Mile High Morning: Do the Broncos have to look for a wide receiver in the first round?

[Miles]

The Lead


Folks, there's no going back now — it's officially draft season.


Mock drafts are flooding the streets and, for the most part, they say the Broncos are going to draft a wide receiver or should draft a wide receiver with the 15th-overall pick. Usually it's Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III or CeeDee Lamb — it doesn't really matter at this point; the agreed-upon consensus is that Denver absolutely must take a wideout with that first pick.


But in the past few days, two of the bigger-name NFL analysts have written that they see the Broncos taking players at other positions.


ESPN's Todd McShay picked former Georgia tackle Andrew Thomas to the Broncos in his most recent mock on Monday, and NFL.com's Peter Schrager had Denver taking former Oklahoma linebacker Kenneth Murray in his mock draft that was published on Wednesday.


"I had an NFL GM tell me at the combine that Murray was the best interview subject he's had in years," Schrager wrote. "Teams love what they see on film, but Murray might be an even better leader and person. The Broncos obviously already have two absolute studs on defense in Von Miller and Bradley Chubb. Make it three with Murray."


As for McShay's forecast, by the time the Broncos were on the clock, none of that top WR triumvirate (Jeudy, Ruggs and Lamb) were left on the board. It certainly stands to reason that one of the reasons the Broncos may have to look at a different position with the 15th-overall pick is that those guys simply aren't there.


But he sees Denver taking advantage of the depth at receiver in the second round, coming away with former Colorado Buffalo Laviska Shenault Jr., who not so long ago was considered a first-round talent. The chance to grab a player like that in the second round could afford them some flexibility in the first.