Broncos' 10 Biggest Draft Busts From 2011-20

The Denver Broncos' biggest draft busts of the John Elway front-office era.

After the draft every year, most fan bases believe their team killed it, and that goes for every team in the NFL. However, after two or three years, you get real insight into how each team did. 

The Denver Broncos have had multiple years where it was believed that they 'killed it' after the draft, but the lens of time reveals all. 

Like every team, the Broncos have had their hits and misses. The first three rounds of the draft are considered premium picks. Teams expect these picks to have a high impact on the roster. 

Over this span, there were 25 Broncos players identified as options to make this list, with some of them easier to identify, but once down to the final 15, things got more complicated. 

So, let's jump into the Broncos' 10 biggest busts from 2011-2020. 

10. Montee Ball | RB | Round 2 | 2013

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Ball had a part in the failed Super Bowl XLVIII run as a rookie, but then injuries hit, and the mileage he had on his tires in college caught up to him, along with, we later learned, alcohol abuse. 

Ball was released before his third season, which was it for his NFL career. 

9. Shane Ray | OLB | Round 1 | 2015

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Ray had a good year in 2016, picking up six sacks and even scored a touchdown. However, he was drafted to replace DeMarcus Ware when he retired, and that didn't happen, though he did contribute to Super Bowl 50's championship as a reserve rusher. 

Injuries didn't help, as Ray started only seven games outside the 2016 season and picked up six total sacks. He has been out of the NFL since and hopes to make a comeback with in Buffalo this year. 

8. McTelvin Agim | DL | Round 3 | 2020

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What was said about Ojemudia could mostly be said here. Agim had issues against the run but had some flashes as a pass rusher on the interior. He never developed beyond that in Denver, leading to him getting let go during his third year in Denver. 

7. Michael Ojemudia | CB | Round 3 | 2020

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There was some promise with Ojemudia during his rookie season, but he had plenty of drawbacks as well. Injuries derailed things, and despite constant hype around him, he was released during his third year. 

6. Isaac Yiadom | CB | Round 3 | 2018

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Yiadom could be higher on the list, and there wouldn't be much argument against it. He isn't ranked higher because the hype wasn't there with the top three, and he wasn't quite as big of a failure as the 2017 third-round duo.

Yiadom lasted two years in Denver before being traded away, and he picked off one pass during that time. There was a special skill, with Yiadom of having solid coverage often, but still allowing a pass to be completed. His timing was never there, leading to even more issues, and that was when he wasn't getting beaten badly. 

5. Brendan Langley | CB | Round 3 | 2017

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Langley was a developmental corner, but he never developed. In 2019, he was moved to wide receiver and then waived not long after.

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4. Carlos Henderson | WR | Round 3 | 2017

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The issues with Henderson started almost immediately. As a third-round pick in 2017, he missed his rookie season with a thumb injury, then didn't show up in 2018 before being suspended and then released. 

Henderson garnered a shot in with Washington, but that didn't last long. 

3. Cody Latimer | WR | Round 2 | 2014

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When he was drafted, there was a ton of hype around Latimer, but it never materialized. He only caught 35 passes during his four years in Denver. 

Afterward, he landed with the New York Giants and seemed ready to break out, but legal issues derailed that.

The thing most remembered about Latimer in Denver was how he never got on Peyton Manning's good side, leading to the issues on the field. 

2. Ty Sambrailo | OT | Round 2 | 2015

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The start of Sambrailo was promising, but an early injury derailed things. He spent two seasons with the Broncos and was traded before Year 3. 

Sambrailo started seven games as a Bronco, but was never the same after the injury. 

1. Paxton Lynch | QB | Round 1 | 2016

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There is no doubt this is the Broncos' biggest bust of the era. He was drafted to be the guy, but not only that, Denver traded up to get him. 

It was a questionable quarterback class, and the Broncos fell in love with Lynch, outbidding the Dallas Cowboys to draft him. Meanwhile, the Cowboys went on to land Dak Prescott in Round 4.

Lynch is the man of fours. He made four starts, where he threw four touchdowns to four interceptions. The game was too fast for him, and he never seemed to take football seriously enough. 

Other Draft Busts

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There were other options that didn't make the top-10. Noah Fant was considered because he was traded before his rookie contract ended, but he was a solid receiver. 

Both quarterbacks on the list — Drew Lock and Brock Osweiler — outperformed their draft pedigree for their position. So while they weren't great, they did alright with how rare it is for a Round 2 quarterback to hit, and with Osweiler, he played a part in the Broncos going on to win Super Bowl 50.

Lloyd Cushenberry III and Dalton Risner were considered, but Risner started each year of his rookie deal, and Cushenberry seems poised to. While they weren't great, they were able to remain starters.

For Denver, players like Sylvester Williams, Michael Schofield, and Demarcus Walker were alright. They also went elsewhere and held their own, with Walker turning his career around and doing quite well the last couple of years.

Rahim Moore was a solid safety for multiple years, but no Broncos fan will forget that one play in the Divisional Round of the playoffs vs. Baltimore. He played one season in Houston post-Denver, but that one play was the start of his downfall.

Jeff Heuerman, Ronnie Hillman, Nate Irving, Royce Freeman, and KJ Hamler were the final five. Hamler has a chance to turn this around, which kept him off the list for now. 

Heuerman was a decent enough blocker during his time in Denver, and Irving contributed to a failed Super Bowl run, despite the team's issues finding out the best place to play him.

As for the two running backs, Hillman was a significant contributor in the Super Bowl 50 run, leading the team in rushing that year under Gary Kubiak, which kept him out of the top 10. That summed up his Broncos tenure, and he recently passed away. RIP. 

Royce Freeman is the 11th player who didn't do much in Denver and has done even less since leaving. 

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