Getting to know each other today during a ride from the airport to Broncos headquarters at Dove Valley, Denver’s trio of second-round picks realized there is a pattern to the draft choices of Broncos coach Josh McDaniels.
“We’re not only good players, but we’re also good people,” said Alphonso Smith, the cornerback from Wake Forest. “I kind of allude to my experience (in college). We had a team full of good people — smart guys that weren’t only good on the field but were just good people all around.
“It’s easy to coach good people. It’s easy to deal with good people. When it’s easy to coach good guys, that’s when the wins start piling up because everyone likes each other. The team chemistry is good. All the players are coachable. It makes everyone’s job easy. It allows us to focus on football instead of all the extra-curricular stuff.”
On Saturday, Smith (5 feet 9 inches and 193 pounds) went at No. 37 overall, Texas Tech safety Darcel McBath (6-0, 198) at No. 48 and tight end Richard Quinn (6-3, 264) of North Carolina at No. 64, which was the final pick on the first day of the draft.
Quinn said the draftees clicked immediately. First-round picks Knowshon Moreno and Roberts Ayers also flew in today for a meet-and-greet with coaches and the media.
“The guys that I’ve talked to, I can already see that they have good characteristics; they’re good people,” Quinn said. “They’re smart guys, real humble.
“That’s the kind of guys that Coach McDaniels wants to bring to this program. I’m just glad to be a part of that because I know he wants to rebuild and get this program going on the rise. I’m just happy to be a part of that. I’m ready for that ride.”
Acquiring good people is part of McDaniels’ plan, McBath said.
“Coach (McDaniels) knows what he wants,” McBath said. “He knows how he wants to win. He knows how to be successful.
“He’s doing that right now. The way he’s drafting players, the people he brought in (as free agents). He’s just focused on winning.”
Tom Kensler: 303-954-1280 or tkensler@denverpost.com
