The 2026 NFL Draft is in the books. That being said, there are some folks who already have their eyes toward the future to scout what talent will be available for teams across the NFL next April. SB Nation’s James Dator recently released his first-round mock for the 2027 NFL Draft. Give it a look at the link above, but feel free to stick here and get a more detailed look at who he has the Denver Broncos selecting.
Who does Dator have the Broncos selecting in the first round?
Predicted to pick at the 24th selection next April, Dator has Denver selecting Oklahoma
Sooners defensive tackle Jayden Jackson. The former four-star high school recruit earned a lot of interest prior to signing day. Eventually, he wound up heading to Norman after turning down offers from some of the best collegiate programs in the nation.
In his first season with the Sooners, Jackson made an immediate impact for the Sooners’ defense. He appeared in 13 games with 10 starts and notched 30 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks. For his efforts, he earned Freshman All-SEC accolades and had big expectations for the following year.
Last season in 2025, the sophomore standout saw action in thirteen games with just 6 starts. By season’s end, he racked up 28 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, and 3 sacks. The production was relatively similar, with a slight increase in tackles for loss and sacks, despite less starts compared to his freshman year.
Thoughts on Jayden Jackson being picked by Denver
With D.J. Jones getting up there in age and commanding a hefty salary cap figure in ‘27, it wouldn’t be a surprise for Denver to address the interior of their defensive line with a prospect like Jackson. Dator’s overall thought process makes sense. Such a selection would continue Denver’s emphasis on building up the trenches to keep the foundations of the roster strong.
That being said, I think the first round may be a little too rich for a nose tackle. As we have seen in past drafts, like this past one with Ohio State standout Kayden McDonald, those prospects typically fall to the second round. Both are quite similar with top-tier strength at the point of attack who are dominant run defenders.
I’d argue Jackson’s upside as a pass rusher is a bit better than McDonald’s. That might boost his values in the eyes of NFL scouts and general managers. However, he will definitely have to make some strides and earn full-time starting status next year to merit consideration that early. If he does, I would be more on board with it. Even so, there are a lot of variables at play to even remotely have a true clue as to who anyone may take in next year’s draft.
ICYMI: FanDuel Odds for the Broncos’ 2026 season
For the 2026 season, FanDuel currently has their odds posted. You can get the full run down at the link provided, but I thought I’d offer my thoughts on two segments that piqued my curiousity.
The Broncos come in at +1000, seventh in the AFC, with respect to whom they believe had the best chance of being the conference champion. I think that’s a little too low for Denver, especially since they have both the Los Angeles Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs ranked ahead of them. Had it not been for Bo Nix’s devastating injury against the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Divisional Round last year, there was a great shot Denver would have been the AFC champion.
Relative to the AFC West, the Broncos are currently third at +210. Denver is ranked behind both the Chiefs and Chargers who are tied at +180. To me, that seems odd as well, considering the fact Denver retained virtually all of their key starters from last season and made big improvements to their team trading for Jaylen Waddle and addressing virtually any depth concern they had with their endeavors in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Overall, I think FanDuel is underrating the Broncos this year in the AFC, and overrating the potential of several of the teams mentioned above. We’ll have to keep close tabs on that and see if anything changes over the course of the summer leading up to the regular season.
