NFL Draft: Day 3 Wrap-Up

As of Saturday (4/24) evening, the 2010 NFL Draft was officially done.

The Broncos only had two picks on the final day, one in round 5, one in round 6 but finished with 4 players after trading a 2011 5th round pick for two 7th round picks this year.

With their 5th round selection, McD & Co. decided to take a chance on character by selecting cornerback Perrish Cox from Oklahoma State. His character issues stem from tardiness and curfew breaking before Oklahoma State's bowl game this year, from which Cox was suspended. It is well-documented how averse Josh is to these types of players but in meeting with Cox before the draft, he must have been confident that these were just the mistakes of a young college student hanging with the wrong crowd.

Picking Cox in the 5th round could turn out to be a major steal. Mike Mayock of the NFL Network said Cox has first round talent but gave him a 3rd round grade because of his off-the-field issues. Josh McDaniels spoke highly of Cox's achievements in the return game as he had 6 career return touchdown's at OK State. If he can learn from Champ Bailey and Andre Goodman and stop hanging around punks, he can probably be an elite corner one day.

With their 6th round pick, the Broncos offensive guard/center Eric Olsen from Notre Dame. McDaniels' mission to beef up the offensive line and give it some depth continued with this pick of another versatile lineman. All three of the Broncos offensive line picks can play various positions across the line which, obviously, gives them more value.

Of the new lineman, McDaniels said, "(Eric) Olsen is more of a guard to center, (J.D.) Walton is more of a center to guard and (Zane) Beadles is more of a tackle to guard."

With their first 7th round pick, Denver chose another cornerback in Syd'Quan Thompson from California. From what I've read, Thompson is another one of 'McDaniels' guys' meaning he's got the drive and determination that is evident on the football field. His only problem being he ran the 40 at the combine in the mid/upper 4.7s. Corners in the NFL have to be much quicker than that.

With their last pick, the Broncos selected Indiana defensive end Jammie Kirlew. Kirlew will be another hybrid player that will be mostly used at outside linebacker. These last two guys would definitely add some depth if they made the team, but that's a pretty big if. Thompson will try to fit in somewhere among Champ Bailey, Andre Goodman, Nate Jones, Alphonso Smith, Tony Carter, and now Perrish Cox. As for Kirlew, he's up against Elvis Dumervil, Robert Ayers, Darrell Reid, Baraka Atkins, and Jarvis Moss.

Overall, I feel like this was a good draft for the Broncos that should have at least a few rookies contributing right away. I'm very excited for how electric our passing game could be once Decker and Thomas are healthy and in the rotation. McD now has his bulldozers on the offensive line which should also open things up for Knowshon. Of course, being this close to the draft makes it easier to be optimistic. However, I do believe Josh knows what he's doing.

I do intend to post my take on Tim Tebow but with finals and final projects that must be prepared for, it will have to wait.

Go Broncos!