36. DT Derek Wolfe B-

This explains why the Broncos traded down twice. Wolfe is a solid football player and definitely fills a need, but I had Kendall Reyes and Devon Still ranked higher than him, among others. This was a reach.

57. QB Brock Osweiler C

I’m completely torn on this.

On one hand, I love Brock Osweiler. I had a borderline 1^st/2^nd round grade on him and had him graded higher than Ryan Tannehill. He’s a little raw and inexperienced, but he’ll get the chance to sit behind a Hall of Famer in Denver and he won’t have to contribute right away. He’ll have the opportunity to learn from not one, but two Hall of Famers, Peyton Manning and John Elway and he’s got a very good chance to be their quarterback of the future and that’s so valuable.

On the other hand, what about their quarterback of right now? The opportunity to have a Peyton Manning does not come around very often. They need to build around him because their team, as it currently stands, is not quite Super Bowl caliber. This pick could have been much better spent on a receiver, a running back, an offensive lineman, hell even a piece for their defense would have been more helpful. Manning cannot be happy about this.

It’s also worth noting that Donovan McNabb and Brett Favre each suffered arguably the worst seasons of their career the year immediately after their team’s drafted Kevin Kolb and Aaron Rodgers respectively. McNabb went 8-8 (one of two seasons he missed the playoffs from 2000-2009) and Favre went a career worst 4-12. I’m just going to average an A and an F for this grade.

67. RB Ronnie Hillman C

They needed a running back, but Ronnie Hillman is undersized and struggled against tough competition at San Diego State (3 carries for 8 yards against Boise State, 20 carries for 55 yards against TCU, 24 carries for 55 yards against Louisiana-Lafayette). I had a 5^th round grade on him. This is way too early.

101. CB Omar Bolden A

I like this fit for the Broncos. Bolden was a 2^nd round prospect before an ACL tear that he hasn’t fully recovered from, but the Broncos don’t really need him right away with Champ Bailey and Tracy Porter. However, Porter was only signed to a one year deal and Bailey will be 35 next offseason so they need a long term starter. That could be Bolden. Unlike the Osweiler pick, this was only a 4^th round pick so I’m not going to knock them for building for the future instead of for now because 4^th rounders rarely contribute as rookies anyway.

108. C Phillip Blake A

The Broncos missed out of Jeff Saturday, but Phillip Blake could be an immediate upgrade over JD Walton, who ProFootballFocus graded as the worst starting center in the league last year. He’s a great value at this point in the draft.

137. DE Malik Jackson A-

I guess they could use another defensive lineman. This is the right range for Jackson, a versatile defensive end/defensive tackle. He could provide a nickel rusher at defensive tackle (they didn’t get any pass rush from the inside of their interior line) right away if they chose to use him in that role, that’s it’s not entirely clear that will be his role.

188. OLB Danny Trevathan B

This was a little early for Trevathan, but it’s late. This wasn’t a huge need or anything, but whatever.

The Broncos got Peyton Manning this offseason, but that far from solves everything. They may have gone 8-8 last season, but their -81 point differential suggests they should have gone 5-11 or 6-10. Regardless of whether or not you believe Tebow was the reason behind this, they won a ton of close games last year. That might not happen this year. They needed help at wide receiver, running back, the offensive line, as well as defensive tackle and some youth in the secondary.

They got their defensive tackle with their first pick, but there were better ones available. At least they traded down for him twice and didn’t take him at 25. I’ve already gone into detail on the Osweiler pick so I won’t repeat myself. That pick could help them a lot in the future, but it could really hurt them this season. It’s not good for team chemistry and it doesn’t help Peyton Manning. Ronnie Hillman in the 3^rd round could help Manning at little, but that was way too early for him.

Omar Bolden also helps them build for the future with their 4^th round pick, but that’s fine since it was the 4^th round. They made some decent late round selections, including Phillip Blake, who could end up their starting center over JD Walton at some point this season, but I don’t know how much they helped their team for this season, which should have been the goal of this draft given Manning’s age. They didn’t get him a receiver at all, they only got him one offensive lineman, and the running back they got him was a major reach.

Grade: C+