DENVER — The Denver Broncos have another chance to improve their roster in the NFL Draft starting Thursday. This comes after a 2024 campaign that exceeded expectations in quarterback Bo Nix’s rookie season, and a free agency period that saw Denver make a flurry of significant additions.
“The roster is in really good shape right now,” ESPN NFL and fantasy football analyst Field Yates said in an exclusive interview with Denver7. “Both Sean [Payton] and George [Paton] have done a really nice job of resurrecting this roster.”
So, what needs exists for a Broncos squad with championship contenders’ aspirations? Denver7 Sports spoke with Yates and his fellow ESPN analyst Louis Riddick to analyze the roster and forecast what names we might hear called by the Broncos in the draft.
The glaring team need right now is at running back, where the Broncos lacked explosiveness last year and lost Javonte Williams to free agency.
Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty is widely regarded as the top prospect at the position in this year’s draft, and has risen up mock draft boards in recent weeks and months. He’s unlikely to slide to No. 20, should the Broncos stand pat. Yates and Riddick agree on the next-best option for Denver: North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton.
“Hampton's the closest thing to Ashton Jeanty,” Yates said.
Riddick said Hampton fits the dynamic playmaker mold the Broncos need in the draft.
“They need the combination at running back that is power and speed, grinder and explosive playmaker,” he said. “I know we’ve seen Omarion Hampton mocked to them in numerous drafts. Omarion has that.”
By Yates’s estimate, Hampton is one of four backs that make up the top tier behind Jeanty. Among the others are the Ohio State pair of TreVeyon Henderson – who had an official visit with the Broncos – and Quinshon Judkins. Yates described the two as a “thunder and lightning” for the Buckeyes, with Judkins being the thunder as a power back and Henderson the lightning as a speedier player.
Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson “shouldn’t be lost in the shuffle” either, according to Yates, who says Johnson is adept as a receiver on top of rushing ability that made him the Big Ten’s leading rusher in 2024.
“All five of those players, at various points of their career, if not the entirety of their college career, showed the capacity to handle a large sample size of carries,” Yates said. “Beyond that, there are definitely starting caliber running backs, but some of the players that we're talking about in round 3, 4, 5 and 6 are guys that you want to have as part of a committee. And I don't know that the Broncos have that giant running back to lead the way.”
Riddick added Central Florida RJ Harvey as a possible sleeper pick at running back in a later round.
- Watch our entire conversation with Field Yates in the video player below:
Another hole in the Broncos’ offense last season was at tight end. Lucas Krull led the position group with 19 catches and 23 targets in 2024, and Adam Trautman’s 188 yards on the season were most among Broncos tight ends.
The signing of Evan Engram – a 2-time Pro Bowler who has been among the league’s most productive players at the tight end position since he entered the league in 2017 – this offseason addresses that need in the short term, Yates said. But he said Broncos fans shouldn’t be surprised if the team adds some depth at the position in the draft.
Potential second-round options for Denver at tight end include Miami’s Elijah Arroyo or LSU’s Mason Taylor, Yates said. Terrance Ferguson, a Littleton native with the iconic Colorado "C" tattooed on his left knee and who has rapport with Nix from their days at Oregon, is likely to be picked in Round 3 and could be worth a look by the Broncos.
“He looked like Nicola Jokic in terms of length [at his Pro Day last year],” Yates said of the 6-foot-5, 255-pound pass catcher. “He had just this tremendous, tremendous grab that has been sticking in the back of my mind since then. He’s a good athlete [who] didn't have to do a ton last year because Oregon had so many other weapons. So the production isn't going to blow you away, but I think somewhere in Round 3, he hears his name called.”
Potential day-three tight end targets could include Mitchell Evans from Notre Dame, Luke Lachey from Iowa or Jake Briningstool from Clemson. Yates says anyone from that group could be suited as a No. 2 tight end behind Engram.
Riddick