1. Miami Dolphins – OT, Jake Long, Michigan
2. St. Louis Rams – DE, Chris Long, Virginia
3. Atlanta Falcons – QB, Matt Ryan, Boston College
4. Oakland Raiders – RB, Darren McFadden, Arkansas
5. Kansas City Chiefs – DT, Glenn Dorsey, LSU
6. New York Jets – DE, Vernon Gholston, Ohio State
7. New Orleans Saints (from SF through NE) – DT, Sedrick Ellis, USC
8. Jacksonville Jaguars (from BAL) – DE, Derrick Harvey, Florida
9. Cincinnati Bengals – LB, Keith Rivers, USC
10. New England Patriots (from NO) – LB, Jerod Mayo, Tennessee
11. Buffalo Bills – CB, Leodis McKelvin, Troy
12. Denver Broncos – OT, Ryan Clady, Boise State
13. Carolina Panthers – RB, Jonathan Stewart, Oregon
14. Chicago Bears – OT, Chris Williams, Vanderbilt
15. Kansas City Chiefs (from DET) – OG, Brendan Albert, Virginia
Click here to read the rest of this entry »

The Denver Broncos have made their second selection in the 2008 NFL Draft. With the 11th pick in the 2nd round (42nd overall), Denver selected wide receiver Eddie Royal out of Virginia Tech. At 5’10”, 182 lbs., Royal is as small as they come in the NFL, yet he posted some of the best numbers in the 40-yard dash (4.39 – 4th), bench press (24 – 1st), vertical jump (36.0 – 7th), and 60-yard shuffle (11.66 – 10th)among wide receivers at the combine.

The Broncos next pick is in the 4th round, which takes place tomorrow. We’ll have much more, including our opinions, in a bit!

The Denver Broncos have made their choice – Ryan Clady, OT, Boise State. I argued yesterday that he was a player worthy of trading up to draft. In the end the Broncos did not need to. He fell to the Broncos at 12, and I couldn’t be happier!

Keep up with us in the live blog/thread chat throughout the day!

We want to hear from you! Who will take each pick? Where will your favorite player fall? We’ll be here all day to talk about the picks as they happen and before they happen.

We’re covering the draft live using this new chat/open thread technology “Cover It Live,” so be sure to stick around and follow the draft with us!

We’ve got a lot in store for you today, but first, we want to hear from you! We opened up a new poll yesterday, and we’ve already gotten a bunch of responses. But let your voice be heard – who do you hope the Broncos take in the first round?

Take the poll in the upper left sidebar – we’ll keep it open until the Broncos make their pick.

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

In 2006, the Denver Broncos had a rare opportunity to take a player that could single handedly alter the fate of the franchise. Jay Cutler, the young quarterback out of Vanderbilt and top of the Broncos board, was slipping down the draft. By a lot of pre-draft maneuvering, chance, and a bit of luck, the Broncos were in a prime position to make the move to get their guy.

I believe the Broncos are in a similar situation this year. The need: a dominant left tackle – the second most important position on the football field. Ahead of them just happens to be Ryan Clady, left tackle out of Boise State, who is such a good fit in the Denver Broncos system he could break the mold of typical Denver offensive linemen and start in year one.

The positives: Terrific balance and footwork. His agility is top notch, and his football knowledge has garnered praise from several different scouts. One scout talked about how enamored he was with Clady’s knowledge of playing left tackle: on angles, on the different moves and blitzing schemes, and on maintaining balance at the point of attack. They praise his ability to keep his knees bent and to not allow his feet to stray too narrow or wide. His experience in a zone blocking system the past several years will help him to hit the ground running in Denver. His hand work is superb as well – with his long arms he knows how to lock up his opponent in pass protection, which is his greatest strength. He’s blessed with a huge motor also, and he has the type of tenacity and mean streak that will remind fans of Tom Nalen long after the potential Hall of Famer has retired.

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Welcome to the First Annual BroncoTalk Fan Draft Awards! After weeks of tallying votes and breaking down positions, we’re finally ready to present these coveted awards to the position of choice. At the end we also have a handy dandy graphic for those who want to look at bars and numbers and perform analysis-type things. Enjoy!

The Award for “First Round Pick most likely to cause mass fan suicide” goes to…..

The cornerback position! Tallying a whopping 10% approval rating, it’s very clear Broncos fans want no part of a CB in the first round. Fair enough, we’re stacked at the position and have a lot of bigger needs elsewhere.

The Award for “First Round Pick that might have made sense two weeks ago” goes to…..

We have a tie! Both the wide receiver position and the defensive tackle come away with this award. Two weeks ago the Broncos didn’t have Darrell Jackson, Samie Parker, and Dewayne Robertson on the roster. Had the defensive tackle poll been given then, we guess the results have been a little different. Personally, I still wouldn’t mind taking another DT early.

The Award for “First Round Pick most likely to cause fans to strangle and maul each other” goes to…..

The running back position! EXACTLY 50% approval, meaning there should be some cut throat debate going on for months if the Broncos select one in the first round.

Finally, The Award for ‘First Round Pick that would totally cater to the fans and therefore never happen” goes to…..

Offensive tackle! Scoring a whopping 87% approval rate, it’s clear the far majority of fans are hoping the Broncos take the best offensive lineman in the draft tomorrow. Which naturally means we’ll trade up to draft WR DeSean Jackson.

Below are the complete results of the poll. Click on the image to see the full version, and thanks again to everyone who participated!

Well, the most important days in April will be here in a matter of hours. You can expect BroncoTalk.net to be buzzing with updated news and opinions, live-blogging and all of the feedback you care to write. This weekend is shaping up to be great fun for every Bronco fan with web-access and a TV.

Which brings me to my own personal catastrophe… I’m going camping this weekend.

Yes, that’s right. Yet again, my friends picked THIS weekend to go camping in the Smoky Mountains. And since these are my very good friends I must forgive the fact that they don’t watch football and fail to plan around important dates for me (like the freakin Draft). I must forgive them for taking me so far from civilization, that I won’t even have working cell service – let alone up-to-the-minute NFL Network coverage of the draft. I must forgive them for delaying my knowledge of our newest Denver Broncos for nearly 24 hours. I must forgive them for basically stealing my draft weekend!

Don’t get me wrong. I really love my friends and I look forward to camping with them. We’ll have close to 20 people at a huge group camp site and I fully expect to have a blast. But as we finish packing for the trip today; and as my wife and I take the two kinds up into the wilderness with tents, bug spray and enough food to supply a small army; and while I enjoy the smores and hiking and general fellowship with good folks… I’ll also be sad that I’m missing the fun of hanging out with you all on the site.

I’ll be back Sunday evening, so expect to see some posting from me after I catch up on all that happened this weekend.

Have fun and I’ll see ya on the other side of the draft!

I jotted down some notes and quotes on Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan‘s press conference, as the Broncos get set for the 2008 NFL Draft tomorrow. Of course he didn’t do anything to give away his hand, but if you’re like me you’ll appreciate the few nuggets here and there about the roster and the front office.

• Coach openly talked about wanting to add depth to the offensive line. Great, now there’s no way we go after an OT.
• He talked about the effect of only having an 80-man roster as the Broncos head into training camp. I found this part really interesting – he noted that, since teams are not going to carry the usual total closer to 90, there will be a little over 300 undrafted free agents (and other free agents) out there that teams aren’t going to be used to seeing. Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Mike Shanahan will be addressing the media in his pre-draft presser in approximately 15 minutes (10:15 MDT).  You can watch it live at that time by visiting the Denver Broncos official site here.

Of course, Shanahan is the last man in the NFL who would give anyone a clue as to his draft plans.  Even so, we’ll be tuning in, and we’ll be sure to post some thoughts after the presser.