Denver Broncos: 7-round 2016 NFL mock draft

Round 1—Robert Nkemdiche, DT, Ole Miss

Based on talent alone, Robert Nkemdiche would be off the board without a second thought about it in the top-10. Between the dominance that he showed throughout his college career with the Ole Miss Rebels and the absolutely ridiculous physical measureables and abilities that he put on display at the NFL Combine, Nkemdiche is clearly a once-in-a-generation type of talent on the interior of a defensive line. The issue, of course, is his off-field stuff and character concerns.

Especially with the public struggles of other young players around the NFL right now that were drafted with definite character concerns, many teams are hesitant to take Nkemdiche for fear that he might not ever get the chance to show his talent at the pro level or won’t be willing to put in the work to be a quality NFL player that even comes close to living up to his potential.

First off, I think that Nkemdiche’s characters issues are at least slightly overblown—they’re still there, just not as dire as some make it seem—and that any concerns about how it might affect his learning curve are silly. And even if I’m wrong there, putting him on a defense with leaders like Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware would be perfect to help the big man from Ole Miss mature and make the transition to the NFL. If he looks like he’s going to fall out of the first round, which I think he will despite many people thinking he’ll hold on, I think Denver prevents it and brings in one of the most dominant football players in this draft class.

Next: Round 2