AFC West draft review: how the Broncos and their division foes fared

Breaking down how each team in the AFC West addressed their needs in the 2024 NFL Draft

The 2024 NFL Draft wrapped up Saturday afternoon, and while it’s impossible to fully analyze the picks without a sample size of two to three years, that’s never stopped anyone from determining winners and losers directly after the event.

And that’s what we’re going to do here, as we take a look at the Denver Broncos and the rest of the AFC West as we look at who is best set up for success in the immediate future following their draft picks.

Kansas City Chiefs

Barf. The resident juggernauts of the NFL who just so happen to be in the way of the Broncos as part of the division came out of the draft looking even stronger. Andy Reid’s primary strategy was to continue to give Patrick Mahomes all the tools he needs to continue his place as the games’ best signal caller.

Draft Class: WR Xavier Worthy (Round 1, pick 28), OT Kingsley Suamataia (Round 2, pick 63), TE Jared Wiley (Round 5, pick 131), DB Jaden Hicks (Round 5, pick 133), OL Hunter Nourzad (Round 5, pick 159), DB Kamal Hadden (Round 6, pick 211), OL CJ Hanson (Round 7, pick 248).

Best pick: Xavier Worthy. If the Chiefs have lacked one thing, and it’s debatable if they even have, it’s a speed demon WR in the mold of Tyreek Hill. Worthy isn’t on Hill’s level, but he’s closer than the rest of the AFC West would like.

Remaining needs: Isaiah Pacheco has been a solid two-year back for the Chiefs, but it wouldn’t have been surprising if the Chiefs targeted someone to pair with him in the backfield. Instead, they chose to address other needs.

Overall grade: A

Las Vegas Raiders

With Josh McDaniels no longer there to ruin the franchise, Antonio Pierce had his hands full upgrading the roster, which had several glaring holes entering the draft. So how did the team do in addressing them? Meh. Brock Bowers is the best tight end prospect in years, but with the QB spot not exactly locked down by Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell, and with TE Michael Mayer looking like a legit player at the tight end, this was an interesting pick. Pierce did a fantastic job bouncing the team back from the McDaniels wreckage, but there aren’t many names the team picked that read like ones ready to help the team move up next season.

Draft picks: TE Brock Powers (Round 1, pick 13), OG Jackson Powers-Johnson (Round 2, pick 44), OT DJ Glaze (Round 3, pick 77), DB Decamerion Richardson (Round 4, pick 112), LB Tommy Eichenberg (Round 5, pick 148), RB Dylan Laube (Round 6, pick 208), DB Trey Taylor (Round 7, pick 223), DB MJ Devonshire (Round 7, pick 229).

Best pick: Tommy Eichenberg. Getting the former Butkus-Fitzgerald award winner and two-time first-team All-Big Ten honoree in round five should give Pierce a legitimate starting caliber player on the inside.

Remaining needs: it is difficult to envision anyone in the AFC West competing for the top spot unless they can come close to matching what the Chiefs have at QB. It’s tough to blame the Raiders for not reaching on anyone after seeing six QBs taken in the top 12 picks, but Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew don’t exactly fit the mold of a challenger to Mahomes.

Overall Grade: C+

Los Angeles Chargers

In Jim Harbaugh’s first draft, he chose to protect Justin Herbert’s right side by picking OT Joe Alt out of Notre Dame rather than giving him a surefire elite #1 WR in Malik Nabers. It’s important to keep as many grass stains off the pants of Herbert as possible, but man…the thought of Herbert-to-Nabers was a scary one, and one fans of the other three AFC West teams will be happy they won’t have to realize. His focus on defense the rest of the draft gives him a solid young foundation to work with on that side of the ball.

Draft picks: OT Joe Alt (Round 1, pick 5), WR Ladd McConkey (Round 2, pick 34), LB Junior Colson (Round 3, pick 69), DE Justin Eboigbe (Round 4, pick 105), DB Tarheeb Hill (Round 5, pick 137), DB Cam Hart (Round 5, pick 140), RB Kimani Vidal (Round 6, pick 181), WR Brenden Rice (Round 7, pick 225), WR Cornelius Johnson (Round 7, pick 153)

Best pick: Joe Alt. Low-hanging fruit, being the #5 pick, and even with the decision to go protection over WR, pairing Alt with Rashawn Slater is going to allow Herbert all the time he needs to make big plays. Hard to argue with the value.

Remaining Needs: the team drafted Quentin Johnston in round one last year, but he didn’t exactly explode onto the scene his rookie season, so the team could really benefit by upgrading the WR room. McConkey is solid, but it’s tough to envision him becoming “the” guy, and while he comes from elite DNA, Brenden Rice isn’t his dad.

Overall grade: B+

Denver Broncos

And finally, FINALLY, the team who has been playing QB musical chairs since 2016 drafted the position in the first round of the draft. But is Bo Nix the guy for the job? Sean Payton certainly believes, as while it stands to reason he would have been available later on with a trade back for more picks, the coach didn’t want to risk it, grabbing him at 12. The pick was questioned by many, but the rest of the picks were all highly graded, including upgrading the skill positions and grabbing a pass rusher. Yet, the final grade will rest almost exclusively how Nix turns out. And now we wait…

Draft picks: QB Bo Nix (Round 1, pick 12), LB Jonah Elliss (Round 3, pick 76), WR Troy Franklin (Round 4, pick 102), DB Kris Abrams-Draine (Round 5, pick 145), RB Audric Estime (Round 5, pick 147), WR Devaughn Vele (Round 7, pick 235), OG Nick Gargiulu (Round 7, pick 256)

Best pick: Troy Franklin. Franklin honestly could’ve been an early day two pick, so for him to not only slip to the Broncos, but to have him re-team up with his college QB should ease the transition for each. Franklin was one of the college game’s best receivers last year, and while he lacks physicality, he can make just about every catch and get open vs. just about any DB.

Remaining needs: it was interesting to see the Broncos bypass the tight end position. Adam Trautman was decent last year, but is limited, and while the team has/had high hopes for Greg Dulcich, the guy just can’t stay healthy. A legitimate pass catching tight end is still a need for this team.

Overall grade: B+