What does the Broncos top-30 visits tell us?

We are just days away from the start of the 2022 NFL Draft which means the pre-draft process is completed. Part of that process is having a max of 30 prospects visit your facility and have a pre-draft visit with the team, coaches, and management. These visits are called the “Top-30” visits and the prospects who the Broncos had in have been mostly reported one way or another.

I have been keeping tabs on the reported visits and have 28 of the 30 reported top-30 visits. All the rest of the prospects the Broncos have reportedly shown interest in are listed in my Broncos draft interest tracker.

Note: This doesn’t count Wyoming ILB Chad Muma who was technically a local visit, not a top-30 visit according to 9New’s Denver’s Mike Klis

Broncos' unofficial top-30 pre-draft visits

1. Tyler Smith, OT, Tulsa
2. Nick Grant, DB, Virginia
3. Isaih Pacheco, RB, Rutgers
4. Abraham Lucas, OT, Washington State
5. Cordale Flott, CB, LSU
6. Shermani Jones, RB, Coastal Carolina
7. Tyquan Thornton, WR, Baylor
8. Ja’Quan McMillan, DB, East Carolina
9. Cam Jurgens, OC, Nebraska
10. Matt Waletzko, OL, North Dakota
11. Braxton Jones, OL, Southern Utah
12. Dylan Parham, IOL, Memphis
13. Cole Strange, IOL, Tennessee-Chattanooga
14. Jared Bernhardt, WR/KR/QB, Ferris State
15. Chigoziem Okonkwo, TE, Maryland
16. DeAngelo Malone, EDGE, Western Kentucky
17. James Cook, RB, Georgia
18. Tariq Carpenter, LB/S, Georgia Tech
19. DaRon Bland, CB, Fresno State
20. Thayer Munford, IOL, Ohio State
21. Nik Bonitto, EDGE, Oklahoma
22. Martin Emerson, CB, Mississippi State
23. Travis Jones, IDL, UCONN
24. Drake Jackson, EDGE, USC
25. Roger McCreary, CB, Auburn
26. Damarion Williams, CB, Houston
27. Zamir White, RB, Georgia
28. Smoke Monday, CB, Auburn

Based on the position groups listed above, It is clear that offensive tackle/offensive line, Edge rusher, and defensive back(CB/S) are the positions the Broncos are focused on heading into the draft. They spent a significant amount of time on these positional groups, so I expect them to select these positions with some of their top-100 selections.

Of the 28 prospect visits, I have rounded up, 9 of them were defensive backs, 8 of them were offensive linemen, and 3 of them were edge rushers. The amount of edge rushers is lower, but, USC’s Drake Jackson and Oklahoma’s Nik Bonitto are two of the highest-rated prospects to visit Dove Valley. We also saw four running backs in for a visit. So, look for the Broncos to add a potential “1B” to pair with running back Javonte Williams.

So, what can we gather from this? I expect them to add at least one cornerback early if possible and probably another later as well. The depth behind Patrick Surtain II isn’t great and you can never have enough corners, especially in the AFC West. Also, the Broncos brought in a bunch of the top zone interior offensive lineman, so Lloyd Cushenberry’s job may not be safe(and potentially Dalton Risner). I expect them to add a tackle, but it may not be as early as some hope. Adding Billy Turner doesn’t make tackle a big immediate need.

As for edge prospects, it can go either way. I expect them to draft one, but when is the big question. It’s a deep class according to George Paton, so he may wait to select one, but, two of the biggest names who visited were edge rushers, so he could even trade up for one. Either way, with the questions at edge rusher, look for at least one to be added before the final pick is announced.

In the end, I think these visits give us a good idea of the type of players and positions the Broncos are targeting during the 2022 NFL Draft. It doesn’t necessarily mean they are going to draft one of, if any, of the prospects listed above, but we can draw some conclusions from this list.