We are one day away from the NFL Draft, and there’s some momentum building around Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter being drafted by the Denver Broncos.
Is it just blind hope or is there something to it? Is it just the media having nothing else to go on because the Broncos run a tight ship, or are there some real signs that this could happen?
Could Travis Hunter really be a Denver Bronco?
First off, the Broncos would likely have to give up three first round picks and maybe even a player to get him. Are you cool with that? Well, if you consider what George Paton did without a first round pick in two out of the last three years, you might be.
After trading away two firsts and two seconds for Russell Wilson in 2022, the Broncos operated without high picks for the next two seasons, and were able to draft two ballers—Nik Bonitto and Marvin Mims—in the second round. Marvin is a two-time pro bowler and Nik Bonitto emerged last season as an All-Pro sack master and big play assassin. The value is there beyond the first round, and George Paton knows how to find it. So who needs a first round pick next year (and for the next two after that) anyway? You’ve got your quarterback now. You also have a need at wide receiver and a need at cornerback—Travis Hunter would conceivably fill both of those roles.
Let’s talk for a second about those positions—wide receiver and cornerback. The emergence of Marvin Mims last season as a receiving threat has perhaps changed the tenor of this conversation, as does the pleasant surprise of Devaughn Vele. There is also Troy Franklin, a work in progress, but someone the Broncos clearly like and traded up to get last season. Courtland Sutton continues to be the stalwart veteran in that room, but he needs help. My only concern about Travis Hunter as a receiver is that, in my opinion, they need a route-runner, jack-of-all trades type of guy. Someone who can run any route in the tree and can get open on 3rd and 6 versus tight man coverage. I don’t believe that Travis is that guy—not yet, at least. He could develop into that guy, but he’s not an experienced route runner—in fact he’s very raw. He will need to improve that part of his game if he is going to get open versus the best cover-men in the world. The competition he faced at CU is far from that.
As for the cornerbacks, Riley Moss emerged last year as a stud cover-man and very good tackler—a long, athletic and physical ball-hawk opposite Pat Surtain who surprised folks and earned the starting job in training camp by performing at a high level every day. But, similar to the previous season, he was injured and missed some significant time. That’s not his fault, but when you’re building your team, you must take everything into account, and Riley’s availability is one of those things. We can’t necessarily count on him being there—or anyone being there for that matter—and so we always want to stack these rooms and let the guys compete. Ja’Quan McMillian was the nickel cornerback the last two seasons and has done that job well, but is it good enough? Would Riley be a better nickel corner? Would Travis Hunter opposite DPOY Pat Surtain be a better fit for this defense? These are questions that are being discussed. It’s hard to argue that the addition of Travis Hunter wouldn’t immediately improve this already Top-5 defense. Remember, the Broncos led the league in sacks last season. Another lockdown corner would make the path even easier for the Broncos defensive front, who would have more time to get to the man in the pocket and smoosh him into the dirt.
So it’s clear that Travis Hunter would improve this team on both sides of the ball, possibly in all the ways they really need it. Despite the promising year, the Broncos offense needs to get better, and that starts with YAC—yards after the catch. They need a guy who can catch a quick pass and take it the distance. Marvin Mims may emerge as that man, but Travis Hunter did that almost every game last year. YAC seems to be his specialty. His ball skills and nose for the moment are uncanny, and, as we know, Sean Payton is always looking for another Joker. Travis Hunter just might be the Ultimate Joker—a lockdown corner who attacks the football like Randy Moss.
So the question would be, if you got him, how do you use him? This is where, to me, the idea of Travis Hunter to the Broncos starts to make sense. Travis has stated that he wants to play both ways full-time or else he doesn’t want to play at all. This is likely hyperbole. Of course he knows that he’ll be an investment and that the team he plays for can use him however they want. But he also knows that no one has ever played both positions before, and that if someone did that successfully, he could demand a contract that no one’s ever seen. The highest paid wide receiver in football, Jamar Chase, makes $40 million per year. The highest paid cornerback, Derek Stingley Jr., makes $30 million per year. What would a guy make who did both? It boggles the mind. Travis knows this and could be laying the groundwork to try and play as much as possible on offense so he could demand a contract of this nature. But the contract stuff is for a future conversation.
Either way, CU’s NFL Showcase was a few weeks ago in Boulder, and it was hard not to notice Sean Payton standing front and center yucking it up on national TV. Sean never met a national broadcast he didn’t want to be a part of, and yet, we must take his presence seriously. In fact, the Broncos sent a horde of personnel up to Boulder for that pro day. Why? Who were they watching? What are they planning? Travis has said he wants to stay on Colorado. Will the Broncos grant his wish?
One thing I do know about Sean Payton the playcaller is that he likes to mess with his opponent. He creates specific offensive packages that cater to the skillset of his players. There’s a rhyme and reason for everything he does. He finds what his players are good at and schemes up ways to use that skill, setting his players up to succeed, while simultaneously taking advantage of his opponents’ weaknesses. He’s also very good at using a perceived threat as a decoy to distract an undisciplined defense. All of this, to me, spells a perfect landing spot for Travis Hunter. Imagine what Sean Payton could draw up with Travis in his tool-belt.
Travis Hunter is a day-one starter on defense and a work-in-progress on offense. He needs an offensive coach with experience and with a plan on how to use him correctly—not just someone who is going to grant his wish and throw him out there. That’s how you get him hurt. That’s how you waste his immeasurable talent.
Sean Payton would know better, and might just might be the perfect coach for Travis Hunter, the most intriguing Joker we’ve ever seen. The question is, are the Broncos willing to do what it will take to get him?
