Denver Post Broncos writer Parker Gabriel posts his Broncos Mailbag weekly during the season and periodically during the offseason. Click here to submit a question.
Jonah Coleman looks like he could be the second coming of C.J. Anderson: A short, tanky back with big-time pass protection skills. It looks like we’re going into 2026 with J.K. Dobbins as RB1 again, but can he beat out RJ Harvey for that RB2 slot? Thanks.
— Ryan Smith, Commerce City
Hey Ryan, thanks for writing and getting us going this week.
The other Broncos running back that Coleman has drawn early comparisons to: Dobbins himself. In fact, head coach Sean Payton brought it up during the draft and assistant general manager Reed Burckhardt after the draft called the comp “very valid.” Thatap a pretty good starting point for the fourth-round pick out of Washington.
Dobbins will indeed lead Denver’s running back group into the 2026 season. Itap early to know exactly how roles shake out, but to my mind the early blueprint is essentially Dobbins and Harvey in similar roles to what they did last year and then Coleman as the third-down back plus maybe a little more.
Letap just make the overarching disclaimer once, since most of the questions this week are about guys who have not yet stepped on an NFL practice field, let alone played in preseason or regular season games: Itap April. Every rookie has a lot to do to get onto the field and there are months of work, development, signings, injuries and all the rest before we even get to the season’s starting point.
The Broncos would of course love it if Harvey took a big step in Year 2 and added every-down rushing efficiency to his obvious talent and explosiveness catching the ball and working in space. They would love it if Dobbins plays the entire season for the first time in his career. They’d love it if Coleman made himself difficult to keep off the field.
Coleman’s going to have to prove he can pick up Denver’s protection plan — not an easy task for a rookie — in order to lock down the third-down job, but the Broncos like his ability in that department. Add in 51 catches over the past two years at Washington and there’s a chance he can essentially consolidate the roles of Tyler Badie and Jaleel McLaughlin. In an ideal world, Coleman and Harvey can perhaps take a bit of the load off Dobbins and complete the orbit of needs around him and then also serve as complementary options should Dobbins miss time.
On paper, it looks good. If everyone is healthy going into the season and Harvey looks poised to take a leap, Coleman’s role right out of the chute might be third down only. But even thatap an important spot, and the rookie could push for more.
Hey Parker! What do you think of our draft class? I like Jonah Coleman and I think he can be a contributor this year. But how do you feel about Tyler Onyedim? And what’s up with us not going for an inside linebacker until literally the last pick in the draft?
— Mark, Arvada
Hey Mark, thanks for writing and, more importantly, for agreeing with me on Coleman.
Onyedim, too, is going to have a real chance to carve out a role, even if itap not a massive one. Basically, he’s going to get thrown into the mix of players attempting to replace John Franklin-Myers, who got more than $20 million per year from Tennessee in free agency.
Itap worth saying there’s no guarantee that Denver will play its defensive rotation exactly like it did a year ago. Franklin-Myers played very similar rates each of his two years in Denver — 46% in 2024 and 49% last year. That doesn’t necessarily mean the Broncos will see those 517 snaps as the exact shape of the hole. They could use Malcolm Roach even a bit more (career-high 50% play time in his 12 games last year) and Eyioma Uwazurike (36% playing time) figures to be a key in the equation, too. If Denver keeps Roach in essentially the role he excelled in last year, then it has three options to replace JFM’s approximate snaps: Uwazurike and Onyedim — former teammates at Iowa State — and 2025 third-rounder Sai’Vion Jones.
Uwazurike has the most experience, even after missing 2023 due to suspension and playing just 63 snaps in 2024. Overall, though, thatap a good battle going into this summer. Plus, Uwazurike is entering the final year of his rookie contract this fall.
As for the linebacker conversation, there’s never a good way to say exactly how or why a team didn’t draft a position during a particular draft. Burckhardt made it clear afterward that Denver wanted a linebacker, but didn’t see it as a critical need after re-signing Justin Strnad and Alex Singleton earlier this spring. Itap also worth considering how the second round developed.
Remember, GM George Paton said the club had a group of six players targeted as options at No. 62.
“They all started going,” Paton said Friday night after selecting Onyedim while noting that the defensive lineman was in that group of six.
Combine that with the fact that five ILBs (and four TEs) went in the 19 picks before Denver’s original slot. ILB Anthony Hill Jr. and TE Max Klare were selected in the spots immediately preceding Denver. Itap not difficult to figure out where, at least in part, the Broncos were initially looking.
Do you think either of the tight ends we drafted will do much this year? I don’t know much about them.
— Phillip K., Denver
Hey Phillip, thanks for the question. They’ll each have a chance to contribute early, but I’m not sure you look at either as a surefire rotation member right out of the gate.
They are different kinds of players. Justin Joly, the fifth-rounder out of NC State, is a pass-catcher first and foremost. He’s, in positional parlance, an “F” who will move around the formation, play from the slot or wing and factor in the passing game. Dallen Bentley, the seventh-rounder out of Utah, is a “Y.” He’s the classic tight end who can line up in-line, attached to the tackle on either side of the formation.
The shorthand: Joly begins as an Evan Engram-type and Bentley begins as Adam Trautman-type.
Those aren’t Denver’s only tight ends, of course, though injuries limited the rest of the group in terms of playing time in 2025. That trio came in this way: Nate Adkins (199 snaps in nine games), Marcedes Lewis (81 snaps in five games) and Lucas Krull (53 snaps in three games).
Trautman’s 57% playing time checked in between 2024 (52%) and 2023 (70%). Engram played less in Year 1 with the Broncos than any healthy season previously in Jacksonville and with the New York Giants.
The Broncos need to figure out how to get more production out of this group. If thatap via Joly or Bentley right away, great. Maybe they can help Denver play heavier or feature more TE variety. If itap as simple as unlocking Engram more, thatap more than fine. As a starting point, I’m not sure there’s a massive role for either rookie right away, but perhaps one or both can make some summer noise and alter that conversation.
What can you tell me about this Red Murdock kid? I’ve been watching videos about him and it feels like we found a gem that fell through the cracks. He owns the NCAA record for most career forced fumbles! How did he not get drafted higher?
— Walter, Pueblo
Hey Walter, thanks for writing in. First thing, make sure to catch Sean Keeler’s column from early this week. Itap a good one and will tell you a lot about Murdock the person. He’s a smart, interesting guy.
The stats are indeed wild. Murdock forced 17 fumbles over 34 games at Buffalo. He was credited with 298 total tackles in the past two seasons. So on and so forth.
Not only that, but plenty of services thought Murdock would go sooner than No. 257. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, for example, had him graded as a fourth or fifth-round pick and the No. 138 overall player in the class. Murdock checked in two spots behind Boise State OL Kage Casey on Brugler’s overall list. The Broncos drafted Casey No. 111 overall.
As for why Murdock was available late, teams see players in increasingly disparate ways as the draft enters its latter stages. Murdock also doesn’t have a huge wingspan and isn’t a top-shelf athlete, comparatively speaking. He also dealt with a foot/ankle injury last year that he played through but which lingered long enough to cut his pro day short this spring.
Which of the undrafted free agents do you think will have the best shot at making the team?
— K.J., Cheyenne, Wyo.
Hey K.J., good question and definitely one to revisit after rookie minicamp, which will be next weekend. There’s always somebody who jumps out when reporters get a chance to watch guys on the field. That doesn’t always equate to making the 53-man roster, but itap always an interesting exercise. Plus, itap hard to complain about seeing football-related activities in May.
The first guide is typically money. If you see a big guarantee for an undrafted free agent — some teams committed as much as $300,000 in total guarantees this spring — that means the team believes that player will at least be on their practice squad. The base practice squad salary for a rookie is $13,750 per week, totaling $247,500 for the season. So some players are essentially being guaranteed an entire PS salary plus a little.
By that measure in Denver, you’d look to players like ILB Taurean York (Texas A&M), OLB Dasan McCullough (Nebraska) and OT Tyler Miller (Iowa State). Of course, offensive line and outside linebacker are going to be two of the toughest position groups to crack, assuming good health. So letap say York as an early candidate, but see what happens once the guys have been on the field a couple of times, too.
