Reviewing the Draft - 2006 Edition

People always argue if a draft class was good or not and grade it. Most people including me think that it takes 2 or 3 years before you can actually grade a class. Leading up to the draft we will take a look at who the Broncos drafted in the past 10 years. These drafts were conducted by Mike Shanahan and Josh McDaniels. This was an interesting draft. A lot of good talent came out of this.

Edit: Im sorry I forgot Doom the first time. My bad

Jay Cutler - Quarterback - 11th Overall - Vanderbilt

Jay Cutler was the product of being a great college quarterback on a very average team. Cutler was the 2005 SEC Player of the Year. He was considered similar to Jeff Garcia in that he wss mobile out of he pocket and Bret Favre because of the arm strength. Cutler was arguably the best quarterback prospect in the draft in the class with Matt Leinhart and Vince Young. The Broncos moved up from the 15th spot to get to number eleven. The Broncos drafted Cutler as Jake Plummers succedor after Plummer had a misrable game in the AFC Championship. Cutler was considered by many fans to be the next star quarterback for the Broncos comparing him to Elway. Cutler even said it himself that he thinks he has a stronger arm than Elway. Cutler was third and second on the depth chart in his rookie year and when he got to play, put up pretty favourable numbers. In 2007, in Cutler's first two games as the full time starter, he lead the Broncos to game winning drives with Elam kicking winning field goals. He finished the year 7-9 throwing for about 3500 yards 20 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. In 2008 Cutler's numbers were even more impressive. He threw for about 4500 yards, 25 touchdowns but 18 interceptions. After Mike Shanahan was fired, new coach Josh McDaniels listened to a trade offer which would have been a 3 way trade with New England and Kansas City moving Cutler to KC and Matt Cassel to Denver.

Cutler did not approve of this and put his house up for sale and asked for a trade. The Broncos traded him to the Bears and a fifth round pick for two first round picks, a third round pick and Kyle Orton.

Tony Schefler - Tight End - 62nd Overall - Western Michigan

Schefler was the pass catching tight end the Broncos needed. He didn't play much in his rookie season until Cutler was entered as the starter. His shining moment was against San Diego when he caught a touchdown pass, and after a fumble, Schefler caught another touchdown 48 seconds later. In 2007, Schefler missed half of the season with a foot injury but when he returned was stil among the league leaders in tight end receptions. In 2008. At the end of the 2009 season, Schefler sat out of the final game of the season for some problems in practice. In April he was traded to the Lions.

Brandon Marshall - Wide Receiver - 119th Overall - Central Florida

Marshall was a tall receiver at 6'4 and was known for always giving a target to throw at. His negatives were his speed and agility. He was projected late sixth round but the Broncos took him in the fourth. Marshall suffered a small knee injury in his rookie year but still had 20 receptions and a pair of touchdowns. In 2007 Marshall took on a full time roll despite a groin injury. He finished third in the league with 102 receptions and 7 touchdowns. The next two years he finished with over 100 catches again and in 2009 in a game against the Colts he broke an NFL record with 21 catches. After being unhappy in Denver after some problems with the coach, Marshall wanted out. The Broncos traded him to the Dolphins for a pair of second round picks.

Elvis Dumervil - Defensive End - 126th Overall - Louisville

Dumervil was compared to Dwight Freeney coming out of the draft. The only knock against him was his height at 5'11. Dumervil did not get many reps early in the season but as the year progressed he got in more and more. He finished the year with 8 and a half sacks . In 2007 he was the starter at end and ended up getting 12 and a half. In 2009 when Mike Nolan and Josh McDaniels took over, Elvis moved to an outside linebacker with the transition to a 3-4. Dumervil's success was immediate as he led the league in sacks with 17 because he was still an end on passing downs. In the preseason in 2010 he tore his pectoral and missed the entire season right after signing a six-year extension.

Domenik Hixon - Wide Receiver - 130th Overall - Akron

Hixon is a 6'2 180 pound receiver. Hixon played in four games and then was involved in the hit that almost paralyzed Kevin Everett. The Broncos released him in October and he was soon signed by the Giants where he remains today.

Chris Kuper - Guard - 161st Overall - North Dakota

Chris Kuper is a 6'4 302 pound guard. He only played one game in 2006 but has been a starter for the Broncos since 2007. He is a major part of the Broncos line today.

Greg Eslinger - Center - 198th Overall - Minnesota

Eslinger dropped a lot in the draft. He was projected for the third round. The Broncos picked him up but he remained on the practice squad. He played in NFL Europe but never made the Broncos roster.

Notably in this draft, the Broncos also signed Mike Bell. Bell got to play in the first half of the opener after Tatum Bell got hurt. Bell ran for 135 yards and a score in one half. However, in 2008 the Broncos released him. Today he is with the Browns.

I loved this draft. A lot of great talent despite a lot of it not being with us anymore.

What did you think of this draft?

Grade it.