Going into the draft the Denver Broncos have one of the best, if not the best, secondaries in the NFL, thanks in large part to two very good starting safeties — T.J. Ward and Darian Stewart. However, outside of those two, the depth could be better.
The two safeties on the books for next year, besides Ward and Stewart, are Ryan Murphy — who very well could have seen his last days as a Bronco — and Shiloh Keo. Murphy was on the Broncos’ practice squad for a part of last year and was the player sent home during the Super Bowl week for being caught up in a prostitution sting.
Even though he was not arrested, Murphy most likely is not the high caliber of player that gets to live through an incident like this, especially because it brought negative press to the Broncos during Super Bowl week.
Keo returns to the Broncos after playing a reserve role down the stretch, joining the team on Dec. 9. The five-year veteran played a solid role in picking up the defense quickly, but isn’t an elite backup.
Having done nothing but lose safeties in free agency — Omar Bolden to the Bears, David Bruton to the Redskins and Josh Bush unsigned — it is almost certain the Broncos will turn to the draft to add safety depth.
For having such a glaring need, the Broncos are actually in a fairly good situation going into the draft. While they desperately need safety depth, it’s not something that they need to reach on, and, in fact, they can wait until the right player(s) falls to them.
Here are five safeties the Broncos could go after in the draft:
5. Jayron Kearse, SS, Clemson
Experience: Junior
Height/Weight: 6-4/216
Projected Round: 4-5
2015 Stats: 62 tackles; 6.5 tackles for loss; 1 interception; 6 passes defended; 1 forced fumble; 1 fumble recovery
Nephew of former Titan and Eagle great Jevon “The Freak” Kearse, Jayron Kearse brings a similar athletic ability to the NFL as his uncle. At 6-4, Jayron is exceptionally tall as a safety and possess freakish speed.
With all of the ability in the world, Jayron still has a significant amount of growth until he can live up to his abilities. The most concerning part of Jayron’s game is the effort level he brings, or doesn’t bring, to each and every play. His effort has been questioned throughout college and that is a major concern because it is something that cannot be coached. This has caused Jayron to coast on certain plays, take poor angles and have wasted steps due to lack of focus.
Other concerns in Jayron’s game revolve around his size. In order to develop into his height, he will need to bulk up and add muscle in order to not be abused by the ball carriers. He also needs to develop his footwork in order to improve his coverage skills, specifically against smaller quick receivers.
If Jayron is able to consistently bring a high effort level and add the proper weight, he has a chance to be a very good safety. His ceiling is incredibly high and he brings explosive hitting, the ability to create turnovers and can anticipate routes early.
With two stud veteran players playing in front of him, Jayron would have all of the motivation in the world to play at a high level and learn behind them. On the Broncos, Jayron would have an opportunity to have playing time his rookie year and develop into a very good player, if he is willing to work for it.
4. Miles Killebrew, SS, Southern Utah
Experience: Senior
Height/Weight: 6-2/217
Projected Round: 3-4
2015 Stats: 132 tackles; 2.5 tackles for loss; 7 passes defended
A four-year starter at Southern Utah, Miles Killebrew brings a lot of safety experience to the NFL. Fans often mistake Killebrew as a linebacker as he possesses ideal size, mentality and isn’t afraid to enforce his will on ball carrier.
While most powerful hitters have poor form tackling, which can lead to missed tackles, Killebrew has great tackling form. This allowed him to rack up over 100 tackles in each of his final two seasons.
Killebrew also possesses above average footwork and body control, allowing him to cover a lot of ground, change direction fast and chase down plays around the line of scrimmage.
What keeps Killebrew as a mid-round pick is his in game decision-making. Often times he is late diagnosing the play, has tunnel vision and has only average football instincts, which slows him down. All of these combined creates instances where he is in the wrong position and it holds his physical talents from being fully reached.
Working with defensive backs coach Joe Woods and defensive coordinator Wade Phillip’s could help Killebrew’s decision making and make him a very good player; however, if not, poor on-field decision-making could always lead to plays similar to Rahim Moore’s in the Baltimore Ravens playoff game.
3. T.J. Green, FS, Clemson
Experience: Junior
Height/Weight: 6-2/209
Projected Round: 1-3
2015 Stats: 95 tackles; 5.5 tackles for loss; 1 sack; 3 passes defended; 2 forced fumbles
The second Clemson safety that the Broncos could look at in the draft, T.J. Green, has an incredible amount of talent and potential. Green committed to Clemson as a wide receiver and played receiver his freshman year before transitioning to safety his second year.
Since he is coming out of college after just his junior year, he only has one year of starting safety experience under his belt. Because of this, he is very raw and still has a lot of untapped potential. Safeties typically don’t go very high in the draft, so for Green to be projected as a third round pick with the little experience that he has, shows how much talent people believe he has.
Like you would expect from a converted wide receiver, Green has great speed, very good cover abilities and the ball skills of a wideout. Unlike most wide receivers, Green isn’t afraid to get in the trenches and hit people. Because of this, Green is an asset in the running game as well as the passing game.
With being a relatively new defensive player, Green still hasn’t learned how to properly tackle, which leads to missed and broken tackles. This shouldn’t be too much of a concern for teams as he still has a lot of room to grow and because of the fact he isn’t afraid to make contact.
The Broncos could be the perfect place for Green as he could learn the position with a seasoned coaching staff and two great safeties in front of him. While Green still has a lot of room to grow, he has one of the highest ceilings of all of the safeties in this draft. With already having two starting safeties, the Broncos have the luxury of being able to draft a player with room to grow and tons of talent.
2. Justin Simmons, FS, Boston College
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V08z_iotr0I
Experience: Senior
Height/Weight: 6-2/202
Projected Round: 6
2015 Stats: 67 tackles; 1 tackle for loss; 5 interceptions; 1 pass defense; 2 forced fumbles; 3 fumble recoveries
Justin Simmons will be a great value pick for any team in the late rounds of the draft, as he possesses many positive characteristics with few weaknesses. Though Simmons enters the draft as a free safety, he played corner his junior season before spending his senior season at free safety.
His ability to play corner is evident in his game as he is very good in coverage and can be used all over the field, even as a nickel corner. This versatility would be a major asset in the current NFL, where nickel packages are used more and more often.
Simmons has many positive attributes such as the ability to diagnose a play early, great speed and acceleration, above average awareness and understanding, reliable tackler and great vision. During the entire 2015 season, Simmons allowed no broken tackles and have just four missed tackles.
The most impressive attribute of Simmons is his ability to create turnovers. In 2015 Simmons was involved in creating 10 turnovers — 5 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries — which is exceptional. His ability to step up in big games and moments is also something that should not be overlooked.
After reading all of these positive attributes about Simmons, what could possibly make him slip to the later rounds? That’s still a bit of a mystery to me, even though he does have his areas of improvement. At 6-foot-2 202 pounds, Simmons has a slender body, which scouts are afraid he will not be able to add the proper weight needed to hold up in the NFL.
Additionally, Simmons can improve his footwork, which has hurt his ability to change direction and make sharp cuts. While he understands and plays zone fairly well, he can still improve in his one-on-one coverage.
The biggest question with Simmons is if his body can add the weight needed to play in the NFL. If he is able to do this, he would be a fantastic value pick in the later rounds of the draft, somewhere the Broncos could be taking their second safety of the draft.
1. Karl Joseph, West Virginia
Experience: Senior
Height/Weight: 5-10/205
Projected Round: 2-3
2015 Stats: 4 games; 20 tackles; 2 tackles for loss; 5 interceptions; 1 sack; 1 forced fumble
Coming out of West Virginia, Karl Joseph is about as close to a second coming as T.J. Ward as is possible. Not only having a similar stature as Ward (Ward is 5-10/200), Joseph has a very similar playing type as Ward — a punisher.
Just as Ward, Joseph loves contact, is very physical, hits hard and is very tough. There is even a chance that Joseph can develop to be an even better player than Ward because he possesses more all-around abilities. Where Ward and Joseph both are punishing players in the running game, Joseph is also very good in the passing game.
Before tearing his ACL his senior season, Joseph lead the nation with 5 interceptions in just four games. Averaging over one interception per game, even in just a four game span, is all-world. This shows that he is not just a good cover safety, but he is a playmaker with great awareness.
Joseph’s impressive resume goes way deeper than just his impressive four games his senior year. Joseph was a full-time starter his freshman, sophomore and junior season, even being named West Virginia’s defensive player of the year his freshman season when he racked up 104 tackles.
Along with all of that, Joseph is great in the locker room with his leadership skills as a captain of the team. He also possesses an extremely high football IQ that his coaches and teammates rave about.
Teams are still wary about his ACL injury that occurred this past October as well as his below average size. Joseph can play a bit smarter at times to avoid being flagged for illegal hits, just as T.J. Ward, and can improve his open field tackling.
Since the Broncos do not have a major need for great safeties in the draft, taking Joseph in the early rounds may not be worth it as they have more prominent needs to address. However, by adding Joseph the Broncos would not only get a great backup safety for next year, but a potential all-pro starter for many years to come.