If Florida’s Pitts falls to No. 9, Broncos should consider adding top tight end
Quarterbacks are selected with the first four picks.
Two offensive tackles and receivers apiece in the next four picks.
Hello, Florida tight end Kyle Pitts to the Broncos at No. 9?
“I think you can make a strong case he’s the best player in the draft,” NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah said earlier this month. “I’m watching these corners with first-, second- and third-round draft grades in the SEC and they couldn’t cover the guy.”
Yes, the Broncos have Noah Fant and Albert Okwuegbunam, “move” tight ends who can stretch defenses horizontally and vertically. And yes, the Broncos need to acquire a blocking tight end after releasing Nick Vannett.
Here’s how Pitts would be available:
Quarterbacks Trevor Lawrence (Jacksonville) and Zach Wilson (Jets) go 1-2, followed by Trey Lance and Justin Fields. One goes No. 3 to San Francisco, which reportedly traded up from No. 12 with Miami on Friday, and Atlanta takes the other at No. 4.
The next four picks are left tackle Rashawn Slater (Cincinnati), receiver Ja’Marr Chase (Dolphins, who moved up in a trade with Philadelphia on Friday), receiver Jaylen Waddle (Detroit) and left tackle Penei Sewell (Carolina).
Broncos general manager George Paton’s phone would be ringing if Pitts was still on the board at No. 9. If Pitts is the best remaining player on their board, Paton should act.
Pitts, whose Pro Day is Wednesday, is 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds and had 100 catches for 1,482 yards and 18 touchdowns in 32 games for the Gators.
Imagine having a three-tight end rotation of Fant, Pitts and Albert O.
“At (Pitts’) size, to be able to get in and out of routes like he does is pretty rare,” Jeremiah said. “You put big guys on him and he’s going to run away from them. You put small guys out there against him and he’s just going to pluck the football off their head. That, to me, is what makes him special.”
A long-shot, but the Pre-Draft Season is all about the hypotheticals.
Evaluating Oweh. What to make of Penn State defensive
end/outside linebacker Jayson Oweh? He checks all of the measurable boxes — 6-foot-4 7/8 inches, 257 pounds, unofficial 4.39-second 40-yard dash and 21 reps of the 225-pound bench at his Pro Day on Thursday, which Paton attended.
But in seven games last year, Oweh had no sacks. He didn’t even get one by mistake.
Charting Oweh’s activity against Ohio State, it showed a player who had no impact as a pass rusher. In 53 snaps on the video (35 at right end and 18 at left end), he had seven “factor” plays, which is a tackle or passrush disruption. All seven plays came in the run game.
Ohio State double-teamed Oweh on only two snaps and he was unable to capitalize when he was unblocked twice, showing hesitation in which he didn’t appear to be sure to charge toward Fields or protect the edge.
The best fit for Oweh is as a 3-4 outside linebacker and the team selecting him will do so based on his upside, not his college production.
Vaccination won’t be mandatory. League chief medical officer Allen Sills said in a Thursday interview on NFL Network that
players, coaches and team staff won’t be required to get vaccinated for COVID-19. Big mistake.
For the back-of-the-roster players, vaccination should be a no-brainer because if they get the virus, spending 10 days in quarantine may jeopardize their roster spot or cut their playing time. For the older coaches, it makes complete sense to get the vaccine, same for players with families.
Safety market fizzled. Free agency has been a dud for every safety except the Broncos’ Justin Simmons (four years, $61 million after being tagged), Jacksonville’s Rayshawn Jenkins (four years, $35 million), Cleveland’s John Johnson (three years, $33.75 million) and New England’s
Jalen Mills (four years, $24 million).
Not one player after that signed a deal worth more than $5 million according to Spotrac. Kareem Jackson tested the market for a week before returning to the Broncos on a one-year, $5 million contract. Anthony Harris settled for one year and $4 million to move from Minnesota to Philadelphia a year after the Vikings tagged him.
What happened? Teams are understandably allocating more of their money toward cornerbacks and feel a plug-and-play rookie or a journeymen can play well enough.
Texans’ tote board. Through Thursday, Houston had signed, agreed to terms with or traded for 30 (!) players.
Who knows if the Texans have gotten markedly better, but I like the approach by new general manager Nick Caserio. Not all 30 will make the opening 53-man roster, but there is nothing wrong with throwing a few dozen darts at the board and see who sticks.
The Texans have added those players without sacrificing future cap space — the only contract of more than two years was for punter Cameron Johnston (three years).
Broncos’ betting partnership. The Broncos signed partnership deals last summer with FanDuel, BetMGM and BetFred, the first team in the NFL to strike sports gambling deals. The pandemic, though, nixed BetMGM’s in-stadium lounge and BetFred’s outside-the-stadium hospitality tent from becoming operational. But Broncos senior vice president of corporate partnerships Brady
Kellogg said the team is “tracking toward,” both being open this season.
The state of Colorado generated $326.9 million in sports bets in January, the ninth consecutive month a record was set.
“The bulk reaction (by fans) was positive and that’s a testament to the responsible way the Broncos and the league rolled this out to fans last year,” Kellogg said.
Briefly. The league has finally realized pass rusher Jadeveon Clowney doesn’t merit much attention. Headed to his fourth team in as many years, he remains a free agent and had no sacks in eight games for Tennessee last year. Clowney has played all 16 games just once and never reached double-digit sacks. … A week-plus into the market, Green Bay hasn’t signed a player from another team and the Los Angeles Rams have added only one (receiver Desean Jackson) in addition to trading for quarterback Matthew
Stafford.