The Denver Broncos opted to bring back both Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad to man down their inside linebacker corps in 2026. Outside of them, they have a handful of players they’ve signed as undrafted college free agents the past few cycles. Additionally, the Broncos will be giving some snaps to Jonah Elliss in certain packages this season per Head Coach Sean Payton at this year’s league owner meetings.
Even so, it wouldn’t be a surprise if they added a prospect to the room via the 2026 NFL Draft
which is stacked at the position. A prospect that the franchise could consider is Mizzou standout Josiah Trotter. An ACL tear as a freshman derailed the start of his collegiate career at West Virginia, but he came back with a vengeance in 2024 and produced at a high level.
This past season, he transferred to Missouri and earned First-Team All-SEC honors after racking up 84 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and one pass breakup. At 20 years old, he is one of the youngest prospects in this year’s class, but his lack of experience and injury history may cause him to endure a bit of a draft day slide. Let’s take a deeper dive into Trotter, his strengths and weaknesses, and when the Broncos should consider selecting him in April.
Player Profile: Josiah Trotter — Linebacker — Missouri
Height: 6’2” | Weight: 237 pounds | Arm Length: 32-1/4” | Hand Size: 10-1/4” | Age: 20 Years Old
Bench Press: 27 Reps | No other agility testing or workouts at NFL Combine or Missouri’s Pro Day.
Statistics at West Virginia and Mizzou: 24 games played, 176 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, 1 interception.
Film Room & Highlights
Hart’s Scouting Report
Positives:
- Has the desired size and traits to handle the rigors of the position at the NFL
- High energy player whose tenacity and grit will elevate the toughness of any linebacking room
- Tremendous run defender with a knack getting downhill and in opponents’ backfields
- Highly effective as a blitzer (25-percent pressure rate), which fits in well with Vance Joseph’s mindset of utilizing his inside linebackers as pressure players
- Strong hands and strength to displace opposing blockers, shed, and finish strong against the run
- Has been around football his whole life, his father Jeremiah played for over a decade and his brother Jeremiah Jr., was a Day 3 pick by the hometown Eagles several years ago
Negatives:
- Only a two-year starter with just over 1,100 collegiate snaps
- Lacks experience and polish in coverage: Targeted 18 times and allowed 13 receptions for 151 yards
- Broken + missed tackle rate of 10-percent isn’t alarming, but needs to be improved upon
- Athleticism is just above average, I wouldn’t designate him as a sideline-to-sideline player
- Missed entire freshman season at West Virginia due to an ACL tear; recent surgery for MCL repair prior to the pre-draft circuit
Hart’s Projection: Top 100 Selection (Late Day 2 Value)
Why the Denver Broncos should consider drafting Trotter
The Broncos’ starting linebacker duo of Singleton and Strnad is set in stone for the ‘26 season. However, the future of their room beyond that will likely change in the coming years. This year’s draft class is one of the deepest in recent memory in the position, and linebacker is typically one of them where you can eventually find starters even into Day 3.
Trotter is a good player, but I’d consider him a one-dimensional prospect at this point in time. I like his fiery playing style and ability to clamp down against the run. He’s one of the best linebackers in this class doing so. However, his lack of experience, issues in coverage, combined with medical concerns drop him in my final rankings.
He is a player I’ve seen floated as a potential fit for Denver in the second-round. I’d argue utilizing a Top 64 pick on a linebacker that would be a backup with his concerns would be a poor investment of resources. In the event the team traded back or acquired more selections, rolling the dice on Trotter would be a bit more favorable. Though I don’t think he will last until Day 3.
If you’re a big fan of his and want him in orange and blue, it would likely mean taking him at 62 or finding a way to move up from Day 3 in order to select him. I don’t really think either of those are a best course of action for various reasons. You can find instinctive downhill run plugging linebackers beyond the Top 100 picks in this year’s draft.
