ENGLEWOOD — A moment of misfortune proved lucky for the Broncos. Boise State safety JL Skinner — JL is his given name — tore his pectoral muscle warming up on the bench press two days before the NFL Combine in February.
Unable to go through testing, Skinner, a projected third-to-fourth rounder, stared back at the Broncos on their board with the 183rd overall pick in the sixth round, leaving an easy decision.
“Truly, I hope 3 years from now, when all of us have a better idea how this draft went, the results will be good," Payton said. "We heard a million times today, ‘We got our guy.’ Half of them are lying."
The Broncos executed a trade moments later, sending the 195th pick in the sixth round for Saints tight end Adam Trautman and a seventh-round pick (257th). Trautman played three seasons in New Orleans, including two for Payton, posting career-highs in catches (27), yards (263) and touchdowns (two) in 2021.
Denver did not hesitate earlier in the sixth round with Skinner, taking the safety, a position where the Broncos lack depth and face questions. Caden Sterns is coming off a season-ending hip injury and the Broncos have only offered Kareem Jackson a minimal contract to return.
GM George Paton explained that the Broncos are talking with Jackson's representatives and they remain "open" to bringing him back, even after drafting Skinner.
Skinner is ready to contribute.
"I had a good meeting with them. I had a Zoom, and that was really the main thing. And there was some contact at the combine," Skinner said on a conference call. "I'm excited to be coming to this organization. I'm very excited to get out to Denver. I'm really blessed to be in this position."
Skinner is a bigger safety. He stands a whisker below 6-foot-4 and weighs 209 pounds. His film shows a rugged player who embraced tackling in the box. He knows he has to become multi-dimensional at the next level.
"I want to be able to consistently cover those little smaller slot guys. My strengths I see are being very versatile, very physical, and I'm somebody that knows the game very well and I use that to my advantage," Skinner said. "I'd say if there is mainly anything to work on, it's covering those smaller slots."
Skinner earned first-team all conference honors last season, defending eight passes and posting a team-best four interceptions.
Trautman, a third-round pick out of Dayton in 2020, represents the sixth player with ties to Payton's Saints to join the Broncos. Denver added blocking tight end Chris Manhertz in free agency, and Payton said Greg Dulcic and Albert Okwuegbunam, both of whom have had issues with injuries and blocking, will have a chance to prove themselves like so many others.
"We knew we felt like we needed this versatile tight end that could block and catch," Payton said. "They are all competing now."
In the seventh round, Denver drafted center Alex Forsyth from Oregon. He showed position versatility in college, and could flex to those, but Paton said he would focus initially on center, competing against starter Lloyd Cushenberry.
The Broncos 2023 draft class, their smallest since 2007:
2023 DRAFT CLASS
2. Marvin Mims Jr., WR 5-10, 183 Oklahoma
3. Drew Sanders, ILB, 6-4, 235, Arkansas
3. Riley Moss, CB, 6-0, 193, Iowa
6. JL Skinner, S, 6-3, 209, Boise State
7. Alex Forsyth, C, 6-3, 303, Oregon
UNDRAFTED FREE AGENTS (will be updated throughout the weekend)
TE Nate Adkins, South Carolina
CB Art Green, Houston
EDGE Thomas Incoom, Central Michigan
S Devon Matthews, Indiana
OL Alex Palczewski, Illinois
RB Emmanuel Wilson, Fort Valley State
