Great mystery of the sports world No. 6,492: Why are the Broncos’ the NFL’s biggest boom-or-busters on draft weekend?
Mike Shanahan either hits it big in the draft or whiffs. There’s no in-between for Shanahan and his scouts.
It all started in 1995, Shanahan’s first draft in Denver, when the Broncos discovered Terrell Davis in the sixth round. In subsequent drafts, Shanahan and his staff unearthed Mike Anderson in the sixth round, Ben Hamilton in the fourth and Desmond Clark in the sixth.
But any analysis of Shanahan’s drafts also has to include Marcus Nash, Willie Middlebrooks, George Foster and Ashley Lelie, first-rounders who made little or no impact.
Why bring it up today, four games into the 2007 season? Because, unless looks prove deceiving, Shanahan and his staff have hit home runs in back-to-back drafts.
The 2006 draft produced Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Elvis Dumervil. And this year’s draft class includes Marcus Thomas, Tim Crowder and Jarvis Moss, keepers one and all, and Ryan Harris, who’s been hurt but shows tremendous promise.
Maybe the Broncos will get it together and make the playoffs this season, and maybe they won’t. But with all the young talent they’ve added in the past two years, the future looks bright.
Follow Jim Armstrong’s daily Broncos commentaries on The Jimmy Page at 7 a.m. and noon. And read his Third & Short column on Sundays and the day after Broncos games.
He can be reached at 303-954-1269 or jmarmstrong@denverpost.com.
