2021 Denver Broncos Depth Chart

Position	1	2	3
Quarterback	Drew Lock	Teddy Bridgewater	Brett Rypien
Running Back	Melvin Gordon	Javonte Williams	Royce Freeman
Wide Receiver 1	Courtland Sutton	Tim Patrick	Diontae Spencer
Wide Receiver 2	Jerry Jeudy	DaeSean Hamilton
Wide Receiver 3	KJ Hamler
Tight End	Noah Fant	Albert Okwuegbunam	Austin Fort
Left Tackle	Garett Bolles
Left Guard	Dalton Risner
Center	Austin Schlottmann	Nico Falah	Quinn Meinerz
Right Guard	Graham Glasgow	Netane Muti
Right Tackle	Ja'Wuan James	Quinn Bailey

The years of experimentation at the quarterback position are all but over in Denver. The team signed Case Keenum to a healthy contract this off-season. Keenum was forced into a starting role on a Vikings team that he took deep into the playoffs. Keenum is afforded greater opportunities with talent at the wide receiver position in Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. Keenum does have big shoes to fill playing under the ownership group headlined by John Elway, a former Super Bowl MVP that is still searching for a signal caller to return him to the Promised Land. Balancing the Keenum addition with other off-season moves has shaped the Broncos roster into a team that looks good on paper, much better than the 5-11 showing the team had last year.

The draft was the main area of building for the team. They added playmakers to both sides of the ball. Amongst the instant impact players, Bradley Chubb headlines our list. Chubb will be slotted at an outside end position, creating a vicious pass-rush attack that already features one of the league’s best in Von Miller. This duo will create mismatches and confusion for offenses upfront. Another player that has had an impressive camp showing is running back Royce Freeman. Freeman was added in the 3rd round of the draft, a position that was too good to ignore for the team. The organization lightened the load at the running back position this off-season, leaving C.J. Anderson off their inclusion list. This left the team with Devontae Booker as the lone back in Denver. Booker has shown flashes of brilliance, but it is still yet to be determined if he can handle a heavy workload. The Freeman addition will sans some of this weight and spread the touches across the rushing and passing downs. Wide receiver depth was also achieved through the draft. Two stars emerged in DaeSean Hamilton and Courtland Sutton. Both will be slotted behind Thomas and Sanders but being fostered into a system at the teachings of these talents only boosts their emergence on the team.

The remaining additions were represented by veteran fill-ins. Clinton McDonald adds size to the defensive line. He will likely share time at the nose and outside tackle positions. Tramaine Brock was also added one a short-term deal. This experienced cornerback is a quick learner and will fit into a Denver system that protects the deep threat. Aside from these additions, the team remained quiet on the free-agent front. They added a punter, but this does little to impact the depth of the team. The truth in the matter is that the team likes what they have within their organization. They have their share of playmakers and made commitments to younger talents to reclaim role-players that went elsewhere this off-season. The biggest piece will be getting the offense to mesh. The size and quickness of the Thomas and Sanders duo marks for a similar threat Keenum had in Minnesota. He can be the instrumental piece that gets Demaryius Thomas back on track. Thomas has seen a fall-off to his numbers the past few seasons. While this can mainly be attributed to a carousal of quarterbacks coming and going, it still begs the question if age is becoming an issue. The same remarks could be shed in the route of Emmanuel Sanders, who was drafted the same year that Thomas was. The younger prospects should help revive any gas these two have left in the tank. They get the opportunity to be vocal leaders at the wide receiver position, a welcomed stance for any player to adapt.

The defense remains stout and creates a larger amount of pressure coming from the sides. They can create new settings that target all gaps within an offensive line. The key to their success will be stopping the run, something the team struggled mightily with the past season. Too many climbs to the secondary spelled disaster for this team’s run defense. Implementing new systems to help defend against these sets will help make practice perfect. It is hard to believe that this team will feature another 5-11 season after boosting their talent pool on both sides of the ball.