Denver Broncos Rumors: Team Expected to Draft Cornerback in First Two Rounds
By Josh Sanchez
The Denver Broncos have a future Hall of Famer in their secondary with Champ Bailey, but they are realistic enough to realize his time in the league is about to come to an end and they should start considering potential replacements. According to Mike Klis of the Denver Post, the Broncos will be looking to do just that in the 2013 NFL Draft.
Klis says that the Broncos will likely select a cornerback in the first or second-round of April’s draft.
The team will be looking to adopt the Seattle Seahawks strategy at the cornerback position by adding bigger bodies on the outside. Denver started implementing their new strategy this offseason when they signed Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, who stands at 6-foot-2.
Klis mentioned the top bigger framed cornerbacks in this year’s draft in his article:
"Know this: The Broncos will draft a cornerback, running back and defensive lineman in the first three rounds. Maybe in that order. And when the Broncos scour the tape of draft-eligible cornerbacks, they will pay close attention to players 6-feet or taller.The larger cornerback candidates are Xavier Rhodes, Johnthan Banks, Darius Slay, Blidi Wreh-Wilson, David Amerson and Tharold Simon."
Rhodes will likely be off the board by the time the Broncos are on the clock and Banks has seen his stock dropping to the second-round. If the Broncos were forced to choose between Banks, Slay, Wreh-Wilson, Amerson and Simon in the first-round, the most interesting reach would be Amerson.
Amerson entered the season as a top five prospect, but struggled to match the numbers and performance from his sophomore season. He does, however, still have an intriguing skill set and the versatility to play cornerback and safety.
The former North Carolina State standout could benefit from playing behind Champ Bailey and Rodgers-Cromartie as he learns the tricks of the trade.
Eventually, he could live up to the hype that surrounded him entering his final year in college.
If you are a Broncos fan, what cornerback would you like to see your team take a risk on? Should cornerback be a first-round priority or would the team be wise to look running back in the first and acknowledge their secondary needs in the second? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section.