Defensive Tackle was a position of need heading into the 2008 NFL Draft for the Broncos.  Just days before Draft Weekend, the Broncos secured DeWayne Robertson from the New York Jets, but still felt the need to inject some youth to the position by selecting DT Carlton Powell from Virginia Tech.

via media3.washingtonpost.com

Recently, Carlton was nice enough to answer some questions from members of MileHighrReport.com.  We thank Carlton again for taking the time to help us get to know him, and thanks to everyone who posted questions here at the site --

Continue reading this post »

This is a transcript of Jim Goodman's conversation about the draft from this fanshot put up by JonT .  I've taken some liberties with some paraphrasing here and there, but the heart of what he was talking about is there.  I thought this would be useful for any members who aren't able to watch videos on their CPUs, or who haven't had time to watch the whole video (its over 40 minutes long.)  Enjoy!

Jim Goodman

Director of Player Personnel

About getting ready for the draft:

The process takes 12 months, we start in May, when the National Scouting Service that we are a member of, gives us approximately 1000 names.  We go over thsoe names and give grades to them and distribute the names to our seven area scouts, and all of those guys have to get scouted, and reports have to be written on every one of those guys, plus any guys that  start to come out in their senior year.  So you'll end up doing anywhere from 1200 to 1400 reports a year, in order to get your 9 guys.

From there we have the season, the bowl games and feature games, and then the combine, and then we have a series of meetings between the scouts, between the scouts and coaches, and we take about a month to get that list narrowed down to around 300 names, and we end up talking about those 300 very specifically.

The hardest thing about evaluating, period, is what is in a guy's heart.  What makes him a player?  What gives him the will to succeed?  To see a guy's will to win and what he is willing to do to succeed, is the hardest thing for us to do.

On the hectic nature of draftday:

Actually, when the draft is going, it is real calm.  We have a game plan, and we go through every conceivable scenario beforehand, we get an idea of where guys could possibly go.  We will rank guys, so that we can say, "Ok, coach, if this ones gone and this ones gone, what is your game plan here?"  We are doing constant drills like that all the time, so that we can have a gameplan to go to just like in a football game.  But you always have to keep an eye on guys whose value is too high to bypass.  For example, you may not need a RB, but if you look up and see a can't miss guy, well, you had better take him.  But by the same token you have to know what your needs are, so you want the best choice for your need, but you need to ask yourself, "Is there a value here that is too good to pass up?"  That happens every round.  I remember a guy that really got my attention was Spencer Larsen, our 6th round choice out of Arizona, just a great kid, a guy that has his head on right, such a good player who plays with all his might, gives all he has every play.  He's a guy we look at and say "HE is going to make it at his position," so I'm really excited about him.

On Ryan Clady:

Ryan is a great athlete.  You don't see many 6'7" 300 lb tackles, that are that athletic and have that kind of foot quickness, that have that good of body quickness.  People just aren't made like that.  This guys has 37 inch arms, a great wingspan, a great range to kick step out of, to protect the backside of a QB, so he has probowl potential.  He has the potential, and the game has only begun with him.  He's got it all.

On Eddie Royal:

Eddie is a guy we looked at as a premier returner.  He is as good as I have seen.  he reminds me of Figures, of Devon Hester, but he is a good WR, don't let his return ability stop you from seeing that.  He is great in the seam and does very well getting off press coverage and getting after the deep ball, so we think there is a lot of upside.

Before the draft I expressed my deisre for the Broncos to trade down.  I kept hope alive all the way until Roger Goodell said Ryan Clady's name.  It isn't that don't like Clady.  Just the opposite.  On MHR Radio the other night, I called Clady the safest pick for the Broncos if he was there, and by the sounds of Mike Shahahan he thought the same thing.

There were plenty of trades, which speaks to the sheer fluidity of this draft.  That doesn't mean it is easy to get a deal done.  It was becoming clear with all the movement around the Broncos that they weren't going to be able to get something done.  At that point the Broncos had no choice but to punt and take the best fit.

Clady gives the Broncos something on the O-Line they haven't had in a long time.  Natural, God-given talent.  The Broncos have gotten so much out of guys drafted in the late round, so much over-achievement, that at some point you need to add real talent to the equation.  Clady is that guy, the 2nd best OT on the board, behind only Jake Long, the #1 overall pick.

The Broncos have tried this before, we all are still trying to forget George Foster, but Clady is different. To hear him talk, to see his answers to the meda after the selection, shows an intelligence that Foster never had.  That intelligence, along with his comfort in a zone-blocking scheme, should help Clady come right in and make an impact.

The Broncos most important asset is Jay Cutler.  Cutler needs protected and Clady should give Cutler that protection for the next decade.  For that, I can't help but be satisfied.

In the 2nd Round, the Broncos drafted the KR/PR we have been clammoring for.  Eddie Royal might be a name that you aren't familiar with, and it may have been a bit of a reach, but with no 3rd round pick the Broncos had no choice but to get the guy the needed right at #42. 

Royal was a 4-year player at Virginia Tech, a big-time football school, and made significant contributions all 4 season.  Again, what was most impressive to me, and Styg did a nice job talking about this, is this kid's character.  He was very well-spoken, spoke of being a team player, of doing whatever he could do for the team. 

Royal will instantly improve our return game and that alone makes him worth it.  Remember, in the SBNation Mock Draft I selected Chris Johnson at #42.  We needed a guy to make plays day 1.  Royal will come in and do that.  He also provides insurance for Brandon Stokely, whose injury history speaks for itself.  Only DeSean Jackson could have provided the same spark.  The difference?  Character.

Overall, I give these first two selections a solid B.  The Broncos have several needs and both of these picks are attempts to address them. There was no surprise.  There,  was no reach for a guy with a questionable past.  It is time the Broncos brought in players we could be proud of.  It looks like that has started today.

This pick is primarily about one thing, and that is CHARACTER.

And even though Royal's skillset will probably make him a good choice to replace Stokely eventually in the slot, I will go out on a limb here and say that Royal could really be in line to replace a much different kind of receiver, with a much different style of play, but similar results:  Rod Smith.

You see, Royal gets it, and what the Denver staff must have seen from him is the same kind of maturity that they have seen in guys like Smith, and Foxworth.  More than anything, Denver just wants to get some players on this team that they can DEPEND on, and nothing is a better indicator of that than character.

As far as his style on the field, slot routes are ideal for Royal, and any kind of route that lets him look for the soft spot between the defenders.  While he does have a tendency to round off his routes, he shows the quickness in and out of breaks, and he doesn't telegraph his motions, which are much harder traits to unlearn.  He has good hands, but may have some trouble catching bulletts from Cutler, so if Cutler wants to get a little extra one on one work in, Royal should take him up on it.  It is impossible to give him too much cushion, and he eats it right up with his acceleration off the snap, but he is also under control, a sign that he has taken well to his coaching.  And for any corner who doesn't watch out, Royal can get behind him instantanously, and with his quick stride, he is hard to tackle with just an arm tackle.

What really surprises you about Royal is how powerful he is for a smaller guy.  You see this show up in his head fakes of all places, where he fakes the defender, plants and drives away in a single powerful motion that is very effective.  You'll also see him breaking arm tackles and driving with his legs, and his body control is very promising, with flashes of exceptional, Harrison like ability.  An underrated part of his game is his willingness and effectiveness at blocking in the running game, if he had more bulk, he could hold up even better and be an elite blocking WR, but this is one young player who should really not even consider bulking up.  For better or worse he is probably as big as he is going to get.

His KR/PR ability is really just a synthesis of the talent above, but I will mention that he has incredible patience, and the acceleration to take advantage of it.  Add to that a tenacious competitiveness, and exceptional football intelligence, and this is a player who will fill a void that Denver has had on both sides of the ball, for several years now:  He will be a dependable.  He is also one of the better WRs at uncovering when his QB is in trouble, and like Bennett does a good job of recognizing when he needs to start working his way back to the line of scrimmage to help out.

Between his leadership role in the weight room and his love of the game, his coaches all figure he is a likely candidate to be a coach someday, but in the meantime, he has his work cut out for him:  help establish a short field for the offense, and get involved in the red zone, both will be difficult tasks and the urgency of his contributions is undeniable.

But unlike our past WR picks, this is a player who has his head, and his heart, in the right spot.

On knowing the Broncos were interested in him

“I had an idea. I spoke with them at the Senior Bowl, but I was totally shocked when I was picked. I got the call from [Head] Coach [Mike] Shanahan, and I wasn’t expecting it at all.”

On his ability to return kicks

“I definitely feel like I can come in and be that guy. I can come in and make plays on special teams and be a guy that teams are scared to kick the ball to. I definitely look forward to doing that and making an impact right away.”

On if he prefers returning punts or kickoffs

“It doesn’t matter. I feel comfortable doing both. I have had more success on punt returns, but I love doing them both. If it involves catching the ball and making plays for my team, I’ll do it.”

On making an immediate impact with the Broncos

“I’m hoping they need me a lot because I want to come in right away and play. At the opening game, I look to be the starter back there returning kicks and punts. Hopefully I can do that. Mostly, I want to show the coaches that I am mature enough to come in right away and play.”

On why he believes he is a better punt returner than kickoff returner

“I don’t believe I am a better punt returner than kick returner. It is just that I have had more success returning punts. I think that I will be able to come in and be effective at both.”

On how long it will take to see time on offense

“Hopefully not too long. I think the coaches will see me out there making plays on special teams and say, ‘Hey we gotta get this guy the ball on the offense.’ Hopefully not long at all.”

On learning how to play the slot position from Broncos WR Brandon Stokley

“It is great to have someone like him to learn from. He really studies the game and he knows the business. He is one of those guys that may not have the big name but is always productive. He is like the Ed McCaffrey type, the silent killer.”

On being drafted ahead of other big-name receivers

“I really was surprised. I didn’t know what to expect out of the receivers in the first round, and that kind of made me nervous but the great thing is that [Head] Coach [Mike] Shanahan has a lot of respect and he gave me this chance, so I am going to get out there and give him all I got.”

On being drafted before California’s DeSean Jackson

“A lot of coaches have told me different thing comparing some of the things that he does to what I do. We are similar players, but at the same time we do some things differently. I think it really depended on what the team was looking for. I think my personality and me being more mature definitely helped with the selection.”