Last week’s edition of Future Broncos took a short departure from collegiate prospects to discuss potential options Denver could make to upgrade the team at the trade deadline. While many across Broncos Country
were hoping the team would make a splash to help with their efforts down the stretch, the Broncos opted to stand pat and roll with their current roster for the rest of the season.
For this week’s segment, I finally thought I’d get into some FCS prospects available in this year’s draft. There are certainly a lot more than this, but I think the prospects below could certainly help the Broncos, especially if they make adding talent to the offense a primary endeavor of theirs next April.
Bryce Lance – Wide Receiver – North Dakota State
6’3”, 206 pounds, 40-yard dash: 4.6 seconds
The North Dakota State Bison have endured a decade of dominance at the FCS level. If they aren’t winning the championship, every year they are still competing for it. The Bison program is clearly the best at its level and keeps sending players to the NFL who are able to compete.
Next in line to carry out their tradition to the pros is senior wide receiver Bryce Lance. He is the younger brother of Trey Lance and is arguably the best prospect in the FCS. Last season Lance had 75 catches for 1,053 yards and 17 touchdowns for the Bison. His junior year numbers catapulted his anticipated draft stock in the process.
While this year’s touchdown production has dropped immensely, he has really established himself as a premier vertical threat. This season, he has 36 catches for 703 yards and 4 touchdowns. He certainly can create after the catch and contact, but his calling card is his abilities to beat defenders deep showcased by his whopping 19.5 yard per catch average. Though his timed speed isn’t great and I do have concerns about that success translating to the NFL.
Even so, he is a consistent chain over with 29 catches of his going first downs or scores. Not only that, but he does also well over the middle of the field coming down. High-pointing and coming down with contested catches is also a strength and his impressive 40” vertical is on display most every week for the Bison coming down with highlight reel catches.
The Broncos have a young receiver corps with Marvin Mims Jr., Troy Franklin, and Pat Bryant but none have truly established themselves as a tried-and-true vertical threat at this point in his career. It’s also clear that none to date have proven to be a viable number two for Denver’s offense. I’m by no means giving up on any of their development, but I’m also in favor of the Broncos adding more talent to the position if the opportunity presents itself.
Nix isn’t shy about taking his deep shots and Lance could certainly help with Denver’s down the field vertical attack and give them another option capable of making tough catches in traffic. The latter is something they have sorely missed this year. On top of that, he is also an experienced special teams player and could contribute in that fashion immediately as a rookie.
Overall, it wouldn’t be surprising if Lance found his way into the mix somewhere on Late Day 2 and wound up a Top 100 player. As of now, Denver has two selections (original third and early fourth from New Orleans) in that area and would be wise to consider him if available.
Dason Brooks – Running Back – Idaho State
5’11”, 228 pounds, 40-yard dash: 4.55 seconds
While the Broncos have experienced a significant uptick in production at running back with J.K. Dobbins in the fold, it’s important to remember he just on a one-year deal with the team. While the Broncos very well may bring him back again next season, it’s not for sure bet.
Last April, after a series of trades, the Broncos took UCF standout RJ Harvey in the second round. While he hasn’t made a great impact as a runner, his receiving abilities are getting a lot of looks in Head Coach Sean Payton’s offense. Tyler Badie hasn’t impressed, and Jaleel McLaughlin has been a healthy scratch for most all the season.
Each and every draft, it seems like you can find productive running backs later on. One player who fits the mold as a decisive runner who should be on the Broncos’ radar is Idaho State prospect Dason Brooks. Brooks is a redshirt junior has an extra year of eligibility if he wants it, but if he keeps on producing the way he is, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he declared himself eligible for the 2026 NFL Draft.
His path to becoming an NFL running back isn’t traditional. He started out his career with the Bengals as a linebacker but made the switch last season to running back. In 12 games in 2024, he amassed 506 yards on 80 touches with just four touchdowns. This season through nine games, he already has 763 yards on 105 attempts with 8 rushing touchdowns. I don’t care what level you play at—averaging over 7.5 yards per rushing attempt will catch scouts’ eyes.
While he hasn’t showcased much as a receiver and dealt with some injuries early on in the year, he is proving to be a bruising battle horn between the tackles and is effective running the ball out of their heavy shotgun formation offense. I like his vision, patience, and ability to grind out yards after contact. Considering he is still new to learning the position, I think such upside is worth taking a flier on.
Coming from the Big Sky Conference, the drastic switch in competition may be a bit to handle early on, but what he excels at translates to the next level. If it’s late on Day 3 and the Broncos are looking to add to their backfield—and by all means they should—they could do worse than Brooks. Let’s be honest, Denver doesn’t have anyone besides Dobbins who has shown to be effective between the tackles. And guess what? That’s Brooks’ bread and butter.
Other Top FCS Prospects to Watch:
- Marquis Gillis, RB – Delaware State
- Jared Richardson, WR – Penn
- Chris Corbo, TE – Dartmouth
- Cole Payton, QB – NDSU
- Jalen Jones, CB – William & Mary
- Ashton Grable, OG – Florida A&M
