2020 Broncos Forum NFL Draft Thread

[DiehardBronxFan]

13 hours ago, 1234567 said:

I just watched a highlight tape of Netane Muti. LMFAO   I was not prepared for that. Watching him throw all those "little" linebackers around and maul Alabama's players like a grizzly bear is the funnest thing I've seen in weeks. Literally dying right now. He's horrifyingly slow on his feet; I don't even want to venture a guess as to what is 40 time is. But good lord, that boy is strong and mean. Two Achilles tears and a linsfranc  injury in the last 2 years is unfortunate though. I don't see any way he stays healthy and it will likely rob him of his lower body strength. Fingers crossed though. If he can stay on the field and Munchak can coach him up, we might have grabbed the steal of the draft. 

As someone who went through an Achilles rest, I can tell you 2 things: 1, you’re never going to re-injure it - it’s like rebar in there when they’re done with it, and 2, you’ll never get 100% of your explosion back, but almost certainly 90-95%, which, unless you are actually relying on your speed or jumping ability, is more than enough.  Don’t know about the Lis Franc, but since he only has 2 Achilles and there are no more to tear, those don’t bother me lol

[AKRNA]

22 hours ago, broncosfan_101 said:

If James is healthy, he’s still very much one of our 5 best linemen, and needs to play. But quality depth is a must behind him.

Okay, gotta get this posted before it warms up. Looks like another beautiful day.

I see this as a numbers game. Before the draft we had 5 guys that we know can play in the interior at some NFL level, Risner, Glasgow, Morris, Schlottman and Wilkerson. At OT, only two, Bolles and James, with James being one owwie away from the sideline. Ugly picture. We needed at least one starting level IOL and OT out of the draft, only Thomas could fill both.

I figured the draft would tell us what the coaches think and IMO it did. We didn't draft one OT, developmental or otherwise but double dipped in the IOL. That said, here's how I see it.

LT-Bolles / James

LG- Cush / Wilkerson

C- Morris / Schlottman

RG-Glasgow / Schlottman

RT- Risner / James

OT summary

Risner was really a good RT in college and after a year of NFL experience should fit right in. Bolles is a helluva lot better than given credit for. James can play either side but is completely unreliable having missed 30 games in 5 years and has a cheap buyout after this year. For 2020 though we're in great shape at OT, both starters and depth.

IOL summary

Lots of options here as with the addition of Cush we now have 4 IOL guys that can play any of the three positions. I listed what I think is most likely. Cush shouldn't have any problem at LG and is better suited there than Risner. Great place for a rookie to start also. Wilkerson should be considered strictly backup OG, doesn't belong on the outside. One of Schlottman or Morris should step into the starting center role with the other a backup.

Anyway, with the above lineup we're stronger and deeper that we've been for years and no longer one injury away from a huge talent drop.

Muti I think we redshirt. Given a year with our training staff and technique work with Munch he could be step into a backup or starting LG spot next year. 

Well, it's up tp 44, sunny and getting warmer fast. I'm outta here!

 

[AnAngryAmerican]

@AKRNA do you think it is possible for Risner to play LT? Watching him I've seen an elite LG but I know the skill sets are wildly different and the athleticism required for LT is rare. Second, is Riser just better left as plug-and-play future All-Pro LG or can he perform at as high of a level at RT?

[jsthomp2007]

Why take Risner away from the LG position when he was a 1st team all rookie there, with am of being a perennial all-pro?  I think the offensive line is set other than what happen between Bolles/Wilkerson.

[BroncoBruin]

Of our 7 UDFAs, I like the two defensive backs and the running back Bellamy. They gave Bellamy a pretty big signing bonus. Always worth watching UDFA backs, he could push Freeman. 

[1234567]

5 hours ago, DiehardBronxFan said:

As someone who went through an Achilles rest, I can tell you 2 things: 1, you’re never going to re-injure it - it’s like rebar in there when they’re done with it, and 2, you’ll never get 100% of your explosion back, but almost certainly 90-95%, which, unless you are actually relying on your speed or jumping ability, is more than enough.  Don’t know about the Lis Franc, but since he only has 2 Achilles and there are no more to tear, those don’t bother me lol

Interesting! I'm really glad to hear this. I don't know a whole lot about that particular injury, but that does make sense. Most of the athletes that you always hear about it being devastating for are basketball players. Hopefully he can stay healthy. I really want to see him smash KC's D-line lol. 

[Cutler06]

3 hours ago, AKRNA said:

Okay, gotta get this posted before it warms up. Looks like another beautiful day.

I see this as a numbers game. Before the draft we had 5 guys that we know can play in the interior at some NFL level, Risner, Glasgow, Morris, Schlottman and Wilkerson. At OT, only two, Bolles and James, with James being one owwie away from the sideline. Ugly picture. We needed at least one starting level IOL and OT out of the draft, only Thomas could fill both.

I figured the draft would tell us what the coaches think and IMO it did. We didn't draft one OT, developmental or otherwise but double dipped in the IOL. That said, here's how I see it.

LT-Bolles / James

LG- Cush / Wilkerson

C- Morris / Schlottman

RG-Glasgow / Schlottman

RT- Risner / James

OT summary

Risner was really a good RT in college and after a year of NFL experience should fit right in. Bolles is a helluva lot better than given credit for. James can play either side but is completely unreliable having missed 30 games in 5 years and has a cheap buyout after this year. For 2020 though we're in great shape at OT, both starters and depth.

IOL summary

Lots of options here as with the addition of Cush we now have 4 IOL guys that can play any of the three positions. I listed what I think is most likely. Cush shouldn't have any problem at LG and is better suited there than Risner. Great place for a rookie to start also. Wilkerson should be considered strictly backup OG, doesn't belong on the outside. One of Schlottman or Morris should step into the starting center role with the other a backup.

Anyway, with the above lineup we're stronger and deeper that we've been for years and no longer one injury away from a huge talent drop.

Muti I think we redshirt. Given a year with our training staff and technique work with Munch he could be step into a backup or starting LG spot next year. 

Well, it's up tp 44, sunny and getting warmer fast. I'm outta here!

 

AKRNA, you are a true advocate for the OL, but I disagree that we have 5 PROVEN IOL that we can depend on. We saw very little of Morris and Schlottman, they filled in last year but I for one can't say I saw anything special in either. COULD they be serviceable?? Perhaps, working with Munchek enhance any Olineman's outlook. I'm not ready to replace James with either of those two guys....at least not until I see more. 

[broncos_fan _from _uk]

10 minutes ago, Cutler06 said:

AKRNA, you are a true advocate for the OL, but I disagree that we have 5 PROVEN IOL that we can depend on. We saw very little of Morris and Schlottman, they filled in last year but I for one can't say I saw anything special in either. COULD they be serviceable?? Perhaps, working with Munchek enhance any Olineman's outlook. I'm not ready to replace James with either of those two guys....at least not until I see more. 

He never said that. His exact words were “at some NFL level” and I think they showed they could at least fill in on a short term basis. 

[Cutler06]

2 minutes ago, broncos_fan _from _uk said:

He never said that. His exact words were “at some NFL level” and I think they showed they could at least fill in on a short term basis. 

By his word"we know they can play" To me implies a proven commodity. Also, I did leave it open that they COULD become that, my statement just deflect that we already have someone that he indicated would allow us to remove James from the starting lineup, and I haven't seen enough of either Morris or Schlottman to conclude that. 

[Broncofan]

17 hours ago, DiehardBronxFan said:

As someone who went through an Achilles rest, I can tell you 2 things: 1, you’re never going to re-injure it - it’s like rebar in there when they’re done with it, and 2, you’ll never get 100% of your explosion back, but almost certainly 90-95%, which, unless you are actually relying on your speed or jumping ability, is more than enough.  Don’t know about the Lis Franc, but since he only has 2 Achilles and there are no more to tear, those don’t bother me lol

Well, you can definitely re-tear it - but it's likely going to be 10-20 years later - because it's a wear and tear injury (and the reason why most non-elite athletes do ok after 1 surgery is they usually don’t produce the same wear and tear over the next 20+ years).    The fact Muti was injured in 2016 & 2018 (unless you’re unlucky enough to do it on each foot separately), just shows the problem with going the conservative, non-operative route with rehab-only for pro athletes - sooner or later, it's going to give.  You just hope it's after your playing career is done.  

Now, the fact that he got a Lisfranc injury in 2019, though - suggests that as part of the rehab and compensation, Muti may have a cascade biomechanical effect - more parts are breaking down trying to compensate for the loss in function/explosion.   And to be clear, the injury is awful in positions where you need explosion.   Why the NBA death-sentence talk for elite stars happens.  But for an IOL, other than maybe NT or a pocket QB, they tolerate this loss of explosion better than anyone else.

Make no mistake, there's still a TON of risk because Muti's never shown he's come all the way back from his 2018 tear.  And the 2019 Lisfranc does suggest there's a biomechanical issue.   But it's not like the price was prohibitive - even if it's only a 25 percent chance he can be a league-average starter, you take it at Rd6 - and if he gets to near-peak levels, he could be a well-above average starter in year 2-3. 

Keep in mind though with the lost time and rehab, and lack of OTA / likley limited TC time - we're talking 2021 as the the likely earliest time for any impact.  And if was mid-2021 or even 2022, that wouldnt' be surprising (not a failed pick).  But for Rd6, that's totally the norm - so why not go for the home run talent.    He'll need some tiime for the payoff, but the Rd6 price is totally worth it (although I'd guess that he could easily be stashed on the PS this year, and if we got 11+ games, then we'd still have 4 full years of cost control too).

Edited April 27, 2020 by Broncofan

[paul-mac]

I’m almost certain this will be the OL:

 

LT: Garrett Bolles

LG: Dalton Risner

C: Lloyd Cushenberry III

RG: Graham Glasgow

RT: Ja’Wuan James

 

Swing tackle: Elijah Wilkinson

Swing G/C: Netane Muti, Patrick Morris, Austin Schlottman

 

Risner would move to OT if both James and Bolles went down. 

[lomaxgrUK]

1 hour ago, paul-mac said:

I’m almost certain this will be the OL:

 

LT: Garrett Bolles

LG: Dalton Risner

C: Lloyd Cushenberry III

RG: Graham Glasgow

RT: Ja’Wuan James

 

Swing tackle: Elijah Wilkinson

Swing G/C: Netane Muti, Patrick Morris, Austin Schlottman

 

Risner would move to OT if both James and Bolles went down. 

This is how I see it too. I think most, if not all, would agree.

However, the Tackle situation does both me. I have been probably the biggest critic of Bolles on this forum - however, the guy is always available. So at present, we have a LT who (in my opinion) isn't good enough and a RT who has shown himself to be very injury prone.

Therefore, we are likely to be in the same situation as last year whereby the LT is giving up penalties and/or sacks and the RT is our backup. That isn't a great place to be.

I don't really like the idea of moving Risner but an injury to Wilkinson would leave us with very little choice.

[paul-mac]

19 minutes ago, lomaxgrUK said:

This is how I see it too. I think most, if not all, would agree.

However, the Tackle situation does both me. I have been probably the biggest critic of Bolles on this forum - however, the guy is always available. So at present, we have a LT who (in my opinion) isn't good enough and a RT who has shown himself to be very injury prone.

Therefore, we are likely to be in the same situation as last year whereby the LT is giving up penalties and/or sacks and the RT is our backup. That isn't a great place to be.

I don't really like the idea of moving Risner but an injury to Wilkinson would leave us with very little choice.

I agree. Keep Risner inside and let him be a dominant guard rather than a meh tackle. Those tweener OT/OG’s are almost always better off playing inside (think Zack Martin, Brandon Scherff)

 

I wonder if that UDFA Hunter Watts will make the team as the 4th tackle. Our coaches really seem to believe in Elijah Wilkinson as a swing man. They must be seeing something I’m not. 

[broncosfan_101]

5 hours ago, paul-mac said:

I’m almost certain this will be the OL:

 

LT: Garrett Bolles

LG: Dalton Risner

C: Lloyd Cushenberry III

RG: Graham Glasgow

RT: Ja’Wuan James

 

Swing tackle: Elijah Wilkinson

Swing G/C: Netane Muti, Patrick Morris, Austin Schlottman

 

Risner would move to OT if both James and Bolles went down. 

If I had to guess, Muti starts the year red-shirting on IR, and the team gets a longer look at Calvin Anderson by keeping him as the 9th OL. 

[Broncofan]

3 hours ago, broncosfan_101 said:

If I had to guess, Muti starts the year red-shirting on IR, and the team gets a longer look at Calvin Anderson by keeping him as the 9th OL. 

I think Muti's a strong candidate to go IR - the only temptation might be to try and stash him on the PS - if you get 11+ games on the PS, service time does NOT toll - so you get 4 years from 2021-24 inclusive on the rookie contract.   If you go IR, you burn a year.    It's how we got 5 years from Matt Paradis on his rookie deal.   

I love Muti's ceiling, but I would caution against forecasting a 2020 impact for him.