Clemson defensive end Da'Quan Bowers is the consensus best player available, but do NFL teams agree? (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Round One is in the books, so tonight the Denver Broncos lock in to Rounds Two and Three of the 2011 NFL Draft.

The Broncos currently have three selections in these two rounds — 36th overall (4th pick in 2nd round), 46th overall (14th pick in 2nd round), and 67th overall (3rd pick in 3rd round), so it’s possible they could snag two of these players depending on who falls. Which prospects catch your eye?

Notes:

• Clearly Da’Quan Bowers is the consensus top pick, but will teams continue to shy away from the Clemson powerhouse following his knee injury? If he falls to the Broncos at 36 should they jump on him?
• (Not literally, that might hurt his knee.)
• Only two other players appear in all four Top 10 lists: LB Akeem Ayers (who, coincidentally, always appears third) and DT Stephen Paea.
• 29 of the 40 selections are defensive players.

Round Two is set to begin tonight at 4pm MT.

Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller, right, gestures alongside family after he was selected as the second overall pick by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the NFL football draft at Radio City Music Hall Thursday, April 28, 2011, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

A sampling of what the Know-It-Alls are saying hours after the Broncos‘ first-round selection of linebacker Von Miller.

Don Banks, Sports Illustrated —

I’m not saying No. 2 overall pick Von Miller is the next Aaron Curry, but the history of taking outside linebackers in the top five, then playing them in 4-3 defenses, isn’t all that glowing in terms of recent impact.

Curry went fourth overall in 2009 to Seattle and hasn’t done much yet. Others who haven’t or didn’t earn their top-five billing include Keith Rivers (9th to Cincy in 2008), A.J. Hawk (No. 5 overall in 2006 — he’s now in a 3-4) and LaVar Arrington (No. 2 pick in 2000).

That’s not the most exhaustive sampling, but the point is the track record isn’t all that good. Maybe Miller breaks the mold in Denver. But if not, the Broncos might be guilty of ignoring the lessons of (recent) history, and being doomed to repeat them.

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Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller, drafted 2nd overall Thursday, participated in ESPN’s Sports Science series a few weeks ago. Check it out —

Disney at Walt Disney World (Scott Miller/Disney Parks via Getty Images)

Nearly lost in the hubbub of Von Miller becoming the highest draft pick in Denver Broncos history is the fact that veteran Broncos players are able to return to work at Dove Valley Friday morning.

Nearly. The list of players reporting for duty Friday morning includes the impossible-to-ignore Tim Tebow, after all.

Tebow is one of a number of Broncos expected to return to workouts at the team’s facility early Friday morning. A day ago, a dozen or so players arrived at Dove Valley only to be politely turned down. Yesterday, however, the league distributed a memo to all 32 teams outlining the processes to allow players to participate in workouts on-site.

“I’m pretty sure guys who are able to go over will be there,” veteran safety Brian Dawkins said, who was among the players denied access Thursday morning. “It’s the beginning. Hopefully we can continue to go out and train and keep our bodies in shape so when the time comes for us to do football-related things, like minicamps or whatever, we’ll be able to put a great product on the field.”

“We have been on the phone with them all day, trying to collect them and get them here,” head coach John Fox said. “We have had a great response. I think they are excited to get here and we are excited to have them here.”

The prospect of real football in September may not be all that closer from these developments, but it can only benefit Tebow and others to work on-site and study playbooks. It’s good to have football again.

Denver Broncos coach John Fox talks about picking Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller as the team's first-round pick in the NFL football draft, at the team's headquarters in Englewood, Colo., on Thursday, April 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)

Head Coach John Fox discusses the Denver Broncos‘ first-round selection of Von Miller Thursday.

On whether LB Von Miller was the player Denver had targeted going into the draft

“First of all, there were a lot of good players that we could have chosen from. I think at the end of the day for what we’re looking for was a need to create pressure on the passer, and he was the No. 1 defensive guy we had on the board. We had to wait for Carolina and then once they turned their pick in, he was pretty much our guy.”

On whether any teams inquired about trading for the No. 2 pick

“No, a lot of that stuff—you hear rumors early on, but we had no calls at pick No. 2 to move back…It has not been done in 11 years and there was a lot of talk of it. I never really thought it would happen and it did not.”

On comparing LB Von Miller to DL Marcell Dareus

“Well if we had a couple of picks, we might have picked both of them. But, the reason we decided to go the way of Von Miller was that I think his explosiveness both in coverage and as a pass rusher—he did play in a 3-4 defense in college and was utilized primarily as a rusher. I think he had 35 sacks and he was in coverage, but he has the speed—he is a sub-4.5 guy that weighs close to 250 lbs—he’ll be at that by the time he shows up. He was just a little bit more explosive and a definite three-down player. He can also be a four-down player and play on special teams.”

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Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller, right, holds up a jersey with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell after he was selected as the second overall pick by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the NFL football draft at Radio City Music Hall Thursday, April 28, 2011, in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow)

Von Miller was selected by the Denver Broncos 2nd overall in the 2011 NFL Draft. Listen to to the newest Broncos linebacker’s draft press conference call here and check out the quotes below —

On getting emotional when getting a call from the Broncos

“I talked to (General Manager Brian) Xanders. I was watching my phone, and my phone wasn’t ringing. I looked over to my dad’s phone, and they had called my dad. I saw a 303 (area code) number, and I knew immediately who it was. I just had flashbacks to all the hard work that I’ve been putting in ever since little league football, all the people who told me, ‘No,’ and every time that everybody said I couldn’t do it. I just had that flashback. I was just extremely anxious for my opportunity to go up to the league and prove myself.”

On hearing news he would go to Denver

“I had not really been paying attention to any of that. It was always a surprise to me. You hear stuff. I got all the stuff from my agent, and he told me a lot of stuff. He told me the night before that Denver was going to pick me, but in the draft you know everybody lies. I was just extremely excited to get this opportunity.”

On DE Elvis Dumervil

“I know a lot about Elvis Dumervil. When I was in high school, it was people saying that it was Elvis Dumervil who opened it up for smaller guys to come off the edge. I know a lot about Elvis Dumervil. I’m excited that he’s back, injury free, and I’m just glad to be a teammate.”

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Von Miller

The Denver Broncos have made their choice. Von Miller is the first piece to Denver’s rebuilding defense puzzle.

The Broncos selected Texas A&M linebacker Von Miller with the 2nd overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft Thursday.

Miller (6’3″, 246 lbs.) is a 22-year-old pass rush specialist who was the unanimous top linebacker prospect in the draft. Tallying over 100 tackles and 28 sacks in his junior and senior seasons, Miller continued to shoot up draft boards even days before Thursday’s first round.

“I just had flashbacks to all the hard work that I’ve been putting in ever since little league football, all the people who told me, ‘No,’” Miller said. “I was just extremely anxious for my opportunity to go up to the league and prove myself.”

By passing on Marcell Dareus, the Broncos likely intend to add DT depth (and it’s a deep DT class this year) in the 2nd round. John Elway said afterward he hopes to reignite the Orange Crush tradition with the Miller pick… and I’m on board. Truly, I would have been happy with any of them, but there’s a tradition to uphold in Broncos linebackers…. It’s Miller Time Broncos fans!! Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Come join fellow Broncos fans in discussing tonight’s draft. Take the poll! Go Broncos!!