ENGLEWOOD, Colorado: In the first three rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft, which took place on Friday, the Broncos selected three players.
They managed to secure another top-100 selection the next day.
As the draft came to an end on Saturday, the Broncos not only made two selections but also completed a deal to acquire tight end Adam Trautman. The 2020 third-round selection strengthened the team’s roster by adding another elite talent and meeting a need.
Following the draft, Head Coach Sean Payton stated, “We felt this was one of the needs for us coming in.” “We couldn’t force that, so this kind of came up yesterday when we passed that tiny area, or sweet spot, of tight ends and maybe picked another player.”
The Broncos compared the fourth-year player to “a handful of the other third-round [tight ends],” according to Payton, who selected Trautman in the first round in New Orleans. The Broncos were able to add Trautman without having to use a Day 2 pick by trading a sixth-round pick to the Saints in exchange for a seventh-round pick.
“We selected Adam from Dayton,” stated Payton. “He spent two years as a player for us. The player can be described as a versatile tight end who can play the position of “F” [receiving tight end]. Most recently, he played a lot on the ball. A tight end that is drafted straight out of college typically excels in one area. First blocker, then [catching]. Adam seemed like one of those guys who was strong in both areas when we drafted him. In New Orleans, we used him based on who was healthy, who was up, and who was down, both in line and in the “F” position. He has excellent cosmetics, terrific character, and is clean.
Because of their time together in New Orleans, Payton claimed the Broncos had a “head start” on scouting Trautman. He also said the tight end’s addition was “just as thrilling” as any of the team’s other selections.
Payton remarked, “That was something we were searching for.”
The four tight end players on the roster are “all competing right now,” according to Payton, so the Broncos’ acquisition of Trautman has no immediate effect on the team’s plans for the position.
Albert Okwuegbunam, Chris Manhertz, and Greg Dulcich are now teammates of Trautman on the Broncos team.
“What is their performance in the off-season?” stated Payton. “How are they performing at boot camp? In our league, the position has grown in importance in relation to the matchups that may be made and the running of the ball. We’re supporting and placing all of those folks you listed, man, every single one of them. We will spend hours trying to figure out what they do well and improve what they don’t if one of them is a superior receiver. I return to… Jimmy Graham, Jeremy Shockey, or Jason Witten. Each has performed a task, but perhaps more adeptly than the others. I believe that one of our roles as trainers is to sort of assign them songs based on their talent level.”
However, Denver will not choose a starter just yet.
According to Payton, “We would never sit in here in April and write out who we think [would start].” “We have more alternatives to watch how it plays out than to lock down starting lineups, but I have no idea how that will pan out. We were fortunate enough not to have to draft this versatile tight end because we believed that we wanted someone who could block and catch. Our inability to… and the error is that you make it and then grab for it in the draft. We were not required to do that.”
Rather, the Broncos made a trade to add another player, which also improved their tight end room.
