Enough already with speculating about the identity of the Broncos’ first-round draft choice.
Sure, it’s fun. But, far more often than not, it’s an exercise in futility. I quit trying the year the Broncos selected George Foster in Round One, sending media types scurrying through draft guides to figure out who he was.
In case you hadn’t noticed, the Broncos’ track record in the first round is, to be kind, spotty. Or maybe the names Willie Middlebrooks and Marcus Nash don’t ring a bell.
It isn’t about the first round. It’s about the entire draft, from top to bottom. To wit: Brandon Marshall, the Broncos’ best wide receiver, was a fourth-rounder. And Tom Nalen, a future Ring of Famer, if not Hall of Famer, was a seventh-rounder.
Don’t focus on the first round. It’s those other rounds, the mid-to-late rounds, that separate the great teams from the ordinary ones. And the Broncos have plenty of those kinds of picks. Denver owns nine picks, one in the first, second and sixth rounds, and two in the fourth, fifth and seventh rounds.
It’s just an opinion, but, for this draft to be successful, the Broncos need to come away with three starters out of those nine selections. Three starters, three impact players, three fixtures in the lineup for years to come.
Anything more than that would be a bonus.
Do you know who the Broncos will pick? Post your conjectures at Get them in now, while you can.
Follow Jim Armstrong’s daily sports commentaries on The Jimmy Page midday during the week. And read his columns on Sundays at .
He can be reached at 303-954-1269 or jmarmstrong@denverpost.com.
