If you were paying attention to the pulse of the NFL Draft a few months ago, one name that you would see near the top of the charts was Da'Quan Bowers.

What happened to the guy? 

In short, injury concerns. Todd McShay reported that some team officials he has been in communications with described Bowers as "a ticking time bomb". It wasn't in reference to his talent exploding on the scene, it was in reference to his penchant for suffering injuries. There is some concern that it's only a matter of time before he is sidelined for a significant portion of time or suffers an injury that debilitates his ability to be a successful NFL player.

When the 2011 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday at 8 pm, where is Da'Quan Bowers going to fall?

Todd McShay thinks he'll be drafted somewhere in the top 20, but he was projected top 5 a few months ago, even after his surgery. What has changed since February? According to NBC Sports, he may need additional microfracture surgery.

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This has been a historically trying year for us fans of the Denver Broncos, capping off the most tumultuous time for the franchise that I can recall. I must admit to being personally beaten down by it - which accounts for my prolonged silence this season - but now that we're onto the next chapter of our shared history, I hope you'll allow me to leave all that in the past as we move on together. What better way to do just that than to set our eyes on the upcoming NFL Draft; remember, even the darkest storm clouds have their silver linings!

It has been a rare instance in which this franchise has had the opportunity to secure as much impact talent as they are currently in position to acquire and it could not have come at a better time. Despite the uncertain nature of our future administration, we can look to the cream of the crop for reinforcements that fit myriad schemes.

I realize that one of my fellow draftniks on staff here at Mile High Report, Sayre Bedinger, has already kicked off the Draftivus festivities - going so far as to produce multiple in-depth mock drafts before the end of either the NFL or NCAA seasons - and we are all greatly appreciative of his efforts. Though I won't match his thoroughness or preciseness just yet, I will be adding my voice to the ongoing conversation as we approach the most important draft for the Broncos in decades.

While the professional and college football seasons wind down, I'll be publishing posts discussing three draft prospects a piece: a consensus top pick, a personal favorite, and a sleeper. As the draft order becomes solidified and the bowl season draws to a close, I'll be adding more definition to this series. Finally, as word comes in on the specific direction of the franchise and the draft class fills out, I'll shift gears into mock drafts and full draft talk. This is my favorite time of the year, my friends, and I hope you'll come along for the ride with us here at MHR!

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The dog days of summer are here and OTA's and minicamps are happening. The next order of business is to get the new kids signed to a contract. It was thought (by me) that new contracts would be a problem this year due to the lack of a salary cap. The players and owners somehow couldn’t manage to reach an agreement — despite the billions of dollars in revenue generated every year. I confess that I was wro...wro...mistaken. The only real effect has been a slightly lower amount of signings to this point as compared to previous years.

The signing process usually starts revving up after the top draft picks sign their deals. A domino effect ensues as the market has been set for the top half of the first round. Even though nothing has been settled yet, we can still put a range on the likely numbers on each rookie contract. Last year, top draft pick Matthew Stafford secured a contract for 6 years worth $78 million. $41.7 million of that is guaranteed. It is rumored that this year's, No. 1 pick Sam Bradford has requested a contract for 6 years/ $78 million with $50 million of that guaranteed. He is represented by Agent Tom Condon of Creative Artists Agency, so that figure is likely to happen.

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As some of you already know and the rest of you are about to find out, I am a proud Florida Gator and have been since 2007. I had been a fan of their athletic program since the early 90's and was first admitted to the University when I graduated from high school in 2001, but opted not to attend. Life's many twists and turns finally brought me to Gainesville, however, roughly three years ago. As you may have already surmised, that means that my time here at Florida thus far ran concurrently with Tim Tebow's tenure as the Gators starting quarterback. You can only imagine my excitement when, with the 25th pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, our Denver Broncos selected the University of Florida's prodigal son! For all of his physical talents and inspiring character, it was the times when the two would meet that truly won me over as his fan and give me the most hope for his Broncos' career.

I can honestly say that I watched every single snap of Tebow's college career. I watched as he: found a niche as the change-of-pace quarterback as a freshman on the 2006 National Championship team, became the first sophomore to ever win the Heisman Trophy in 2007, led the Gators to another National Championship in 2008, and rewrote the record books as a senior in 2009. Along the way, I learned of his mission trips during the breaks from school, his exceptional work in the classroom and the piety of his personal life. Any number of those accolades and accomplishments would be enough to make for an incredibly successful college career; all of it together is almost overwhelming to contemplate. Tim's story would be literally unbelievable to me, had it not unfolded before my very eyes.

There's plenty of fodder there to write volumes of glowing articles about Denver's newest quarterback, but I'm sure we've all come across plenty of those. I could tell you all about his statistics, awards and highlights if I wanted to speak to his prowess between the white lines. I could remind you of his other newsworthy undertakings and deeds if I wanted to harp on his personal character. I know I don't get tired of that stuff and I hope you won't either, because we'll be hearing about those things plenty as he transitions into our particular shades of Orange and Blue. That said, I feel as though there's something lost when people chose to focus on those separate aspects - Tebow the player and Tebow the person - because that gap is bridged in a profound way. For me, that is the "It" that sets him apart. Today I want to share with you all my favorite piece of Tim Tebow lore - The Promise - in my own words.

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With their first pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Denver Broncos selected: Demaryius Thomas, WR, Georgia Tech. I think you'd all agree that that fact already has all the makings of a difficult trivia question for the average fan out there. Despite all of my preparation for the draft, the Thomas pick surprised me somewhat. Because I viewed him as an early second round prospect, I figured he'd come off the board somewhere between our choices at #11 and #43, so I didn't really bother with getting to know him all that well. That said, I did know a little about him and I liked what I had seen, heard or read. Since the draft, however, I've taken a closer look and I thought I'd share that information with you all now.

I choose to focus on Thomas now, instead of any of our other rookies, because - despite being our top choice in the draft - he seems to have slipped through the cracks of our attention. Tim Tebow remains the lightning rod that he's always been, and the selection of Zane Beadles in the second round was somehow even more controversial than that choice. Eric Decker quickly became a fan favorite and J.D. Walton was perhaps the only truly expected pick out of the four made during the first two days of the draft. The remainder of the bunch has been taken with a grain of salt, as I suppose most late-round picks should be. The silence surrounding Demaryius, however, feels misplaced.

For all the talk of Tim Tebow and what he means to head coach Josh McDaniels, Thomas was the prospect he had to have in this draft. He's the guy they took with their first pick - the only one they had assured in the range where they ultimately expected both of those players to be taken. He's the guy they traded up for first to secure and they paid a premium to do it as well. He really is an impressive prospect and I have very high hopes for what he'll be able to accomplish at the next level, sooner rather than later. Let us therefore get to know him once again, so that maybe he can make a second impression worthy of the status that I believe he should hold in our hearts and minds.

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The entries have finally all been scored, and those scores tallied, which means it is now time to announce the Draftivus winners!

We'll start with this year's Grand Prize Winner.  Grand Prize receives a lot of cool S.T.Y.G.S.T.U.F.F., including some MHR coasters, an $80 NFLShop.com Instant Gift Certificate, and the awesome Kap in the picture, signed by many of our 2009 rookie class.

It should be noted that the highest score possible was 60 for pre-trade mocks, and 70 for those who submitted their mocks after the BM and Scheff trades.  The average score of the MHR community was 12 points, so these following entries are particularly impressive.  Also, in order to increase competitiveness, the exact number of the picks do not have to line up, just the round.  So if you had WR Eric Decker going to us with the 17th pick in the 3rd round, you were awarded 10 points for correct player at correct pick (round).  I was also pretty picky about classifying of players, position wise.  Jammie Kirlew was specifically a rush DE/OLB, so in order to get 2 points for a DE choice anywhere else in the draft, he couldn't be primarily a downlineman, DE/DT type player.  The same applied to OT/OG vs OG/C hybrids, which were considered different positions.

   Grand Prize Winner:  Mudagoose10  

 The high score of 30 points came on the following mock, and it should be noted that this was a pre-trade mock, which just goes to show.   Very few entries actually speculated that the Broncos would trade as much as they did on draft day, so great job Goose!

1st Round-Jared Odrick DE--(2 points for correct position, regardless of when taken)

2nd Round-Vladimir Duccasse OT/OG--(3 points for correct position in actual round taken)

3rd Round-Toby Gerhart RB--(0 points)

4th Round-Brandon Spikes ILB--(0 points)

6th Round-Eric Olsen OG/C--(10 points for correct player in correct round)

7th Round-Chris Marinelli OT/OG--(5 points correct player, regardless of where taken)

Number of Trades-4+ (10 points)

Total Points: 30

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At MHR, the staff will get together to discuss issues of the moment.  Today's discussion is the controversial decision to bring in Tim Tebow with a first round pick.  Was it a good decision?  How might it affect the locker room dynamics or morale?

Below, each staffer gives you his opinion.  The most important opinion is yours, so make sure to put it into the comments section.  Do you agree or disagree with a certain view, or have a new view altogether?  We'd love to hear from you!

This week's question, "What does the future hold for Orton and Tebow?  How will this impact the locker room morale of the team, and the team's future?"

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This is always a fun time of year - the day when the rookies and new players receive their on-field identities.  Here is a list of numbers for your jersey-ordering pleasure!

2010 NFL Draft Picks:

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