With the College Football Playoffs and this year’s slate of bowl games underway, a lot of news is coming out relative to early declarations for the 2026 NFL Draft. Over the past few years, we have seen a little bit of a drop in underclassmen declaring and opting to remain in college due to NIL money and other factors. Though that isn’t stopping some of the best collegiate playmakers from going to the next level. For this installment, I’ll be focusing on some offensive prospects to keep your eye on for the Denver
Broncos.
It’s a good year to be in the market for a wide receiver.
The Broncos have invested a lot at the wide receiver position over the past several drafts. Marvin Mims Jr., Troy Franklin, and Pat Bryant were all Top 125 picks. Each offers a unique and different skill set and still have plenty of room for growth and development, but it’s a position I wouldn’t be surprised to see Denver consider. They don’t have many huge needs and presumably picking late due to their current record—they certainly could adhere to the best player available philosophy.
Could one of those players be a wide receiver? Certainly. We have already seen a flurry of top receivers from this year’s collegiate season make their intentions known—it’s time for them to take their talents to the National Football League.
Washington’s Denzel Boston, USC’s Makai Lemon and Ja’Kobi Lane, Tennessee’s Chris Brazell, Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion and Clemson’s Antonio Williams are all gearing up to hear their names called in April. Lemon is certainly a player who could hear his name called in the Top 15 or Top 20 selections. I think he will be outside the Broncos’ reach unless they opted to move up the board. Lane, Williams and Concepcion will likely hear their names called on Day 2. I discussed Brazell earlier in the season but haven’t given my thoughts on Boston.
So, what do I think? I really like Boston’s fit in Head Coach Sean Payton’s offense. At 6’4” and 210 pounds, he has the size and physicality to play the big slot role in Payton’s offense. He also functions well as an outside receiver as well. His mental toughness, sound hands, and football character will all check the boxes of things the Broncos are looking for.
As mentioned earlier, I really like the young prospects the Broncos have in house. However, that shouldn’t preclude them from taking a shot if a top-flight receiver is on board when they are picking in the first-round next spring. All things considered, Boston is a player who would command #1 volume in Denver’s offense and has the potential to be a long-term fixture in the offense for quarterback Bo Nix to throw to.
If you’re hoping the Broncos find a running mate to pair with RJ Harvey—be excited.
The Denver Broncos seem to have found a top-notch playmaker in rookie running back RJ Harvey. The team’s second-round pick from the 2025 NFL Draft has twelve touchdowns on the season and is just shy of 900 all-purpose yards. There is no doubt Harvey’s versatility has been an asset for the Broncos’ offense this year.
However, long-term, the team definitely needs a bigger back to compliment his skillset who can churn out tough yards in between the tackles. Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price, the standout running back duo for Notre Dame, have declared. Both of these guys are phenomenal playmakers. I expect Love to be off the board when Denver picks, but Price would be a quality addition to Denver’s backfield and is expected to be a Day 2 selection.
Another running back I like, but he hasn’t officially declared, is BYU’s LJ Martin. He opted out of playing in the Pop-Tart’s Bowl. That could be a hint he has his sights set on going to the big leagues. If you want a back with big size in Denver’s running back group, Martin has that at 6’2” and 220 pounds.
The star junior running back led the Big 12 conference in carries (236) and yards (1,305) and totaled 12 rushing touchdowns and averaged over 100 yards per game. He also flashed receiving chops reeling in 36 passes for 255 yards. His 32 carry, 222 yard and two touchdown effort versus Cincinnati prior to Thanksgiving certainly improved his draft scouts and caused scouts to give the talented runner an extended look.
One under-the-radar prospect to keep your eye on is Nebraska standout Emmett Johnson. He officially declared several weeks ago. Johson had a terrific redshirt junior season notching 1,451 yards and 251 carries with 12 touchdowns. He also was a big part of their receiving game, reeling in 46 passes for 370 yards and 3 touchdowns. He has great vision, breaks a lot of tackles, and does well on interior runs. I think he would be a nice compliment to Harvey as a potential Day 3 selection.
