List of Denver Broncos first-round draft picks

The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are members of the American Football Conference West Division in the National Football League (NFL). The franchise was formed on August 14, 1959, to compete in the American Football League (AFL). The first AFL Draft was held three months later.[2] The last AFL draft the Broncos participated in was the 1966 draft, due to them joining the NFL as part of the AFL–NFL merger on June 8, 1966.[3]

Jay Cutler earned a Pro Bowl selection with the Broncos in 2008.[1]

The Broncos first participated in the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting, more commonly known as the NFL Draft,[4] in 1967. In the NFL Draft, each NFL franchise annually seeks to add new players to its roster. Teams are ranked in reverse order based on the previous season's record; the worst record picks first, the second-worst picking second and so on. The two exceptions to this order are made for teams that appeared in the previous Super Bowl; the Super Bowl champion always picks 32nd, and the Super Bowl loser always picks 31st. Teams have the option of trading away their picks to other teams for different picks, players, cash, or a combination thereof. Thus, it is not uncommon for a team's actual draft pick to differ from their assigned draft pick, or for a team to have extra or no draft picks in any round due to these trades.[5]

The Broncos selected Roger LeClerc, a placekicker from Trinity College, in the 1960 AFL Draft.[6] In their first NFL Draft, the Broncos selected Floyd Little, a running back from Syracuse University. The Broncos have selected players from the University of Nebraska, University of Florida, and University of Tennessee three times each, the most from any university in the first-round. The team's most recent selections were Tim Tebow, a quarterback from Florida University and Demaryius Thomas, wide receiver from Georgia Tech. Three selections, Floyd Little, Merlin Olsen and Bob Brown, were enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982 and 2004, respectively.[7] In 1991, Mike Croel became the first Bronco to win the Defensive Rookie of the Year award, receiving 68 out of 82 votes.[8]

The Broncos' latest first-round pick is University of Alabama wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, who they picked 15th overall in the 2020 NFL Draft.

Key
Randy Gradishar, a seven-time Pro Bowl participant[9]
Table key
^ Indicates the player was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
— The Broncos did not draft a player in the first round that year.
Year Each year links to an article about that particular AFL, Common, or NFL Draft.
Pick Indicates the number of the pick within the first round
Position Indicates the position of the player in the NFL
College The player's college football team

Player selections
Denver Broncos first-round draft picks
Year Pick Player name Position College Notes
1960 — Roger LeClerc C Trinity College
1961 — Bob Gaiters HB New Mexico State
1962 — Merlin Olsen ^ DT Utah State
1963 — Kermit Alexander DB UCLA
1964 — Bob Brown ^ OT Nebraska
1965 — — No pick — — [a]
1966 — Jerry Shay OT Purdue
1967 6 Floyd Little ^ RB Syracuse
1968 — — No pick — — [b]
1969 — — No pick — — [b]
1970 11 Bobby Anderson RB Colorado
1971 12 Marv Montgomery OT USC [c]
1972 5 Riley Odoms TE Houston
1973 9 Otis Armstrong RB Purdue
1974 14 Randy Gradishar LB Ohio State
1975 17 Louis Wright DB San Jose State
1976 15 Tom Glassic G Virginia
1977 18 Steve Schindler G Boston College
1978 27 Don Latimer NT Miami (FL)
1979 22 Kelvin Clark OT Nebraska
1980 — — No pick — — [d]
1981 15 Dennis Smith DB USC
1982 21 Gerald Willhite RB San Jose State [e]
1983 4 Chris Hinton G Northwestern
1984 — — No pick — — [f]
1985 26 Steve Sewell RB Oklahoma
1986 — — No pick — — [g]
1987 27 Ricky Nattiel WR Florida
1988 26 Ted Gregory DT Syracuse
1989 20 Steve Atwater ^ DB Arkansas [h]
1990 — — No pick — — [i]
1991 4 Mike Croel LB Nebraska
1992 25 Tommy Maddox QB UCLA
1993 11 Dan Williams DE Toledo [j]
1994 — — No pick — — [k]
1995 — — No pick — — [l]
1996 15 John Mobley LB Kutztown
1997 28 Trevor Pryce DT Clemson
1998 30 Marcus Nash WR Tennessee
1999 31 Al Wilson LB Tennessee
2000 15 Deltha O'Neal CB California [m]
2001 24 Willie Middlebrooks CB Minnesota
2002 19 Ashley Lelie WR Hawaii
2003 20 George Foster OT Georgia
2004 17 D. J. Williams LB Miami (FL) [n]
2005 — — No pick — — [o]
2006 11 Jay Cutler QB Vanderbilt [p]
2007 17 Jarvis Moss DE Florida [q]
2008 12 Ryan Clady OT Boise State
2009 12 Knowshon Moreno RB Georgia
2009 18 Robert Ayers DE Tennessee [r]
2010 22 Demaryius Thomas WR Georgia Tech [s]
2010 25 Tim Tebow QB Florida [t]
2011 2 Von Miller LB Texas A & M
2012 — — No pick — —
2013 28 Sylvester Williams DT North Carolina
2014 31 Bradley Roby CB Ohio State
2015 23 Shane Ray LB Missouri
2016 26 Paxton Lynch QB Memphis
2017 20 Garett Bolles OT Utah
2018 5 Bradley Chubb DE NC State
2019 20 Noah Fant TE Iowa
2020 15 Jerry Jeudy WR Alabama

Footnotes
  • a The Broncos traded their 1965 first-round pick along with defensive tackle Bud McFadin to the Houston Oilers for quarterback Jacky Lee.[10]
  • b 1 2 On August 15, 1967, the Broncos traded their No. 4 overall pick in the 1968 Draft and No. 9 overall pick in the 1969 Draft to the San Diego Chargers for quarterback Steve Tensi.[11]
  • c On January 28, 1971, the Broncos traded their No. 9 overall pick in the 1971 Draft and defensive end Alden Roche to the Green Bay Packers for the No. 12 overall pick in the 1971 Draft and quarterback Don Horn.[12]
  • d On February 1, 1980, the Broncos traded their No. 20 overall pick and a second-round pick in the 1980 Draft along with quarterback Craig Penrose to the New York Jets for quarterback Matt Robinson.[13]
  • e The Broncos traded their No. 19 overall pick in the 1982 Draft to the Buffalo Bills for the No. 21 overall pick and a fourth-round pick in the 1982 Draft.[14]
  • f On May 2, 1983, the Broncos traded their No. 19 overall pick in the 1984 Draft along with quarterback Mark Herrmann and guard Chris Hinton to the Baltimore Colts for quarterback John Elway.[15]
  • g On October 9, 1984, the Broncos traded their No. 21 overall pick and third-round pick in 1986 Draft and fifth-round pick in 1987 Draft to the Cincinnati Bengals for the draft rights of Ricky Hunley.[16]
  • h On April 23, 1989, the Broncos traded their No. 13 overall pick in the 1989 Draft to the Cleveland Browns for the No. 20 overall, second, fifth, and ninth-round picks in the 1989 Draft.[17]
  • i On July 7, 1989, the Broncos selected Bobby Humphrey in the 1989 Supplemental Draft;[18] as a result, they forfeited their rights to a first-round pick in 1990 Draft.[19]
  • j The Broncos traded their No. 14 overall pick and a third-round pick in the 1993 Draft to the Cleveland Browns for the No. 11 overall pick.[20]
  • k On August 23, 1993, the Broncos traded their No. 18 overall pick and sixth-round pick in the 1994 draft and a second-round pick in the 1995 draft to the Minnesota Vikings for offensive tackle Gary Zimmerman.[21]
  • l On April 24, 1994, the Broncos traded a third-round selection in the 1994 Draft and a first-round pick in the 1995 Draft to the Atlanta Falcons for wide receiver Mike Pritchard and a seventh-round pick in the 1995 Draft.[22]
  • m On April 12, 2000, the Broncos traded their No. 10 overall pick in the 2000 Draft to the Baltimore Ravens for the No. 15 overall pick and a second-round pick in the 2000 Draft.[23]
  • n On April 9, 2004, the Broncos traded No. 24 overall pick in the 2004 Draft along with cornerback Deltha O'Neal and a fourth-round pick to the Cincinnati Bengals for the No. 17 overall pick.[24]
  • o On April 19, 2005, the Broncos traded their No. 25 overall pick in the 2005 Draft to the Washington Redskins for a third-round pick in the 2005 Draft, No. 22 overall and fourth-round picks in the 2006 Draft.[25]
  • p On March 21, 2006, the Broncos traded their No. 29 overall pick along with a third-round pick in the 2006 Draft and fourth-round pick in the 2007 Draft to the Atlanta Falcons for the No. 15 overall pick.[26]
    On April 19, 2006, the Broncos traded their No. 22 overall pick to the San Francisco 49ers for second and third-round picks.[27]
    On April 29, 2006, the Broncos traded their No. 15 overall pick to the St. Louis Rams for the No. 11 overall pick and a third-round pick in the 2006 Draft.[28]
  • q On April 28, 2007, the Broncos traded their No. 21 overall pick along with a third and sixth-round picks to the Jacksonville Jaguars for the No. 17 overall pick.[29]
  • r On April 2, 2009, the Broncos traded quarterback Jay Cutler and a fifth-round pick in the 2009 Draft to the Chicago Bears for the No. 18 overall pick in the 2009 Draft along with a third-round pick in the 2009 Draft and a first-round pick in the 2010 Draft.[30]
  • s On April 22, 2010, the Patriots traded this selection to the Broncos for a first-round selection (24th overall; traded to Dallas, who selected Dez Bryant) and a fourth-round selection it acquired from San Francisco (113th overall; New England selected Aaron Hernandez).[31]
  • t On April 22, 2010, the Ravens traded this selection to the Broncos for a second-round selection it acquired from Miami (43rd overall; Baltimore selected Sergio Kindle), a third-round selection it acquired from Philadelphia (70th overall; Baltimore selected Ed Dickson), and a fourth-round selection (114th overall; Baltimore selected Dennis Pitta).[32]

References
General
  • "NFL Draft History: First Round by Team: Denver Broncos". National Football League. Retrieved July 15, 2008.
  • "Denver Broncos: 2010 Media Guide" (PDF). Denver Broncos. p. 591 (308 of 350). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 16, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
Specific
  1. Rasizer, Lee (December 16, 2008). "Broncos Marshall, Cutler named to Pro Bowl team". Rocky Mountain News. Retrieved August 7, 2009.
  2. "NFL History by Decade – 1951–1960". National Football League. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  3. Lahman, Sean (2008). The Pro Football Historical Abstract: A Hardcore Fan's Guide to All-Time Player Rankings. Globe Pequot. p. 34 of 576. ISBN 978-1-59228-940-0.
  4. Branch, John (April 9, 2000). "The 2000 Liars Club/ Draft makes Broncos coach cloak intentions". The Gazette. Archived from the original on October 23, 2007. Retrieved July 15, 2008 – via Find Articles.
  5. Pittman, Andrew; John Otto Spengler; Sarah J. Young (2008). Case studies in sport law. Human Kinetics. p. 41. ISBN 978-0-7360-6821-5.
  6. Pennington, Richard (2007). Denver Broncos Trivia Teasers. Big Earth Publishing. p. 7 of 145. ISBN 978-1-931599-92-4. Retrieved August 19, 2009.
  7. "Hall of Famers by Year of Enshrinement". Pro Football Hall of Fame. Retrieved August 22, 2009.
  8. "Russell, Croel get rookie honors". The Free Lance–Star. Associated Press. December 27, 1991. p. B6. Retrieved August 26, 2009.
  9. "Denver Broncos: Randy Gradishar". Rocky Mountain News. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  10. "Broncos; 2008 Media Guide" (PDF). Denver Broncos. p. 624 (321 of 362). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 16, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
  11. Football Register. Sporting News. 1969. p. 229. Retrieved August 7, 2009.
  12. Lea, Bud (September 22, 1971). "Devine Defends Horn Trade". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved August 10, 2009.
  13. "Jets Trade Matt Robinson to Broncos; Provide Leadership Duel in Training Camp Jets Trade Robinson to Broncos". The New York Times. February 2, 1980. p. 15. Retrieved August 10, 2009.
  14. Stein, Joe (April 24, 1994). "Rams took Bettis after Cards selected Hearst". U-T San Diego. p. C12. Missing or empty |url= (help)
  15. "Notable blockbuster trades in NFL history". USA Today. August 7, 2008. Retrieved August 10, 2009.
  16. Balzer, Howard M. (1988). Football Register. Sporting News. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-89204-286-9. Retrieved August 14, 2009.
  17. "NFL Draft Trades". USA Today. April 25, 1989. p. C11.
  18. Barnard, Bill (July 8, 1989). "Cowboys make Walsh surprise pick". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Associated Press. p. 11 (6 of 23). Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  19. Ruxin, Robert (2004). An athlete's guide to agents. Jones and Bartlett Publishers. p. 165. ISBN 978-0-7637-2349-1. Retrieved August 14, 2009.
  20. "Broncos; 2008 Media Guide" (PDF). Denver Broncos. p. 623 (320 of 362). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 16, 2011. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
  21. "The Broncos Acquire Vikings' Zimmerman". Los Angeles Times. August 24, 1993. p. C7.
  22. "Broncos deal for receiver Atlanta's Pritchard goes to Denver in trade involving draft picks". The Kansas City Star. Associated Press. p. C2.
  23. "Ravens, Broncos swap picks". TimesDaily. April 13, 2000. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
  24. Pasquarelli, Len (April 9, 2004). "Broncos, Bengals swap draft positions". ESPN. Retrieved August 10, 2009.
  25. LaCanfora, Jason (April 20, 2005). "Redskins Swap Draft Picks". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 11, 2009.
  26. Pasquarelli, Len (March 23, 2006). "Falcons send pick to Denver to get Abraham from Jets". ESPN. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  27. "Broncos deal 22nd overall pick to 49ers". ESPN. April 20, 2006. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  28. "Rams take Clemson CB Hill with 15th pick". ESPN. April 29, 2006. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  29. Legwold, Jeff (April 28, 2007). "Broncos trade up for Florida DE Moss". Rocky Mountain News. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
  30. "Cutler goes to Bears for Orton, picks". ESPN. April 3, 2009. Retrieved August 12, 2009.
  31. "Draft trade tracker: Let's make a deal: Broncos make push to get receiver". National Football League. April 22, 2010. Archived from the original on April 25, 2010. Retrieved March 1, 2011.
  32. "Draft trade tracker: Let's make a deal: Broncos take a chance on Tebow". National Football League. April 22, 2010. Archived from the original on April 25, 2010. Retrieved March 1, 2011.

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