The Denver Broncos aren’t wasting any time in this year’s NFL Draft, hoping to remake their offense with a bevy of new faces.
For years, the Denver defense has been far ahead of its offense. General Manager John Elway is hoping to change that.
In the 2019 NFL Draft, Elway has used his first three selections to nab tight end Noah Fant, guard/tackle Dalton Risner and quarterback Drew Lock. In short order, Elway has remade about 30 percent of the offensive positions, with Fant and Risner likely to immediately start while Lock will eventually replace Joe Flacco.
The obvious tie between the trio — beyond playing on one side of the ball — is youth and athleticism. Last season, it was receivers Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas as the starters on the outside. Elway ended up trading Thomas at the deadline, while Sanders is coming off a torn Achilles that he sustained in December. Both are on the wrong side of 30.
At tight end, both Jeff Heuerman and Jake Butt haven’t produced, and the quarterback spot has been a carousel since Peyton Manning’s retirement with Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch and Case Keenum all getting the job.
The Broncos are still in the midst of a rebuild, and there’s no guarantee this class will pan out. The hope in the Mile High City is that Denver just put the core of its offense for the next decade together, allowing them to join second-year talents in receiver Courtland Sutton and running back Phillip Lindsay.
If nothing else, Elway is doing a nice job of restocking his offensive depth chart. It’s a terrific start for a franchise that has desperately needed a reboot.