NFL Combine and Recent Drafts Show One Thing (Other Than QB) the Broncos Could Really Use by Nicki Jhabvala Denver Post March 2, 2018
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NFL combine and recent drafts show one thing (other than QB) the Broncos could really use By Nicki Jhabvala Denver Post March 2, 2018 For years, the debate of the true value of running backs and the justification for selecting one high in the draft has raged as teams weigh need vs. want, and risk and vs. reward. Only once in the last 30 years have the Broncos used their first-round selection on a running back — Knowshon Moreno in 2009 — and since John Elway joined the front office seven years ago, they’ve never drafted one higher than the 58th overall pick — Montee Ball in 2013. “That whole dynamic of that position, in many people’s minds, losing value, but I think much like a quarterback, when there’s a great one, it’s tough to deal with,” Broncos Ring of Famer and 49ers general manager John Lynch said at the NFL scouting combine Thursday. “I know that from playing defense. So I think is that changing? I don’t know. I think everyone has their own perspective. But that is a position where you can affect a game in a great way.” This year, as the Broncos’ search for another starting quarterback and a more efficient offense, and as other NFL teams find success with young and versatile backs, the prospect of nabbing a playmaker in the early rounds is alluring. One like Leonard Fournette, the No. 4 overall pick last year, turned into for the Jaguars. One like Alvin Kamara, the 2017 offensive rookie of the year who had nearly 730 yards rushing and almost 830 yards receiving, was in New Orleans. One like Kareem Hunt, the league’s rushing yards leader, was in Kansas City. One like Christian McCaffrey, the No. 8 overall pick in 2017, was in Carolina. One like Todd Gurley, the 10th pick in 2015, became with the Rams. And one like Saquon Barkley, a projected top-five pick with the speed, power and versatility to alter an offense as a rookie, could be in 2018. “I talk about the last three or four running backs that went in the top 10, which were Fournette, Ezekiel Elliott went at 4, Gurley went at 10, McCaffrey went at 8. They’re the last four top-10 backs. They’ve all helped their teams become better,” NFL.com’s draft analyst Mike Mayock said. “I could make the case that this kid Barkley is the best of those guys, best of all five of them. He’s clean off the field. And he’ll be great in your locker room. I would be absolutely stunned if this kid doesn’t go in the top five.” The Broncos own the No. 5 pick and nine others in the upcoming draft, and their haul in April will be dictated heavily by their signings in free agency this month. If they get their starting quarterback for the near and long-term future on the open market, their options the first round grow significantly as they try to fill in the remaining roster holes and improve the offense. Barkley may not still be on the board when the Broncos are up, but running back is on the team’s list of needs heading into the offseason spending period, especially as they mull parting with starter C.J. Anderson. Anderson was the franchise’s first 1,000-yard back since Moreno in 2013, but he has no guaranteed money left on his contract and would save the team $4.5 million in cap space if he’s released. The versatile “swiss army knife” is a player most NFL teams covet, and Denver could use help in multiple areas: The run game, passing game and special teams. “That’s where the game is going. If you want to be elite, if you break down the top-five backs, all those guys can catch the ball out of the backfield,” Barkley said. “All of those guys are special with the ball in their hands. That’s something I strive to be. I want to be one of the best. … I want to show that I can run routes. I ran routes in college a little bit. But I want to show I can run a zero-to-nine route tree.” The Broncos have changed head coaches and coordinators, offensive systems and starting quarterbacks multiple times over in recent years, skewing any true measure of some of their skill players. But the reliable “go-to” man for their quarterback has been elusive. Maybe they’ll find that guy in April. Broncos meeting with agents of current players; future of three potential QB targets uncertain By Nicki Jhabvala Denver Post March 2, 2018 Broncos general manager John Elway was expected to meet with the agents of running back C.J. Anderson and inside linebacker Todd Davis at the combine Thursday. Saturday, he is expected to meet with the agent of Corey Nelson. Anderson has two years remaining on his contract, but his contract has no guaranteed money remaining and the Broncos could release him, if they choose to, without cost. In fact, they would save $4.5 million in salary cap space if they were to part with him. Asked on Wednesday about Anderson and cornerback Aqib Talib, another veteran whose return is uncertain primarily because of the cap savings, Elway said: “We’ll see. We’ll look at that. Like I said, we’re looking at every option that we can and where our football team is. I’m not saying they’ll be back for sure, but I’m not going to say they are gone.” Davis and Nelson will both be free agents in March. Davis has said he hopes to return to Denver, and Elway said Wednesday the team would like to have him back. But he will test the open market first. Local talent. Former Arizona State running back Kalen Ballage knows the Broncos better than most prospects in the upcoming draft. The Falcon, Colorado, native played for Vance Joseph’s at the Senior Bowl in January and earned high praise from Denver’s coach. He also learned first-hand that the Broncos are in the market for running back help, and he hopes his name is on their list. “It would be amazing. Really, though, I’m just excited about the opportunity to play in the league,” Ballage said. “That’s where I’m at right now. It doesn’t matter if it’s Buffalo or Cleveland or the Broncos or Tampa Bay. Wherever it is, I’m going to take the opportunity and run with it.” Bench press stars. Will Hernandez, a guard out of University of Texas-El Paso, put up 37 reps in the 225- pound bench press Thursday. Hernandez played for current Broncos interior offensive line coach Sean Kugler at UTEP and was briefly reunited with the coach on the North team at the Senior Bowl this year. Former Penn State running back Saquon Barkley and Georgia back Nick Chubb both recorded 29 reps, which ranks as the 13th-best among all running backs since at least 2006. Viking uncertainty. The Broncos’ quarterback options are still in flux weeks before the start of free agency. Three of them were Vikings last year — Case Keenum, Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater — and their futures remain uncertain as Minnesota mulls its options. “After we get done here, we get done looking at some of these draftable guys, we’ll sit down and figure out the direction we’re going. But I feel very confident in really all three guys,” Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. “I love all three of them. They’re great people. I love how they work. They understand how we do things there as a team and the way we go about our business. It’s important for myself and Rick and the organization that we pick the right guy that is going to help us to continue to move forward. If we don’t do that, then I’ll probably get fired.” Offensive guard Quenton Nelson wants to destroy the will of his opponents. Will his rare breed of nastiness entice the Broncos? By Nick Kosmider Denver Post March 2, 2018 Quenton Nelson learned early in life that when you are the youngest of 39 nephews and nieces, you can’t be afraid to throw your weight around. “It definitely shaped me, just getting picked on by being, I guess, the little guy in the family,” he said. “That shaped me into the person and player I am today.” Luckily for Nelson, the so-called “little guy” who weighed nearly 11 pounds at birth and checked in at 6- foot-5, 325 pounds when he arrived at the NFL scouting combine this week, he’s always had the requisite physical tools to shove his way into the mix. Now, the former Notre Dame offensive guard is pancaking his way into the conversation about the 2018 draft’s best overall prospect. It is rare a guard finds himself among the top five picks. In fact, it hasn’t happened in a generation, since Leonard Davis was drafted second overall by the Cardinals out of Texas in 2001. Then again, Nelson is a rare breed. When asked Thursday about the mindset that allows him to drive opponents into the ground at all three levels, the native of central New Jersey delivered an answer so chilling it should send shivers down the spines of interior defensive linemen soon to be in his path. “As a blocker, my mindset is to dominate,” Nelson said.