The explosive Edge rusher would be a big addition to the Broncos defense.

One prospect who the Denver Broncos might be interested in during the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft is Alabama Edge Rusher, Dallas Turner. He is a 6-3, 247-pound edge rusher who is considered one of, if not the top defensive player in the entire draft. NFL Network’s lead draft analyst has Turner ranked as his 11th overall prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft and is his top edge rusher and defensive player in the draft.

Turner played three seasons at Alabama and was one of their best defensive players this past season. During his three seasons with the Crimson Tide, he totaled 120 tackles, 32.5 tackles for a loss, 22.5 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles. This past season, Turner totaled 53 tackles, 14.5 tackles for a loss, 10 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles.

Player Profile

Height: 6-3

Weight: 247 pounds

40-time: 4.46 seconds

Arm Length: 34 3/8th inches

Hands: 9 7/8th inches

Vertical Jump: 40.5 inches

Broad Jump: 10’7”

Age: 21 years old

Film Room

Scouting Report

Strengths

• Long, athletic, explosive, and strong
• Has an explosive first step
• Quick and strong initial punch
• Can bend and dip off the edge
• Excellent speed rusher with a good arsenal of moves already
• Has sideline to sideline range and can run down ball carriers and chase down QBs extending plays/escaping the pocket
• Elite closing burst
• Solid edge defender who can tackle backs behind the line of scrimmage
• High-upside player with league-leading sack potential

Weaknesses

• Likely will need to improve his play strength to anchor against offensive tackles and consistently set the edge in the NFL
• Needs to add some counter-pass rush moves to his arsenal
• Hands usage needs to be improved as he develops
• Needs to be more consistent overall

Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner’s RAS

What other analysts are saying about Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner

NFL Network’s lead draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah - Link

Turner is a long, athletic edge with excellent production and an intriguing skill set as a pass rusher. He has a quick first step and wins a lot of reps by stabbing with his inside arm and collapsing the offensive tackle’s outside shoulder. He can also bend, wrap, flatten and finish once he gets to the top of his rush. He is inconsistent with his pure bull rush. The longer the runway before contact, the more success he finds. Against the run, he can set a physical edge or slip blocks to make plays at the line of scrimmage. His effort is excellent. Overall, Turner has played a pivotal role on the ‘Bama defense for three years and he’s ready to make an immediate impact at the next level.

NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein - Link

Long and athletic with the explosive traits needed to become an impactful NFL pass rusher. Turner’s first-step quickness and elite closing burst are important building blocks, but he still needs to work on his process from Point A to Point B. He hasn’t learned to create the space and angles needed to consistently attack the edges, but that should come with better hand development and a more diversified approach. A team would be wise to widen him out and allow him a better runway to ignite his burst and overwhelm tackles with his speed. He’s added 20 pounds since coming to Alabama, but he struggles at times to stack and shed run blockers or set a firm edge. Turner’s frame and game are much less developed than Will Anderson Jr.’s coming out of Alabama last year, so it could take time for him to make his mark as a starting 3-4 outside linebacker.

Does Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner make sense for the Broncos in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft?

If the Broncos pass on a quarterback at 12th overall for whatever reason, Turner could be one of the best available players, if he is even available at all.

He is a twitchy and bendy edge rusher who would instantly become the Broncos top pass rusher. Their unit has a lot of bodies currently but none of them really offer consistent pressure off the edge. Turner would give them that and potentially a 10+ sack guy year in year out.

It is possible that Turner goes before the Broncos pick. He is arguably the top defensive player available in this draft and makes sense for a team that is not targeting a quarterback, receiver, or tackle which figures to dominate the top 10 of the draft.

Now, I’ll be saying this for all non-quarterback first round prospects in this draft. It seems very unlikely that they will be selecting a non-quarterback at 12th overall. The possibilities are a quarterback(Nix?) at 12, a trade back and a quarterback there, or a trade back and a quarterback on day 2. Either way, these scenarios would remove a player like Turner as an option for the Broncos. He is a fun prospect but I would be surprised if he is a player they end up selecting in this draft.