Dallen Bentley Pick Puts Denver Broncos Tight Ends on NOTICE

0:00It's the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. What's up everybody? This is Ross Jackson, one of the hosts of the Lockdown Podcast Network, and if you haven't heard yet, we started a club and we would love for you to join. It's called the Everydayer Club, and one of the things that you get as a member is an ad-free version of the podcast that you're listening to right now. It works with whatever podcast app you already use, same episodes every day, just no ad. There's also a member's only group chat for fans of your team, plus a lot more. You can check it out by tapping the Everydayer Club link in the show notes. Denver Broncos' seventh round tied in Dallin Belly might just put Nate Adkins and Lucas Krull on notice. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day.

1:02The future is now old man. The Denver Broncos tight in room is getting revamped. I'm Cody Rourke joined as always by Sarah Bedinger, Dallin Belly, seventh round tied in selection for the Broncos in the 2026 NFL Draft. Just put Lucas Krull and Nate Adkins, their status on notice ahead of this upcoming season where he's got the perfect traits that can develop inside of Sean Payton's system, and it also changes the entire outlook. The Broncos tight in room. Sarah obviously Denver going with a double dip in this year's NFL Draft that tight in Justin Jolie who will do an episode on here in a few days, going backwards in our order from undrafted seventh round to where we're going to eventually get Dallin Bentley was one that I think when he was selected, a lot of people in Broncos country were very excited about when you talk about an inline, true, wide tight end. He has all the traits to come in right away and learn, I'd say, inside of the system, even if he doesn't necessarily play as a rookie. Absolutely. I mean, this guy, Cody, is a steal of a seventh round pick for the Denver Broncos.

2:04I know we're hyping up the late round guys lately, and a lot of listeners might be wondering, are we just pumping fluff? Absolutely not. So let me give you an unbiased reason to believe that the Broncos got a steal here. Okay, Cody, because you know what, we've got the orange glasses on sometimes. But here, let me tell you right now, Dame Brugler's bigboard has Dallin Bentley as a fourth to fifth round selection. The Broncos got him at 256 overall. He's the 13th ranked tight end according to Brugler, and others had him really highly ranked as well. Dame had him when they're top 10 tight ends of this draft. And I think for one really good reason, this guy does not drop passes, Cody. I mean, 76 targets this past season at Utah zero, count them zero drops for Dallin Bentley. And that's even more interesting when you consider it. You and I were talking about it before we hit record today. He only really played like and got action in one season at Utah. It was this past year before that. I mean, his availability or his usage, I should say, not availability.

3:06His usage in the offense was sparse, like it was almost nonexistent. So when you go from almost nothing in terms of your action that you're getting in the target's department to getting 76 targets and you drop zero passes, I mean, that will catch some attention right there. So to me, that's the number one trait that he brings to the table above anything else. He is sure handed and he can impact at all levels of the field. You see that on his tape, he can be an outlet, he could be a vertical threat. And he's still learning in the route running department, which I think gives him an even bigger advantage coming into his rookie season. He's far more polished, I would say, right now than Caleb loner because of Caleb's overall inexperience. And look, these two guys obviously played together. Caleb was a seventh rounder last season, but Bentley, I think, is an overall better player and probably more suited to have a longer NFL career. And look, maybe Caleb loner suddenly turns things around, hits it big. And sees a huge jump from last year to this year. But for Bentley, he played in 13 games last season for the UTS 48 catches for him 620 yards

4:10and six touchdowns where you go back to the year prior, his production was this in 2024. Utah, he was hardly featured. He appeared in 12 games, but he had two catches for 15 yards. He wasn't really a focal point of the offense. And once again, I'd say from a receiving standpoint, Utah in 2024, they didn't necessarily have a lot of dudes going out there and making big plays. They're leading receiver, I think, had 55 total catches. They're leading tight end, which was not either Caleb loner or Dalin Bentley. He only had what? 35 total catches. So really, the run game was a bigger portion of their offense and considering how many tight ends they had, they wanted to run it. But when they did throw it, obviously the tight ends were probably the biggest benefactors of that, especially Caleb loners touchdowns that he had in 2024. But Bentley, Sarah, in my opinion, when I look at the Broncos, their ideal process and going through this draft, they did a little bit of both. They double dipped into two different realms of that position here where Justin Jolie, he's that move around F peace, which kind of correlates a little bit with Evan Ingram's role.

5:13Dalin is a true inline, wide blocking tight end that isn't afraid to catch across the middle of the field. He had a couple of really good catches this season where there's a defender underneath a safety over the top and he's going to catch and he knows he's going to take a shot. He's got that toughness as well to make it work here inside of this offense. And once again, zero drops. That's important to remember, keeping that that ball in your hands through the contact, not necessarily seeing a ton of volume from him in terms of contested catches, but you're right, Cody. I mean, when he does have to absorb a hit after he catches a pass, I mean, he's holding on to the football. So that's a big, big deal. And to your point about him being more of the traditional inline type, six foot four, 253 pounds ran a four, five, nine in the 40 yard dash at Utah's pro day. So I mean, he's got the big time athleticism that you look for. I think when people ask, hey, what's the reason that he lasted to the seventh round? I think one of the biggest reasons is probably the fact that he was over 25 years old going into this draft. So he's 25 years in almost a quarter. So I think he's going to be obviously, you know, on a more of a fast track when it comes

6:18to rookies to say, like, Devon Valey, when he was coming out, I mean, obviously he's younger than what Devon Valey was, but you expect those guys to kind of come in and hit the ground running a little bit. He did an LDS mission once upon a time. So obviously, that's part of the reason for this. It's not like, well, man, this guy just can't figure out football. I think there's a lot in his background to get you excited about this pick. And he's still learning when it comes to being a true, you know, dominant blocker in the inline department. Like when he gets out on the move and he can get up to that second level or get to a defensive back, I mean, if he gets hands on, he's going to plant those guys in the ground. But when it comes to playing, you know, that traditional role and just kind of being off the, you know, right off the line of scrimmage there, he's got a little bit of work to do when it comes to sustaining blocks against those bigger defenders, right? So there's a trust element when it comes to throwing him the ball. And I think he can develop that trust element when it comes to his abilities as a blocker. Well, Sean Payton has clearly shown over the course of the last three seasons.

7:20He values the tight ends that can block. And that is a pathway for Bentley to maybe make some noise and make this roster, which puts Nate Adkins and Lucas Crowell and their status on notice. Today's episode of the show was brought to you by our friends over there. Ad Ruggia folks, the NFL draft, it is common gone where preparation for so many prospects. It met opportunity in every decision. It matters. It's all about being ready when your moment comes and so many of these Broncos rookies seem to be ready when their moment came and now they're on an NFL team in the same mindset. It also applies off the field too. And that is where Ruggia comes in, Ruggia, they offer treatments that are designed to help you feel ready and confident when it matters the most and their top option. They're number one draft pick. Ruggia ready is a mint that dissolves under your tongue with clinically proven ingredients. It works quickly, often at about 15 minutes and can last up to 36 hours. So when you are on the clock, make sure that you're ready. They also offer go long. It's designed to help with both performance and control. It's about showing up at your best whenever your moment is head to Ruggia dot com slash

8:23locked on NFL and get 15% off your ED treatment. That's R U G I E T dot com slash locked on NFL for 15% off Ruggia performance medicine for men. The selection of Dowland Bentley along with Justin Jolie puts a couple of guys Lucas Crowell and Nate Adkins, you know, firmly on thin ice at this point, I would say, for the Denver Broncos, when it comes to the roster impact of drafting two tie at ends, and certainly somebody who didn't drop any passes last year at Utah, we're going to break down the depth chart implications of this draft pick as well as kind of how that competition could shake out over the course of the offseason Broncos country. Cody and I appreciate you so much for tuning in and rocking with us every single day. If you're already in every day or we want to invite you to check out the every day or club. If you're in the all access to your Cody, you've already got the breakdown of Justin Jolie, Jonah Coleman, all these different guys from this draft class in terms of all 22. It's really great stuff for the listeners of the show to go a little bit deeper in terms of what these draft picks mean.

9:24So definitely invite you to check that out. It's a great way to support the show locked on Broncos dot supercast dot com as well as the link will be in the show notes for you. Cody, let's break down the position outlook. You tease it from the beginning of the show. Nate Adkins, Lucas Crowell, these guys are kind of on thin ice after the selection of both Justin Jolie and down Bentley now. I think, you know, there's the shine of new draft picks and stuff. So let's talk about this. Why? Why do you think those two guys in particular could be in danger of losing their roster spots to these two incoming rookies? Well, I think it's bringing those guys back on one year deals, which aren't necessarily a guarantee that you're going to even make the roster coming out of training camp. Just ensures that you're going to get a spot to have your name in the mix here. But it's when you look at how the Broncos have drafted and granted, it is hard. And we even came into this draft saying, not every rookie is going to make the active roster. Maybe, you know, someone makes the practice squad here, but I look at it from stylistically what the Broncos offense currently has, Adam Troutman in line blocking why tied in underrated

10:25pass catcher, not heavily featured in terms of volume in Sean Payton's offense. I look at down on Bentley and I say he's probably more projected to learn from Adam Troutman and then play the Adam Troutman role inside of this offense. And then going through and watching the tape on Justin Jolie, I was like, gosh, I was thinking to myself, it's like, this is literally what the Broncos are doing with Evan Ingram. And here's the thing Evan Ingram, I think is the speedier, better route runner type of guy where I look at Justin Jolie and I'm saying, this is the move around more physical. It is, you know, gets his nose in the dirt. He does the hard work. He's a willing and engaging blocker and he wants to hit people. That's what you see about him. And he's got really, really strong hands. The film reviews that I did on him, my goodness, that's one thing that stood out. He projects more for that Evan Ingram role. So when I'm looking at, if the Broncos are going into the season with four guys, which they typically do, you want a guy who is going to maybe play that role that Adam Troutman does in the event of an injury, right? Can Dowland Bentley come in right away and learn that? Can he excel? And if he does, he's going to be a favorite. You look at Justin Jolie, he's learning that Evan Ingram type role.

11:27That's where he's going to learn and play from and Ingram's on the last year of his deal. From a roster building standpoint, this is kind of what that hierarchy looks like. And I really think Nate Adkins, I don't know if he necessarily fits either of those roles. I think he fits more of a hybrid fullback than I think he does really tight end. Rich, to that point, the Broncos also brought back Adam Prentice this off season. He did a really great job filling in for the injured Michael Burton, who is now with the Cleveland Browns. In case anybody missed that news. But Adam Prentice playing that traditional fullback role, I'll be interested to see, hey, what does that mean for Nate Adkins? Because he also plays special teams, but hasn't really emerged, struggled with the injuries last year. I know he dealt with those. And he's been a key piece of this team when he is available. But how many roster spots can you now dedicate to these guys? And why, why throw the draft darts at both Bentley and Jolie unless you had plans of, you know, hopefully the plan is to keep them around. And not to say that that, well, I'll just throw Nate Adkins to the side.

12:30That's not the case, but these guys play the more traditional tight end role to your point as opposed to, hey, where can we move this guy around the formation to be an asset? And is it now a matter of, okay, Nate Adkins is competing with Adam Prentice for a roster spot as opposed to with these rookie tight ends? I think that could end up being the case. He gives you more roster flexibility at the end of the day when you're trying to figure out. How do we build the best 53? Well, we really like Nate Adkins. We like what he can do on special teams, but you know what? Maybe Dallin Bentley comes in and is impressing alongside Justin Jolie. And the idea is, well, we really, we drafted these guys. We want to develop them. They have some things that we feel like that can offer us a little bit more. I look at Nate Adkins and I always think it to myself even last year. Like Adam Prentice was, he was the hard, he was the hard hat guy, right? The blue collar just does his job. And he surprised a lot of people because every time he touched the football in the run game is a first down, right? I mean, the full back position didn't die with Denver. I look at Nate Adkins and I think Nate is more athletic might be able to do more in

13:34the passing game or out of the backfield than Adam Prentice, not to limit Prentice or anything. But that's the way that you can continue to maximize your roster without sacrificing maybe your younger guys that could and maybe some of them, you never know, might get picked up by somebody else if they have to go through waivers to get to your practice squad. Somebody else might be able to land them. And so that puts pressure on Justin Jolie and Dallin Bentley to say, can one of you guys or both of you guys play some special teams for us right away? Because Adam Prentice does that at a pretty high level. And when you're talking about taking him off the roster, you're taking more than just a Swiss Army knife offensively who can be a threat as a receiver, who can block really well for you. So there's a lot of interesting questions that arise from this as I think with the Lucas Crow part of this discussion is, well, we don't, we haven't seen. We've gotten, you know, a three year sample at this point from Lucas Crowley didn't play much last year. Obviously had the injury and the Broncos brought him back in a one year deal. So it'll be, it'll be tough for him to make the roster, I think, even though he has all

14:37this familiarity in the offense because these guys are just, they're newly drafted. They've got the rookie contracts in their favor. And that's another thing with, with the Adkins discussion is you've got four years potentially of team control on Dalin Bentley, whereas, you know, only one with Nate. So that's a factor in this discussion and the Broncos don't need these guys to play right away. They've got other guys to play and they can stash some on the practice squad. It'll be, I think it's going to be tough for either Adkins or Carl to make the team, although we know how highly Sean thinks of Nate Adkins specifically. So maybe, maybe we'll end up being surprised by his offseason and what he's able to do to fend these rookies off. Best case scenario for me, I'm just dreaming of this, okay? Now, let me dream for a minute, Broncos country, you know, two tight insets, right? Double tight. But maybe you have two different styles, maybe a double tight package, where it's your best inline blockers. It's Dalin Bentley. It's Adam Trautman. And you have one of those guys on each side or you're facing elite level pass, are sure you put both of them on the same side to help out whoever's that offensive tackle.

15:41I like that strategy. I just imagine having like a pistol formation here with bone nicks. And let's say you have Justin Jolie and Evan Ingram as the backs that are next to him. And then you got RJ Harvey or one of your other backs behind him, a shoot three back pistols so to speak with those guys. I'm envisioning that. And I'm like, you know what? I like it. I'm here for it. Justin Jolie being elite blocker on that or maybe even being a chip and then leak out option. I like the different possibilities you can get into with these guys. Right now, we're just speculating what could all look like on paper. But at the end of the day, the players got to take the field. We got to see them develop into these roles and have some time. As Sarah said it and he nailed it perfectly here. These rookies aren't in a position where they have to play right away. And that's a good thing. That's a sign of where your roster is at, but it also allows them to develop without necessarily being thrust into the fire right away. Though the NFL sometimes puts you in those situations. And if that's the case, I'm curious to see how these guys would respond with that say Broncos country that I wrap up today's bonus episode of the show tomorrow's bonus show.

16:45We're going to take a look at Miles Scott. We watched the film on him a couple of his games, including one where he had two interceptions against Northwestern. And he brings a dog mentality to the safety position and how that might be able to factor and we'll look at that more on tomorrow's episode of the show. The NBA playoffs are here and every possession matters. If you're looking to get even closer to the action fan, dual has a great offer to get you started. Right now new customers can bet $5 and get 150 and bonus bets if your first bet wins. That's right. Turned five bucks into 150 and bonus bets just for getting started with fan duel during the playoffs. They give you everything you need. You can check stats, trends and matchups within the app before making your picks and it's easy to navigate making playoff basketball even more engaging from start to finish. And to fandool.com to get started, fan duel, play your game.