Sean Keeler: What do you get the team that needs … everything? The more you think about it, the more it feels like the Broncos are sitting in a wild, and kinda brutal, spot at No. 12 in the first round of the NFL draft. You don’t have enough top-shelf talent to move up without eviscerating another position group — trading cornerback Pat Surtain II might land you a top-6 draft slot, but it might also guarantee a 4-13 record. You spent Day 1 + Day 2 draft capital on Russell Wilson and Sean Payton. Oh, you’ll get a starter at pick No. 12, maybe even a star. But here’s the catch: You need three or four more. And you need them to be young and cost-controlled because Big Russ got 11 of your 12 bathrooms in the divorce settlement. The scout in me says trade down outta No. 12 and try to get picks, picks, picks. Every room in Dove Valley needs help. So what if Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and Georgia tight end Brock Bowers are somehow both on the board, even with Zach Wilson now in the fold? The Denverite in me says if you pass on a QB here, it’s seven more years of the same bad luck. What say you?
Troy Renck: What do you get a team that does not have anything? I kid because I care. But there is a reason this roster ranks in the bottom of third. The lack of playmakers remains alarming. The Broncos’ first priority needs to be calling the Patriots and Cardinals and not letting them off the phone until one of them agrees to a deal. The Wilson acquisition gives them low-cost insurance. That’s all. The quarterback at three or four — Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye or J.J. McCarthy — has a better chance to succeed because of the raw talent and Broncos coach Sean Payton’s acumen. But I don’t know if they can pull it off. So, at 12, .I’d take Bowers. I think they would rather take Bo Nix or an edge rusher.
Keeler: Forgive me, Uga XI, but if those are my only two options, and it’s too risky to trade down, it’s Penix for me, too. Bowers is a Pro Bowler, but I’m getting tired of The Ghost Of Josh Allen rattling his chains in my ear. Bottom line: I can’t get to Saturday morning without another potential starter at QB1. Now if I can lock down Bo Nix before, or in, the early second round, great — trade down. I’ll happily move into slots 19-33 if I’m assured of a Penix or Nix. Especially if that lands me another pick later.
Renck: It’s easy to make an argument that the Broncos’ are not quarterback-ready, that they should trade back and snare a second-round pick. Between Nix and Penix, one of them will be available at the top of the second round. As such, why not trade back to 19 and then take a quarterback in the second? I see Nix’s ceiling as an NFL starter, little more. But he has all the hardware and software to run Payton’s offense, so I believe the Broncos would pursue him before the more talented Penix.
Keeler: Laugh all you like my friend, but when you’ve got a QB issue, the best answer is to throw numbers at it and hope one of those scratch tickets gets you a jackpot. If it’s me, I’m following John Lynch’s path with the Niners. I’m taking a signal-caller early and a signal-caller late, using one of those six Saturday picks on a flyer with upside. I’m looking for a Brock Purdy in case Penix or Nix (or McCarthy) aren’t the second coming of Josh Allen, but the next Trey Lance. Adding Wilson wouldn’t change my math, but it’ll change Payton’s, probably.
Renck: Throwing darts works at bars, fairs and drafts. It’s what they did with Wilson. After all the chatter about the top six guys, would Broncos Country still put its arms around Spencer Rattler or Michael Pratt? Doubtful with Wilson in the fold. I believe the Broncos are taking a quarterback. The question is when. And man that quarterback would be a lot better if he had a pass-catching tight end. Woof. Woof.
Want more Broncos news? Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis.
