Versatility Makes New Broncos Draft Pick a Defensive 'Joker'

Last season, Barron won the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's top defensive back. He beat out Colorado's Travis Hunter, who was the second overall pick. Barron also led the SEC in interceptions and passes defensed. 

Even though Barron gets the title as cornerback, he talked about how versatile he is by playing multiple positions at Texas. 

"Just being coached by coach Terry Joseph at Texas and him transitioning me into 'star' and that nickel role that people call it. It was a big change, it was good. He put me there just understanding I was very savvy. I can manipulate blocks with just my eyes and things like that to get a lot of tackles for losses. I was very savvy with my blitz pass and just kind of bluffing, reading the alignments of the splits and things like that. It all went hand in hand with my IQ." Barron continued, "Moving forward that has allowed me to play different positions like cornerback and safety and dime with my versatility. 

According to Pro Football Focus, during Barron's career at Texas, he played 1,133 snaps at wide cornerback, 917 snaps at slot corner, and 508 snaps in the box at the safety position.  

In 2024, Barron was a consensus All-American and First-team All-SEC with five interceptions and 11 passes defended. 

Barron was also named as the 2025 Peach Bowl Defensive MVP after his Longhorns took down Arizona State. 

"The only reason I had an idea is they like guys that are very versatile, and the things that they do on that defense and with that defense and with the players, they move a lot of guys around," Barron said pre-draft about the Broncos. "They do a lot of different looks. At Texas, I played in a lot of different looks. I played a lot of different places on defense, a lot of different roles. And it's a perfect fit."