defender miss in space than maintain balance through weak arm tackle attempts. Furthermore, his lack of strength is displayed both in pass protection as well as a ball carrier as Blue fumbled the ball far too often — something he must answer for with any team looking at him in the pre-draft process.

Blue does not have a lot of experience because of the bevy of talented backs he played behind at Texas during his tenure in Austin, but for a running back, that might actually be considered a good thing since his body should be fresh.

Blue also dealt with an ankle injury throughout much of his junior season, but watching his tape versus Clemson and Ohio State in the playoffs, it appears he was healthy and arguably one of the most electric players on the field in each playoff matchup Texas faced this season.

Blue is a dynamic athlete who appears to have joker traits as a receiver and can bring explosive run ability to the Broncos’ rushing offense. His six receiving touchdowns were tied for the most with all running backs in college football last season. If his medicals come back clean and he tests well, perhaps he could be an option for Denver as early as pick 85, as Jeremiah suggested earlier this week.

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