Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II Lands on ESPN's Top-10 Rookies of 2021 List

The Broncos' 2021 rookie class continues to bring home the plaudits.

The 2021 season is in the books for the Denver Broncos, but GM George Paton’s first draft class continues to be lauded across the NFL. This time, ESPN Denver insider — and former president of the Pro Football Writers of America — Jeff Legwold has given Paton and the Broncos' 2021 rookie class their flowers for the past season.

In ESPN's top-10 rookies of the year, Broncos' cornerback Patrick Surtain II checked in as the seventh-best in the NFL: 

Surtain missed the Broncos' season finale with a calf injury, but up until that point, he consistently played with the composure of a "guy who's been in there for years,'' Broncos safety Justin Simmons said. Denver coach Vic Fangio was willing to put Surtain across from the best of the best every week without worry. The top-10 pick wasn't often challenged by quarterbacks, who usually chose not to pick on the rookie, but he tended to get his hands on the ball when they did.

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The Surtain pick was highly contested at the time Denver made it. With many in Broncos Country clamoring for a quarterback like Justin Fields or Mac Jones, or even linebacker Micah Parsons, or tackle Rashawn Slater, Paton further empowered the secondary by taking the 21-year-old cornerback out of Alabama. 

Surtain quickly became the best corner on the team and settled in opposite Ronald Darby as a starter. With a new defensive coordinator coming to Denver in 2022 under newly-hired head coach Nathaniel Hackett, how Surtain will be used schematically going forward will be an interesting storyline to watch next season.

Completion Percentage Over Expected (CPOE) when targeted for corners, along with target rate (targets / coverage snaps) through Week 16 of this season. min. 300 coverage snaps.

CPOE model: nflfastR
Def Targets: Sportradar
Cov Snaps: PFF pic.twitter.com/SBABFtiu2f

— Anthony Reinhard (@reinhardNFL) December 29, 2021

While Surtain was the only Broncos rookie to earn a top-10 ranking, Legwold made sure to include running back Javonte Williams in his 'just missed' category for how well he performed on Denver’s offense.

He had more than 17 carries in just one game this season and still finished with 903 rushing yards to go with his 43 receptions. Williams was second among league rookies in rushing.

Williams will have to show he can translate to the wide-zone rushing scheme that Hackett plans to install going forward as opposed to the heavy, gap-centric scheme Denver ran under Pat Shurmur last season. Still, Williams’ tackle-breaking and pass protection will translate to any scheme in the league. 

The vision, patience, and burst required to hit cutback lanes in the wide-zone will be worth watching next season for Williams.

Last but not least, listed in the category of 'keep your eye on' at the bottom is Broncos linebacker Baron Browning. After suffering an injury in rookie minicamp last season, it took Browning a while to get healthy and get integrated into the offense. 

In an ideal world, perhaps Browning rarely sees the field in 2021 as he learns the game and the demands of playing linebacker under Fangio. Unfortunately, injuries to the Broncos' starters forced Browning into action. 

Browning was a tad hit-or-miss his rookie season, but the combination of athleticism and size was apparent. He likely heads into 2022 with his name penciled in as a starter at linebacker. However, what scheme Denver will run and just where Browning will fit is still to be determined. 

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