Multiple Trades See Broncos Land High-Impact Draft Class in New Mock

The NFL draft is 10 days away, and the Denver Broncos are embracing the calm before the storm. The Broncos still have work to do, but pro days are over, and most visits are over.

Now, it's a matter of figuring out their boards and plans for when the chaos of the draft gets underway. While the 2024 draft was much more straightforward with the push to “get a quarterback” at 12 overall, this year is less so. The Broncos have to figure out the best ways to build around that quarterback and sit with the 20th pick in a strange class due to how weak it is. 

Some positions have a lot of strength, like tight end and running back, both of which the Broncos can use. However, there are not many true first-round talents or blue-collar prospects, as there usually are. This throws the first round into a disarray as teams normally have 20-25 first-round prospects, and by most accounts, they have under 15 this year. 

In this penultimate mock draft, the Broncos make four trades, two moving down and two moving up. Trading down isn’t something Sean Payton has done, but NFL media close to the Broncos have talked a lot about hopes of moving down.

All four transactions use previous draft trades with similar picks as a basis, with the two trade-downs being from the 2022 NFL draft and the two trade-ups being from 2024. So, without further ado, let's get into it. 

Trades

This mock draft starts with not one but two trade downs, as the board at 20 wasn’t great for the Broncos. Using a 2022 trade as the basis, in which the 21st pick was moved for the 29th, 94th, and 121st picks, the Broncos sent No. 20 to the Los Angeles Rams for picks 26, 90, and 127.

There are a few pieces the Rams could want to trade up for, and 20 seems like a prized spot for teams to move up as they want to get ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers or Los Angeles Chargers. This presumption saw me increase the compensation from the 2022 trade baseline. 

Then, at No. 26, the Broncos again traded down. Using another 2022 trade that saw 26 get moved for 34, 69, and 163, I had the Broncos send No. 26 to the New York Giants for 34, 99, and 105.

With the Giants passing on a quarterback at No. 3 overall, this move was made with them moving up for one, which led to some changes in the capital Denver received compared to the 2022 baseline. 

Round 2, Pick 34: Jayden Higgins | WR | Iowa State

While there is some promising buzz about Courtland Sutton's contract situation, there are still concerns over how many years he has left. You typically see receivers hit that wall around 31, and Sutton turns 30 this October. He could be one of the exceptions that offers good years after that, but Denver can protect itself with the Higgins. 

There are many similarities between Sutton and Higgins, although the latter's hands are more reliable than the former's. Over four years at Iowa State, Higgins only dropped seven passes, with three coming in 2021.

Higgins could be the heir apparent to Sutton in a similar way Sutton was for Demaryius Thomas when he was drafted in 2018. Higgins doesn’t have special-teams ability and is not a dynamic threat after the catch, but he is a big-body receiver who can thrive on the boundary.

Higgins would immediately come in as the No. 2 receiver in this offense while using the other Broncos' pass-catcher in ways that better fit their skill set. He has quick adjustments to the ball, excellent ball tracking skills, and a sound route tree entering the NFL. 

Another significant aspect of Higgins is his availability. He never missed a game at Iowa State with injury and played 26 straight games. He knows how to use his size and box defenders out of the catch point and turn those 50/50 passes in his favor. In those situations in college, he caught 45-of-81 of them, including 14-of-24 last season. 

When you see Higgins at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, you may want to write him off when working out of the slot, but he can still do it. He has good slant routes with that crisp and clean break-off of the snap to be a threat on plays Payton has loved to run with marginal success with the Broncos with Sutton or Lil’Jordan Humphrey as the primary targets. While Higgins isn’t Michael Thomas, his ability to be used in the slot is similar. 

Trade

Sitting at 51, the Broncos aren’t comfortable with a player falling much farther than he has. So, I had the Broncos move up by using a 2024 trade that saw picks 50, 53, and 161 sent for 40, 78, and 152.

Denver sent picks 51, 90, and 191 for picks 40 and 114. This has the most considerable variation in the baseline to the mock trade, as it is using the New Orleans Saints' desperation for more picks to rebuild their roster with cost-controlled players

Round 2, Pick 40: TreVeyon Henderson | RB | Ohio State

Higgins and Henderson debated which way to go first. I chose to go the way I did because some comments of concern have been made about Henderson's medical checks at the NFL Combine.

Seeing Henderson on the board this late in the mock draft simulator was too good to pass up. The only thing keeping me from being comfortable with Henderson at 20 is the medicals, but 20 picks later, it's fine. 

Henderson is an excellent complementary back. While he may not be a bell-cow, Payton doesn’t utilize them. Payton likes to have his 1A and 1B, and Henderson, with his receiving, blocking, and rushing ability, makes him ideal for one of those two spots.

Henderson only needs the power between the tackles and a short-yardage runner to complement him. In other words, he is the Alvin Kamara (not a player comparison), and the Broncos would need his Mark Ingram. 

The injuries will always be a concern. Henderson has dealt with multiple injuries that have caused him to miss numerous games over multiple seasons.

Keeping him healthy and available is part of why you don’t want to consider him a bell-cow back but a complementary piece. He has the right attitude and is talked about as the ultimate do-whatever player as long as it helps the team win. That fits with the locker room that Payton had to tear down and rebuild.

Henderson has an elite fumble rate, only fumbling twice in the first two years of his college career. He is trusted as a pass protector with great technique and mindset.

Last season, Henderson had the third-best rate of 10-plus-yard runs, helped by his ability to make defenders miss as they close in on the tackle. There isn’t a bad thing said about a football player's character, attitude, desire, or mentality, and Payton will love that. 

Round 3, Pick  85: Jonah Savaiinaea | OG | Arizona

It can be tough to use a top 100 pick to think ahead, but Savaiinaea is thinking about 2026, not this year. If he sees the field as a rookie, then injuries occurred, or something went wrong. This pick will enable the Broncos to part ways with Ben Powers, who has been solid but not worth his contract after the 2025 season, and have someone develop to take over. 

Savaiinaea can play as a rookie, but ideally, he gets a year to improve his technique and be more consistent. That said, if Powers goes down with injury, there shouldn’t be a significant drop-off to inserting Savaiinaea. Still, the Broncos value Alex Palczewski as a backup interior lineman and should see the field before Savaiinaea. 

Savaiinaea has good power and decent enough movement skills. He can be moved out to tackle if necessary, but it is best to leave him inside at guard.

Savaiinaea has the traits and skill set to be an effective blocker in the Payton run scheme, and at this point, he was the best player left on the board. This was a pick for next year after the first two picks helped the immediate future.

Round 3, Pick 99: Jay Toia | NT | UCLA

The Broncos have been looking for a traditional two-gapping nose tackle for two years, and Toia is one flying under the radar. His size isn’t ideal for doing it full-time, but the Broncos aren’t looking for a full-time player. Toia would be part of the rotation with D.J. Jones and Malcolm Roach, and give the Broncos an excellent two-gapping run defender for obvious rushing downs, something they lack. 

Toia can draw double teams as an interior run defender, which helps open up players beside and behind him. While Jones is a good run defender, he is also a 1.5-gap defender, and he has struggled when tasked as a two-gapper, with Roach being more of their interior pass rusher from the nose tackle spot. 

This is a targeted pick for a specific and niche role that the Broncos lack. While in typical drafts, this may be a bit early, this class has those issues at the top that cause a trickle-down effect of players getting selected earlier than they normally would.

Toia is still worth it as a top-five run defender in this class and a top-three from the nose tackle position. There is some bull-rush ability in passing downs, but that is more limited. 

Round 4, Pick 105: Jarquez Hunter | RB | Auburn