2012 NFL Draft Recap and Thoughts - UDFAs - Competition Winner

The 2012 NFL draft has come to a close and the Broncos have made seven selections in total. As the offseason whines down and before we gear up again for training camp we will be taking a deeper look at each player and what he brings to the team. But for now here are my thoughts on the players and what transpired in the draft.

Rd	Pick	Player	Position - School	Notes
2	4 (36)	Derek Wolfe	DT - Cincinnati	via TB (w/ #101 for #31 and #126)
2	25 (57)	Brock Osweiler	QB - Arizona State
3	4 (67)	Ronnie Hillman	RB - San Diego State	via CLE (for #87 and #120)
4	6 (101)	Omar Bolden	DB - Arizona State	via TB (w/ #36 for #31 and #126)
4	13 (108)	Philip Blake	OL - Baylor	via NYJ (Tim Tebow)
5	2 (137)	Malik Jackson	DE - Tennessee	via STL (Brandon Lloyd)
6	18 (188)	Danny Trevathan	LB - Kentucky	via NYJ (Tebow)

36 Derek Wolfe

Derek was one of the players that I reviewed at the start of the month as apart of the Defensive Tackle Prospects that I looked at. Here is what I had to say about him at the time: "Wolfe would be an UT. He has a long frame. He could get bigger in the legs and arms. Displays good foot work. He is Ok off the snap but gets a little upright. He is solid against the run but disappears when doubled. He is not very disruptive and affecting the pocket. Has a good motor.

When you start getting down into these guys they are all development prospects. Wolfe is no expection, he has a good frame and some tools to work with but I think he lacks the athleticism to play under tackle. I saw nothing special to warrant a 2nd or even 3rd round pick. I would have him in the fourth with a possible starter potential most likely a rotation guy though."

That was my initial assessment of Wolfe but it should be noted I can only see so much film on a guy and those games he may have been having an off day. I was honest I did not see anything that made me sit up and take notice. But from a production stand point Wolfe was probably the top interior pass rusher (other than Fletcher Cox) left in the draft. There were 3 maybe 4 guys that have shown good production rushing the pass from an interior position in the whole draft. I also think Wolfe's character played a large part in his drafting, the work ethic and passion is clear to see. Some have questioned whether this was a 'reach' and I would tend to agree with that group but Wolfe said he had 'a lot' of contact with the Ravens and was pissed when they didn't take him in the first. He truly believes he has the talent to be a first round pick. It was probable the Ravens intended to take Wolfe at 35# but when Upshaw dropped they had to pounce. Leaving Wolfe to go to the Broncos. For that matter he probably was rated quite high on draft boards around the league.

Wolfe will see time early with the Broncos in the rotation but I doubt he starts off as a three down player. He will see most of his time on passing downs where he will put his pass rushing skills to good use. Wolfe brings youth and talent to a very old position and should be a regular for many years to come.

It will be always unknown whether the Broncos were targeting Doug Martin or not at 31 but we still got a solid player in the end.

57 Brock Osweiler

This year I did not review any Quarterbacks but I will not lie and say I didn't look at any. There were two Quarterbacks that I watched a bit of tape on to get an idea of their talent and both had been linked to the Broncos. They were Nick Foles and Brock Osweiler. What little I did see of Brock I liked. I thought he moved well for a big man, had decent vision of the field and of course that cannon arm. At times I do think he struggled with pressure and his release can be a little slow but he has 3 maybe 4 years to work on it behind Manning. I don't expect Manning to 'mentor' Brock at all, he has more important things to do. But what Brock needs to learn from him is his habits, how to read defenses and breakdown film. Then work on his techniques both passing the ball and his footwork. Plus learn that playbook from cover to cover (or screen to screen on the tablet). Then be ready when your number is called.

I do really like Brock's potential and that he is insurance but I question doing it now. The convention wisdom is we could have drafted a QB in next years or the year afters draft. But 'Franchise QBs' don't grow on trees no matter what the Browns or Raiders think. The fact Brock is a good friend of Jack Elway should have made this connection quite obvious but I missed it with everything else that goes on in draft world.

The one person I do feel sorry for is Princess. We have gone from having one of the best looking QB corps to Peyton 'Long Neck' Manning and Brock 'Giant' Osweiler. Hopefully Adam Weber with his golden surfer boy locks can make the team to bring up the 'hottest rating' of our QBs.

67 Ronnie Hillman

A surprise pick for me considering the number of Running Back prospects I looked at this year. I think I missed him because there were just so many smaller backs to look at in this years draft plus he was projected much later than where he was.

From what little I have seen of Hillman I know he has speed, lots of speed and is very elusive. It should be noted that he didn't play behind the greatest offensive line which struggled against better competition. Also he has added a decent amount of bulk since the end of the college season. How much I don't know. But I have seen him make guys miss, is quick and drives his legs. I am very interested to see what Hillman can do on third down. The comparisons to Marshall Faulk don't hurt either.

101 Omar Bolden

Bolden is another guy I over looked and mainly because of the injuries. When healthy he was really fast, maybe not Devin Hester/Chris Johnson fast but still more than fast enough. He has everything you look for in a corner, size, speed and talent. This pick will all be about health. If healthy Bolden good do anything.

108 Philip Blake

The center from Baylor...where have I heard that before. Blake is a tough mauler that can play any of the interior positions and provides great depth. Blake is a very smart player, he scored a 35 on the wonderlic at the combine. Plus he is very strong and has a powerful lower half. The one down side I see with Blake is his age, turning 27 this year is not something you like. That means he has missed at least 4 years of being in the NFL. But hey sometimes that happens, Blake needs to show up and learn the offensive quickly if he wants to start.

Do I think he beats out JD? I don't think so. Their paths crossed out Baylor and Blake had to play RT because JD was at center. This will be an interesting battle in training camp.

137 Malik Jackson

Jackson is a guy I did scout and here is what I said: "He has a huge frame, I love his size. He may be better as a UT in the 4-3. he has pretty good footwork. His torso is huge. Shows good hustle on plays and a great motor. I thought he showed good strength fighting against the OL. He is fast off the snap and can get around the edge. He needs work on his run defense. He played UT and DE in college. Surprisingly how fast he is at covering ground and I love that he is versatile. I think he is strong enough to play inside or out in the NFL he just needs to have better pad level. Really surprised people are down on this guy. Seems like a great kid.

I was really surprised with Jackson. I love the versatility and potential he has. If he is still there in the later round this kid could be a steal. With more strength training and technique coaching he could be a starter someday and will play early in a rotation. I really want this guy on our team."

I still feel the exact same why about Jackson. He does need to get stronger. He was 284 at the combine after playing at 266 in college. I think if he can get to 290 and keep the weight on plus build strength he could be a starter in a few years. I love the size and potential, great pick.

188 Danny Trevathan

Trevathan was my favorite prospect from the draft and for me is the reason I look at prospects. At the time going through the Linebackers none of them stood out to me, Tank was aggressive but meh and Linebacker is my favorite position, so I was disappointed. Danny was the last linebacker I looked at out of the group and picture my frame of mind. Bored and wanted to get this over with. Then I put on the tape, he made me sit up and sit on the edge of my chair. He was just a tackling machine. He sniffs the plays out quickly and navigates through traffic amazingly. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Danny he is what I said at the time: "He could get bigger and probably needs to if he wants to play in the NFL. He lacks some muscle in his lower half. He looks tiny on tape (must have put on weight for the combine, he was 220-225 in college I think). He needs to get better in coverage but he is one of the better backers I have seen doing it. He is an Ok blitzer. He has great vision for the ball carrier, always knows where the ball is. He is an excellent tackler, maybe the best wrap up guy from this group. He struggles with offensive linemen blocks. He has had great production and is a tackling machine. He finds his way through traffic easily. He is always activity, he has a great motor.

Danny is the one guy I want to draft, above all others. He could be the Wesley Woodyard of this draft. If he makes it deep into the fifth or sixth round you have to pick him. He provides depth at ILB and WLB and could be a special teams ace for years. Develop him for a few years and grow his body and I think he could be a starter in the NFL.

After going through the linebackers up to Danny there wasn't a guy that stood out to me and said 'Draft me'. Tank Carder is probably the only early round guy I would look at because I like his intensity and he can fill that SLB spot which is vacant."

I have really high hopes for Danny, I think he can be something special. If he can keep his weight and get to 240 then build a heap of strength I can envision him starting at ILB. Danny Trevathan 6' 237 pounds, Jon Beason 6' 237 pounds, just saying.

Grade

I think the Broncos did a fantastic job getting the guys they wanted and moving around the board. Yes they probably gave up a little value but when your Superbowl favorites teams ain't going to want to trade with you much. I don't think they really reached on a guy, this is how they had them graded and went after them. There is also the thinking that the Broncos didn't get 'impact players'. But if you look at Aussie's Mock draft and my roster breakdown there are not many holes to fill and draftees ain't going to take the spots of veteran starts. I think they filled out the roster and added quality depth across the board. I would give them a B for this job.

Undrafted Free Agents

The Broncos managed to sign 13 UDFAs, they are as follows.

Steven Johnson, LB Kansas
Jamie Blatnick, DE Oklahoma St.
Mike Remmers, OT Oregon St.
Elliot Coffey, LB Baylor
Duke Ihenacho, S San Jose St.
Gerell Robinson, WR Arizona St.
Austin Wuebbels, G Missouri
Wayne Tribue, G Temple
Anthony Miller, TE, Cal
Coryell Judie, CB Texas A&M
Aaron Brewer, Longsnapper San Diego St.
Jerry Franklin, LB Arkansas
Eric Page, WR Toledo

It was interesting to note we signed so many LBs from the group and most are smaller guys. The one guy that I loved we signed was Coryell Judie. I thought we would draft this guy and I think he will be very hard to cut in the preseason.

Draft Competition - Broncos Blog Draft Guru
The results were very close and I think will be controversial when you review them. From the second part of the competition only Jazzy scored some points. The results are in the table below.

Person	Total Score
Digger	38
Jazzy	35
Aussie	17

That means for the Broncos Blog Draft Guru for the 2012-13 season...Digger is the BBDG! Congratulations.

Full breakdown of the results are in the comments. Any issues or complements hit us up in the comments ~ Aussie.