The Denver Broncos saw tight ends Eli Stowers (No. 54), Nate Boerkircher (No. 56), Marlin Klein (No. 59) and Max Klare (No. 61) all go off the board before they were scheduled to pick at No. 62 overall in the second round of the NFL draft last month.
Had there not been somewhat of a run on the position, Denver might have exited the second round with a new pass-catcher for quarterback Bo Nix. Instead, the Broncos decided to trade down into the third round.
“Denver explored taking a tight end somewhat early, but the board didn’t fall that way,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported last week. “The Broncos would have considered Vanderbilt’s Eli Stowers if he made it to No. 62 (he went eight picks earlier).”
Stowers was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles at pick No. 54 (and somebody at his draft party was wearing a Broncos hat). Alas, it wasn’t meant to be for Stowers and Denver.
The Broncos did end up landing NC State tight end Justin Joly in the fifth round. “The Broncos really like his tape from 2024, when he played at a lighter weight,” Fowler wrote for ESPN.
Some draft pundits had Joly graded as a fourth-round pick, so he could end up being a steal for Denver. After missing out on the top-ranked tight ends, the Broncos were still able to address the position with a high-upside prospect, so it may have worked out well in the end.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: NFL: Broncos would have considered Eli Stowers in NFL draft