The Denver Broncos are going to be busy on Day 3 of the 2022 NFL Draft, as they have eight picks to their name, after only making two picks on the first two days of the draft.
With that in mind, here are three intriguing prospects who could help Denver patch some of their defensive holes.
Jalyn Armour-Davis, CB, Alabama
The Broncos need a developmental outside corner who could potentially take over the starting job at the start of the 2023 season, and Jalyn Armour-Davis could be that man.
He has excellent movement skills, with the top-end speed to carry most any receiver downfield, and the short-area quickness to hang with receivers through their breaks. He also doesn’t shy away from contact and enjoys hitting.
That agility and physicality make him a more appealing option than many of his developmental cornerback peers, as it might allow him to work inside for Denver too, though he has yet to gain much experience there.
Armour-Davis does struggle in off-man coverage, where he’s unable to feel the route with his hands or have his eyes on the quarterback, and his ball skills are a work in progress, but those are minor flaws this late.
Zyon McCollum, S/CB, Sam Houston St.
George Paton loves his traits, and there might not be a more traitsy, freaky player in this class than Sam Houston State’s Zyon McCollum.
Unfortunately, he’s a poor tackler, has poor tackling technique, and it’s fair to be worried that he might not progress to much more in that facet of his game. Also, despite having the unreal traits that should make him sticky in man coverage, he’s nowhere near as good as he should be.
However, McCollum isn’t all project. He shows good feel in zone coverage and good awareness for what the offense is attempting to accomplish on any given play. He also has terrific ball skills and will be a headache at the catch point for opponents his entire career.
Damone Clark, LB, LSU
This analyst has been baning the Damone Clark Drum for a minute, and with good reason.
Broncos Country has been clamoring for a linebacker for so long it seems that now, even when the linebacker room is in alright shape, they can’t help themselves but continue to yearn for athletic mid-round talent.
Denver has already missed out on a lot of that mid-round talent, but they already have four linebackers with starting experience, and all of them played well in those opportunities. Odds are, whichever linebacker the Broncos draft is unlikely to see much playing time as a rookie, as they’re buried on the depth chart. Last year’s barrage of injuries at the position was not the norm.
Enter Clark, a linebacker prospect better than your favorite mid-round linebacking prospect, and the only reason he’s falling is that he’s going to have to miss his rookie year rehabbing an injury.
Well, guess what? The Broncos aren’t getting much rookie production out of whatever linebacker they pick, so take the best one and wait a year. They can afford to do so, and it could end up being a massive steal. Plus, Clark has some edge potential, a la Baron Browning.
