MOBILE, Ala. — Does your team need an offensive tackle? An athletic left-side protector to mold or a mauler on the right side?
Well, this Senior Bowl — and this draft class — is for you.
Now the Broncos’ only question is to figure out if this is the time to break a tackle-less draft streak that dates to 2017.
Ending that streak in the first round might mean the end of the line — or at least close to it — in Denver for Garett Bolles, the last tackle the Broncos actually picked in the draft. He’s got one year left on his contract and no guaranteed money remaining. It’s not typically good business to cut good players, though the Broncos could save $16 million on their cap by doing so. They could potentially trade him, too, and add draft capital in addition to picking a tackle early, but of course other teams around the NFL know they can pick from a deep tackle class, too.
Regardless, though, this is shaping up to be a whale of a tackle class.
That’s perhaps one of the cleanest takeaways from Tuesday at South Alabama, where the quarterbacks were fine but the offensive linemen stole the show.
“It’s what I want,” Houston left tackle Patrick Paul told The Post. “I want to compete against the best, and the best is out here. I’m just ready to get after it.”
First-round potential
Take your pick on the offensive line. Paul could end up there. Arizona’s Jordan Morgan, who also manned the left side Tuesday, could as well. Tyler Guyton, a right tackle from Oklahoma, looked the part.
And there’s no doubt about Taliese Fuaga, the massive right tackle from Oregon State. He handled business throughout the National practice in the morning after checking in at nearly 6-foot-6 and 332 pounds. He was stout against all comers, including UCLA standout Laiatu Latu, perhaps the best defensive player on this year’s rosters.
All of that is before considering that perhaps the top two tackles in the Draft class — Notre Dame’s Joe Alt and Penn State’s Olu Fashanu — are not at the Senior Bowl.
Interesting potential Broncos fit
RBs Ray Davis (Kentucky) and MarShawn Lloyd (USC).
Both backs can pack a punch at 220 pounds and 218, respectively, and both showed smooth pass-catching ability Tuesday. This is a difficult environment to evaluate running backs because the tackling isn’t live, but both impressed.
Davis is shifty and is a big-play threat waiting to happen. Lloyd averaged 7.1 per carry this fall for the Trojans and nearly 18 yards per catch.
A pair to watch if Denver’s looking for backfield help in the middle rounds.
Familiar face
Former Colorado wide receiver Brenden Rice overpowered defenders in an early one-on-one segment, drawing three penalties on four reps and easily running past a defender deep on the other.
Rice, 6-2 and 212, said he thinks he stacks up well against the best of the best in Mobile and moving forward.
“A lot of scouts went ahead and said, ‘Well, we don’t know if he’s fast enough to play at the next level,’” Rice said. “I wanted to come out here and prove that different. I think I did that today. As for route-running, I feel like I did that as well. Some of the stuff I have to clean up are my releases. I feel like I need to get off the line a little quicker, but coming out here first day, trying to get the legs under us, and tomorrow will be different.”
Speed Demons
The fastest players from Tuesday’s morning practice:
• North Carolina wide receiver Devontez Walker at 21.18 miles per hour, per Zebra Technologies
• Rutgers cornerback Max Melton at 20.98 mph
• Rice wide receiver and Highlands Ranch native Luke McCaffrey was third-fastest on the National’s offense at 20.17 miles per hour
Nagy notes
One interesting note from Senior Bowl executive director Jim Nagy, who is universally respected around the NFL and is in constant communication with teams and colleges: He thinks the combination of extra eligibility remaining from 2020 and the rise of NIL money in college athletics is going to have a distinct impact on the depth of the 2024 draft.
“It wiped out Day 3 of the draft,” Nagy said. … “Rounds 5-7 on our board got wiped out in the month of December. We’ll see what it looks like in April, but yeah, NIL is certainly playing a role. NIL is a great thing for the players. An awesome thing.”
In other words, if you’re an NFL team, get your work done early.
“If I’ve got Day 3 picks, I’m trading and moving around,” Nagy said. “I’m moving up into those first four rounds. It’s not just our board; I talk to teams in the league and they got wiped out as well. I think you’ll see a lot of movement of teams trying to move up or move out and get picks for next year.”
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