The 2011 draft is now done and the Broncos, who started the draft with six picks, ended up with nine players.
Thanks to some dealing done by the Broncos’ front office the Broncos ended their draft on Saturday with two fourth-round picks, a sixth rounder and two seventh rounders.
With their first fourth-round pick, the Broncos grabbed Oklahoma safety Quinton Carter.
Even though the Broncos had drafted UCLA safety Rahim Moore the day before, Carter was highly rated by Head Coach John Fox, General Manager Brian Xanders and Vice President of Football Operations John Elway and will likely play behind strong safety Brian Dawkins.
“I am very surprised. I wasn’t sure if they would pick me or him, but obviously they picked him, and now they picked me… I’m ready to go to work. I’m going to be a part of the Denver Broncos, and with Rahim and myself coming, I’m sure we’re going to have a strong backfield and also learn from Brian Dawkins who is my favorite safety in the game,” Carter said.
The Broncos then traded back into the fourth round, trading a fifth and sixth-round pick to Green Bay for the No. 129 pick overall and a seventh rounder. The Broncos used that pick to select Portland State tight end Julius Thomas.
Thomas didn’t get much attention, playing at a small school, but is a great athlete who starred in basketball, and didn’t even take up football until two years ago. Those facts immediately drew comparisons to San Diego tight end Antonio Gates, who played basketball at Kent State.
Thomas finished his senior season with 29 reception and two touchdowns and also played well in the East/West shrine game, catching a touchdown pass and a two-point conversion.
“I grew a lot from my last college game to that shrine game, and I think it showed. It really allowed teams to see how I compete against some of the best talent and how far I came in those three months and how much I’ve learned in that time. I think it really put me on the radar for teams and let them know that I was a serious (player) that they should start looking in to,” Thomas said.
Without a fifth-round pick, the Broncos continued to build their defense in the sixth round by selecting linebacker Mike Mohamed from the University of California, who was the “unquestioned leader” of their defense.
Mohamed averaged 98 tackles over the 2009 and 2010 seasons.
The Broncos also added tight end Virgil Green from Nevada in the seventh, who doesn’t seem to have the athletic ability that Thomas possesses, but may more ready for the NFL than Thomas.
And with their final pick, a compensatory seventh rounder, the Broncos took another Sooner, defensive end Jeremy Beal.
The Broncos were surprised Beal was still available with the No. 247 pick, considering he recorded 28 sacks over his final three seasons with Oklahoma.
“I didn’t know where I was going to go. I am just happy that I went. It doesn’t matter where I went I was just happy to get the opportunity,” Beals said.
The Broncos ended the 2011 draft with three linebackers, two tight ends, two safeties and an offensive lineman.
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