After the unpleasant fifth-round pick trade mock yesterday that shipped Marvin Mims Jr. out of Denver for mere peanuts, I decided to run another similar trade mock with more optimistic draft compensation. I do feel like a draft day trade is coming next week, so I definitely want to run a few scenarios. So for today, we’ll throw in Ja’Quan McMillian for a third round pick and then see what the Denver Broncos could do with that.
Check it out at the end of this post.
Broncos daily recap
A Letter to Riley by Bo Nix Bo Nix pulled
back the curtain in a deeply personal Players’ Tribune piece framed as a letter to his newborn daughter Riley, reflecting on faith, family, and what the 2025 season really meant to him. He ties his own journey to the Nix family legacy — from Uncle Caleb’s recovery from injury to Uncle Tez’s path from Woodlawn to the NFL — and leans into themes of sacrifice, perseverance, and showing up for the people who matter. Nix writes candidly about rehabbing his ankle while learning how to handle 3 a.m. feedings, admitting that “the biggest win of this past season wasn’t a playoff game.” He signs off with a promise to come back “stronger, wiser, hungrier” for Riley, for his teammates, and for Broncos Country.
Under the radar
Joe Mahoney looks at average time to throw with an emphasis on Bo Nix, of course.
From the FEED
Dane Brugler dropped a full seven-round mock draft. Here’s who he selected for the Broncos:
Broncos mock draft version 3.0
The mock trade scenario this time around is Ja’Quan McMillian and a seventh rounder for some other teams early third round pick. It’s a random early third rounder, so don’t take the team who holds that pick as part of the equation a tall.
Here’s the mock draft version 3.0:
AI hit me with the most interesting draft haul yet. I lowkey love it too. Safety is going to become a need, so why not target it now. Tight end and running back are both excellent fits according to the Payton/Paton scoring system we’ve devised. Then it just focused on the tackle and cornerback positions. They can afford to draft late at cornerback even after this hypothetical J-Mac trade because they have three starters already on the roster. Mid-round tackles are also perfectly fine since they have two perennial starters – if aging – already on the roster too.
Would you be happy if this ended up being the draft class for the Denver Broncos in 2026? But also, I love me some J-Mac. Like Mims, he just makes the big play when they need it most. I’d much rather see a long-term extension.
