Broncos may need to shift draft strategy after Seahawks' first-round pick originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Denver Broncos acquired a huge offensive weapon when they traded for wide receiver Jaylen Waddle last month. The downside to that deal was not being able to make a first-round pick, since that selection went in the trade.
Had the Broncos still had their original pick (No. 30), they would have had a chance to grab Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price. The second back off the board, Price would have been a tremendous addition to the Broncos' running back room and a player who would have fixed one of the biggest reasons the team failed to make the Super Bowl last year... the lack of an impactful rushing attack.
Broncos fans held out hope that Price could fall down to their pick in the second round and many recent mock drafts had predicted that would happen. But on Thursday night, the Seattle Seahawks shot down those hopes when they closed out the first round by taking Price.
It's an excellent pick for the Seahawks, who lost Kenneth Walker III in free agency. They have a void at that position, particularly with injury concerns surrounding Zach Charbonnet. Price can step right in and be the RB1 there.
Without a third-round pick as well, this is going to be a tricky situation for the Broncos. It would make absolutely no sense for the team to go into the 2026 season with the exact same running back room as last season, so coming out of this draft with a running back feels like a must.
With Price off the board, attention will now turn to names like Mike Washington Jr., Jonah Coleman, Katron Allen, Nic Singleton and Adam Randall. Any of those players would be a solid addition to the backfield and could join J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey in forming an effective trio, but the team needs to make sure it gets one.
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The team's second-round pick could still be used on the best player available, it doesn't necessarily need to be on a running back. But as soon as that selection is made, the Broncos need to focus on the running back position, evaluating whether or not some of those players will slide to the fourth round or if they need to look at trading up into the third.
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