With criticism whirling around the Broncos’ 2011 draft class, there should be a pause on pessimism and a momentary embrace of exuberance.
What’s there to be positive about after the team finished a franchise-worst 4-12 in 2011? The team just landed a top-notch defensive player that could one day see his name wrapping around that ring of fame circle at Invesco Field.
Although the Broncos failed to address its top need at defensive tackle, the team scored a home run with their first round pick Von Miller with the No. 2 selection and that should widely affect how fans view this year’s draft class.
After all, it was the No. 2 pick that was the most important of the weekend, and with it, the Broncos landed a prospect that is the best pass rusher coming out of college this year. More importantly, the 6’3″, 246-pound Miller has excelled all over the football field, molding himself into whatever position his coaches required him to play.
While at Texas A&M, Miller led the nation in sacks as a junior and was awarded the Dick Butkus award, given to the nation’s top linebacker, as a senior. In addition, Miller dominated now-pro left tackles such as the Seahawks’ Russell Okung (No. 4 overall in 2010), the Vikings’ Phil Loadholt (No. 54 in 2009) and the Patriots’ Nate Solder (No. 17 this year).
According to Mark Kiszla’s article in Friday’s Denver Post, “Solder recently confessed he had trouble touching Miller, let alone blocking the Texas A&M linebacker, during workouts at the Senior Bowl.”
Beyond the college stage, Miller has excelled, winning the MVP award in the Senior Bowl in January, exploding at the NFL combine – his top speed is as fast as some NFL wide receivers – and joining the NFL players as the only non-NFL representative in their current lawsuit against the league.
None of this matters though, because the only thing that will measure Miller’s success as a Bronco is where the team’s defense ranks at the end of each year.
In 2010, Denver was dead last in every major defensive category, so it can only move in one direction, and Miller will be one of the major pulsating forces behind that shift.
Despite landing the talented Miller, fans and columnists alike are distraught that the team didn’t fill the hole at defensive tackle.
According to the Post’s Woody Paige, the Broncos draft was something of a failure, stemming from the selection of Miller, and pondering, “is a linebacker better than a defensive tackle, a cornerback, another quarterback or two extra draft choices?” He couldn’t be more wrong for asking this.
The Broncos draft is worthy of an A-grade for the first time in a long time, because of the type of talent Miller brings to the table.
Perhaps the most important thing to come from the weekend was doing the opposite of what Paige wanted. The Broncos reared away from the McDaniels-era mistakes of over-trading during the draft and over-loading the quarterback position, grounding themselves on fixing needs at linebacker, safety, offensive line and tight end.
Yes, they didn’t get a defensive tackle, but they made steps in the right direction. And that is a reason to be hopeful.
To see a comprehensive report card of this year’s draft go to Steve’s story for further analysis of each team’s selection.
