Way-too-early Denver Broncos 2024 NFL Draft preview

The 2024 NFL Draft is on April 25-27 in Detroit. Here is the first-round order, per Tankathon.

The Denver Broncos missed the playoffs for an eighth straight season in 2023. On Monday, they told quarterback Russell Wilson they plan to release him, incurring an NFL-record $85M cap hit. This move will prevent the club from spending in free agency, so Denver must make the most of the 2024 NFL Draft.

2023 record: 8-9 | First-round pick: No. 12 | Team needs: QB, TE, DE

Potential first-round picks: Bo Nix, QB, Oregon; Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia; Jared Verse, DE, Florida State

Per NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, Jarrett Stidham will have a chance to become the Week 1 starter. Denver should add another QB, however, because in 2023, the 27-year-old went 1-1 as a starter and completed 60.5 percent of his passes for two TDs, one interception and a below-average 31.1 QBR.

Nix led the FBS in completion percentage (77.4 percent) in 2023. Pro Football Focus' Trevor Sikkmma deemed the 2023 Heisman finalist the "perfect prospect" for the Broncos, noting how he and head coach Sean Payton could be a great marriage.

Denver could sign a bridge QB — Gardner Minshew II, for example — and focus on acquiring more weapons to improve its passing game. The Broncos ranked 24th in the league in passing yards (191.9). 

Starting TE Greg Dulcich missed 15 games with foot and hamstring injuries, while backup Adam Trautman had 22 receptions for 204 yards and three receiving TDs in 17 games. Bowers — a two-time John Mackey Award winner as college football's best tight end — would be an upgrade.  

Denver also has defensive issues. Its pass rush struggled in 2023, logging the fourth-fewest pressures in the league (117). Starting DEs Zach Allen and Jonathan Harris combined for just six of the team's 42 sacks. 

Adding one of the strongest prospects in the class would address this problem. Verse — who had nine sacks in 12 games in 2023 — bench-pressed 225 pounds 31 times at the combine, first at his position and fourth overall.