Lets turn our bitter minds to the NFL Draft

[Ronnie Tsunami]

While bitterness is rightfully fresh in the air, what areas should we address in this year's draft?

Time will tell whether or not we extend certain players contracts or release them, and who we sign in free agency, this is just a test to see what the initial sentiment is.

Try to take into account at a player's entire body of work this season before making statements.

e.g.
Unfair: Letz draft a safetyz in round 1 because Rahim Moar sucks teh cock.
Fair, debatable but not necessarily how I feel: Rahim Moore ****ed up and proved he can't play the clutch, let's consider a safety in the first 2 rounds.

[Doggcow]

We will draft some ****ing a-hole that will just butt**** us in the playoffs and we will ****ing lose by a ****ing fg

[RhymesayersDU]

Originally Posted by Doggcow

We will draft some ****ing a-hole that will just butt**** us in the playoffs and we will ****ing lose by a ****ing fg

***********************

[Hercules Rockefeller]

Still need a lot more talent up the middle on defense

[Ratboy]

Best Player Available.

That being said...

1. MLB
2. Defensive Tackle
3. Cornerback/Safety.


1. It's clear we need that Middle Linebacker leading this defense. Te'o, Minter?

2. We need to upgrade the DT position, I don't see how we get away with not doing it. Maybe we can fill the need in Free Agency?

3. Rahim Moore ****ed up, BIG TIME but he'll be our starter next year and is far from the issue. Can Carter come back and fill that other Safety spot? Champ Bailey?

4. Cornerback. Champ is getting old, he had his worst game I have ever witnessed and it's clear he's lost a step. We need to find his replacement. Chris Harris is good and I think he'll be able to handle the other spot.

[gunns]

I picked several defensive positions. Of course it depends on what's available, if it's 1st round qualified.

[go_broncos]

I need a winner that plays well in playoffs..

[R8R H8R]

Before this game, I said in another thread that we should go BPA, but find a MLB, Safety, and slot wr somewhere. After this game, I still want BPA, but find a MLB, CB, and slot wr, and move Champ to safety. It just might be time. Also, we still need to get a push in the middle.

[Drunken.Broncoholic]

Originally Posted by R8R H8R

Before this game I said in another thread that we should go BPA, but find a MLB, Safety, and slot wr somewhere. After this game, I still want BPA, but find a MLB, CB, and slot wr, and move Champ to safety. It just might be time. Also, we still need to get a push in the middle.

McCourty seemed to transition just fine to safety. I would like champ to move in the near future.

[razorwire77]

I don't think there are nearly as many holes on this team as some of the chicken littles are proclaiming. Depth issues? Sure. Some areas that need to be addressed? Absolutely. A good draft and we can really do some damage to address some of these concerns. The good news is we don't need a franchise QB, 3-4 DT, LT etc. Denver can get really good value at the bottom of the first round this year.

QB- Obviously we don't take a QB within the first 3 or 4 rounds, but my gut tells me Elway will draft a QB every year until Manning retires. Wouldn't mind a late round flier on Renfree from Duke, or if a guy like Logan Thomas or Tyler Bray if they fall.

RB-Major concern here. Yes, KM was a great story and I think there is a roster spot for him as a 3rd down back and passing situation RB. Hillman has some potential as a scat/change of pace back (I thought he was one of the few guys that didn't sh*t the bed yesterday.) Willis is old, coming off a major injury and doesn't have a lot of tread left. Ball and Hester are camp fodder at best. No NFL team respects Denver's ability to consistently pound the ball, when they drop in Cover 2. We need a Frank Gore type back. I think you take a RB as high as the bottom of the 2nd round. Personally I'd love to get Lattimore at the bottom of 3rd round, but if he's even close to being right he's gone in the 2nd. Other backs that would be upgrades in the 2nd round would be the Taylor kid from Stanford, Lacy and the RB from North Carolina whose name escapes me.

WR- We need a slot WR and we have dick for depth if Stokely retires. Caldwell is trash, Willis is trash etc. We need dynamic play makers on offense. IMHO there are two possible approaches. 1. Draft a WR in the first round (Williams, Hopkins, Hunter, Austin) and bump Decker to the slot, or 2. try to draft a slot receiver late. One intriguing possibility would be Denard Robinson with a 4th rounder.

TE- I don't think there is a dynamic play-making TE in this draft. Eifert is solid, but I don't think he's 1st round solid. The big kid from Stanford again will be a solid pro, but he doesn't scream superstar to me. I like the Escobar kid from SDSU as a sleeper. Again, he's another one of those under the radar non-BCS types. He's big (6'6 250) and pretty fast and with decent hands and he'll be there in the 4th or 5th round.

LT-Lock Clady down to a long term deal.
RT-Franklin is occasionally a little bit shaky in pass protection, but we're fine here.
C- Koppin is pretty much done and Walton is recovering from an injury and let's face it, not exactly a superstar when healthy. Barret Jones makes a lot of sense at the bottom of the 1st round. He could also swing over and play either guard position.

LG/RG- I really like Kupe, but he's coming off back to back brutal injuries. Beadles improved a lot this year, but I'd feel better if we upgraded and kept him as a utility backup lineman. Some teams will get stupid and start reaching for quarterbacks and or project 3-4 nose tackles in the first round. If that happens Cooper or Warmack could slip to us in the low 20's. If that happens it could be a real boon and go a long ways in improving the interior line depth of this team.

This sh*t is tiring and a bit depressing to think about. I'll give my 1 penny defense analysis tomorrow.

[R8R H8R]

Originally Posted by Drunken.Broncoholic

McCourty seemed to transition just fine to safety. I would like champ to move in the near future.

So did Tyrone Braxton. In fact, I seem to remember that he was about done as a cb, Jimmy Johnson cut him(I think), and Shanny pulled him off the streets and made him a safety. He was more than adequate at the time, and even had a good day on SB 32 while picking off Favre.

[SlyEli]

I don't think cb is as big as a liability as people think. Hell, before the last game i think many would have argued that the broncos have the best group of corners in the NFL. Champ had a bad game, sure, and that will happen occasionally, corner is just that tough of a position. Harris and Champ are solid corners...it's disappointing that Porter had issues this year because he could have been the final piece...doubt he gets resigned. Carter is gutsy and made a couple plays but I'm not sold on him.

Middle linebacker is a big hole. Old man Brooking did okay and Joe Mays is pretty bad. Unfortunately there doesn't look to be a lot going on in free agency at the position. Not sure about the draft, but I'm not sold on te'o, especially after the bama game.

Vickerson and Bannan seemed to do a good job this year, and if I recall PFF had them pretty highly graded. Ty Warren would have been nice. I doubt they go this way in the draft.

Safety is something of a problem. The broncos haven't had a playmaker at the position in quite some time. Rahim improved on his horrendous rookie season to become a pretty good tackler, but he's still undersized and built like a center fielder, but doesn't seem to be able to play centerfield well. How many picks has he had? Adams is average and really adds nothing, and Quinton Carter is slow and coming off injury. I wouldn't be surprised to see them go for a safety in the draft.

As far as offense, I think they badly need a great running back. Moreno is a great second string back in the rotation, but he is not a great starter. He is a good starter and has good playmaking ability in the passing game, but his running still leaves something to be desired. McGahee is another solid second string type and probably has one year left. Hillman still has a ways to go before establishing himself as a number one back, but he improved as the season went on and is still young...The broncos are left with a stable of good, but not great backs. I think They'll take a gamble on someone in the middle rounds, but finding a great back isn't easy

Receiver seems pretty set, I think the offense could use a quick, little, speed guy at the slot though. Stokley had a good year but who knows if he'll be back. I think the broncos could benefit from picking up a guy like welker or amendola (not sure what guys are in the draft yet) who could make big plays and get wide open in this offense.

[Rohirrim]

This draft sucks for ILBs. The Broncos might have to go to FA for an upgrade there.

[Agamemnon]

I gotta go with running back. If we keep doing the Fox/McCoy conservative bull**** we need a real playmaker in the backfield. I just don't see how they can insist on playing the way they want to play without massively improving the position. This goes for many of our OL as well. Overall we have terrible personnel for the power running game they want to use.

[eddie mac]

Originally Posted by Rohirrim

This draft sucks for ILBs. The Broncos might have to go to FA for an upgrade there.

They'll struggle there too, last year was the time to get a MLB not called Joe Mays.

All that's out there are.

Urlacher - basically done
Ellerbe - would he even fit a 4-3
Maulauga - had an awful year in Cincy
Vilma - see Urlacher
Brinkley - ****ing awful
Brad Jones - used to the 3-4, probably a WLB in 4-3
Bradie James - another 3-4 player all his life
Chase Blackburn - the Giants are looking for an upgrade too
Larry Foote - another 3-4 guy who's done
Larry Grant - unproven 3-4 ILB

[Agamemnon]

Originally Posted by eddie mac

They'll struggle there too, last year was the time to get a MLB not called Joe Mays.

All that's out there are.

Urlacher - basically done
Ellerbe - would he even fit a 4-3
Maulauga - had an awful year in Cincy
Vilma - see Urlacher
Brinkley - ****ing awful
Brad Jones - used to the 3-4, probably a WLB in 4-3
Bradie James - another 3-4 player all his life
Chase Blackburn - the Giants are looking for an upgrade too
Larry Foote - another 3-4 guy who's done
Larry Grant - unproven 3-4 ILB

Ellerbe seems like a a good fit in a 4-3 (he played all three spots in a 4-3 in college). He's got the right build and he's pretty fast. Everyone else on that list would probably be little more than depth or a short-term band-aid like Brooking.

[ZONA]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

I gotta go with running back. If we keep doing the Fox/McCoy conservative bull**** we need a real playmaker in the backfield. I just don't see how they can insist on playing the way they want to play without massively improving the position. This goes for many of our OL as well. Overall we have terrible personnel for the power running game they want to use.

Here's the thing about getting a RB. Not saying we don't need one because WM is getting up there and KM has problems staying healthy. But look at the games today for example. The Pats have a no name in Vereen who just lit it up. Then you have a back who many think is one of the top 3 or 5 in Foster who pretty much got shut down. We also pretty much shut down Rice for the most part. I think AP separates himself from everybody else. Even with decent to bad blocking this guy can get 100 yards and then some. But he's the exception to the rule. I think play calling and blocking have alot more to do with RB's having big time production then most realize. How does NE run the ball so well with no names. Play calling and blocking. I thought our OL did a good job most of the season with pass blocking and fairly well in run blocking but run blocking was not a strength. We HAVE to get better with the run play schemes and plays themselves as we do with run blocking better.

[ZONA]

Why are people voting multiple times with different answers each time? I think it was a pretty clear question. Which position would you take in round 1. Am I missing something here? Some votes 3 times. Pretty sure we don't have 3 first round picks. lol.

[Ratboy]

Originally Posted by ZONA

Why are people voting multiple times with different answers each time? I think it was a pretty clear question. Which position would you take in round 1. Am I missing something here? Some votes 3 times. Pretty sure we don't have 3 first round picks. lol.

You are missing something.

[anon]

Shane Vereen was a college star at Cal (was behind Jahvid Best) and a second round pick by the Patriots. Not exactly a total no-name, but a talented back-up on a good team. It's also easier to be a RB when your QB is named Brady.

RBs matter: when we had Davis and Portis, our running game was much more consistent and deadly.

Originally Posted by ZONA

Here's the thing about getting a RB. Not saying we don't need one because WM is getting up there and KM has problems staying healthy. But look at the games today for example. The Pats have a no name in Vereen who just lit it up. Then you have a back who many think is one of the top 3 or 5 in Foster who pretty much got shut down. We also pretty much shut down Rice for the most part. I think AP separates himself from everybody else. Even with decent to bad blocking this guy can get 100 yards and then some. But he's the exception to the rule. I think play calling and blocking have alot more to do with RB's having big time production then most realize. How does NE run the ball so well with no names. Play calling and blocking. I thought our OL did a good job most of the season with pass blocking and fairly well in run blocking but run blocking was not a strength. We HAVE to get better with the run play schemes and plays themselves as we do with run blocking better.

[TheReverend]

I'm hopeful we can draft another mediocre tweener player at a relative position of strength

[Ray Finkle]

I think they need to focus on the center of both lines, MLB, and upgrade/better depth at WR, RB, DS.

[2KBack]

Originally Posted by anon

Shane Vereen was a college star at Cal (was behind Jahvid Best) and a second round pick by the Patriots. Not exactly a total no-name, but a talented back-up on a good team. It's also easier to be a RB when your QB is named Brady.

RBs matter: when we had Davis and Portis, our running game was much more consistent and deadly.

Please don't tell me you just compared the Shanahan run system to this one. How on earth can people still try to pass that off as comparison analysis? That system takes scrubs and makes them good, and takes goods and makes them great. Using the Denver run game from 1995-2008 isn't an argument for better running backs, it's an argument for better blocking. It's an argument for better play calling regarding the run, it's an argument for a better system. I don't think Peyton would survive behind that system though.

[2KBack]

btw Shane Vreen is the 3rd back....had a total of 400 yards from scrimmage. He plays behind 3rd round pick Ridley and Undrafted Woodhead

[g6matty]