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May 10, 2025; Englewood, CO, USA; Denver Broncos cornerback Jahdae Barron (12) during rookie minicamp at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit. Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Broncos Rookie Singled Out as Receiving 3rd-Best Draft Landing Spot

Originally posted on Denver Broncos on SI
By Nick Kendell | Last updated May 12, 2025 5:14 PM ET

The Denver Broncos shocked fans and the NFL world at large with their first-round selection in the 2025 draft, picking Texas defensive back Jahdae Barron at No. 20 overall. The Broncos had obvious needs at all the offensive playmaker spots and on the defensive line, with so many key contributors entering a contract year.

Adding a defensive back to an already loaded secondary to pair with the Broncos' only other defensive first-round pick in Patrick Surtain II simply wasn’t an obvious match between team and prospect leading up to the 2025 draft.

Now that the dust has settled, though, many are lauding the Broncos’ selection of Barron to add to an already talented defense in Denver. Those praising the Broncos’ decision to bolster a strength and lett the board fall to them in Round 1 include NFL.com’s Marc Ross, who ranked Barron as being in the third-best rookie situation in the league this season.

"The Broncos reinforced a strength in the draft, selecting Barron to pair with 2024 Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain II in the secondary," Ross wrote. "The rookie will be able to play multiple positions in Vance Joseph's scheme, having lined up outside, in the slot and in the box as a dime linebacker at Texas. His skill set will be maximized in a division where Denver has to face Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert twice a year."

The Broncos didn't necessarily have a dramatic “need” to add a cornerback with a premium selection in this draft cycle. Sporting the best cornerback in football in Surtain, along with promising youth in Riley Moss, Ja'Quan McMillian, and Kris Abrams-Draine, the Broncos would most likely have been fine this season had they bypassed Barron and gone a different direction. However, the draft is about the long-term view on team-building and not with a one-year lens.

Here's some camp footage of former Longhorn Jahdae Barron rocking his new number (12)

Barron was asked if the number has any significance and he said no it's just for right now but he's willing to stick with it

"If it's 12, it's 12 and I'm going to wear it with a lot of pride"… pic.twitter.com/26RyIi6q5O
— Cory Mose (@Cory_Mose) May 12, 2025

Team-building in the offseason is also not about patching holes and strengthening weaknesses, but it can be about adding to a strength and creating an identity. This obviously was something the Broncos looked to do because, to go with the team’s first-round pick, they also spent big money to sign linebacker Dre Greenlaw and safety Talanoa Hufanga to a defense already coming off a top-five 2024 season.

Defense can be volatile from year to year so there is no guarantee Denver will completely replicate its success from last season, but adding so much talent and ball production to the back seven should massively raise the unit's floor, even if the front can't match last season’s franchise record-breaking sack output from the pass rush (63).

Just how Barron will be deployed in Denver remains to be seen. The current consensus prediction is that Barron will displace McMillian to primarily line up in the slot (or the “star” position, as many college teams call it, including Barron).

A “star” is a player who blurs the line between safety, corner, and Will linebacker for many college teams. Supplanting McMillian with Barron would keep Riley Moss on the boundary in sub-packages, and the rookie could move outside in base packages. Still, the training camp battles must take place first, and the players who earn their roles on the field should be rewarded, regardless of pedigree.

While Barron may not check off the boxes many teams are looking for as far as a true No. 1 cornerback who can live on an island on the perimeter and play press-man coverage, he doesn't need to be that guy to be incredibly successful in Denver. With his ball skills, physicality, versatility, and instincts, he's an ideal corner to play off of Surtain.

An ideal landing spot for a talented rookie indeed.

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