The 2025 NFL Draft is still over two months away but speculation is already running rampant over who will go where. That will be the case for several more weeks before the talks hit a fevered pitch in mid-April or so.
For the Denver Broncos, the general consensus is that the team should select the best potential offensive weapon on the board at the No. 20 overall slot in the first round, one that helps Bo Nix become even more dynamic as the team's quarterback.
Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com has his second mock draft of the season out and he has the Broncos taking a player on the short list of many fans of the team, Michigan tight end Colston Loveland. The Broncos need a tight end in a major way and Loveland is one of the best prospects to head to the league in quite some time.
But when you look at the order put together by Jeremiah, the very next pick, No. 21 to the Pittsburgh Steelers, is Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. Though other analysts have mocked Jeanty to the Broncos, a selection that would send Broncos Country into a frenzy, would the combination of George Paton and Sean Payton actually select Loveland over Jeanty?
Jeremiah apparently thinks so.
Other draft experts see Jeanty going in the top 10 and certainly within the top 20, but if he actually starts to fall down into that range, the Broncos would have to consider taking him despite the obvious need for a tight end.
Javonte Williams is not likely to be back next season so the Broncos are going to need a new featured running back. Jeanty, who rushed for the second-most yards in NCAA history this past season and was the runner-up to Travis Hunter in the Heisman Trophy voting, would fit that role quite nicely.
Jeanty is one of the most exciting running backs to enter the draft in many years and regardless of which team takes him in the draft, it will create an immediate buzz within that fanbase because of the things he did this past season. It would be a tough sell for any front office to tell its fanbase that it was going to take a tight end rather than look to capitalize on a player who some feel could have generational talent.
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