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Which Denver Broncos UDFA’s will make the team?

Every year, the Denver Broncos find a diamond or two in the UDFA rough. Who will it be this year?

NCAA Football: Miami at Notre Dame Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Few teams can boast the kind of success the Denver Broncos have enjoyed with their undrafted free agents. Obviously, Chris Harris Jr. is the headliner of the bunch, but the list also includes guys like C.J. Anderson and Shaquil Barrett.

Since 2011, the Broncos have found three or four potential diamonds that went undrafted.

Past Notable Broncos’ UDFA

Player Year
Player Year
Chris Harris Jr. 2011
Mario Fannin 2011
Adam Weber 2011
Aaron Brewer 2012
Duke Ihenacho 2012
Steven Johnson 2012
Mike Remmers 2012
C.J. Anderson 2013
Larentee McCray 2013
Shaquil Barrett 2014
Kapri Bibbs 2014
Juwan Thompson 2014
Zaire Anderson 2015
Dillon Day 2015
Jordan Taylor 2015
Vontarrius Dora 2016
Henry Krieger-Coble 2016
Kyle Peko 2016
Kalif Raymond 2016

The only question is, how many of the 17 Broncos undrafted free agents in 2017 will end up being one of those three or four players that sticks around on the roster for a few years?

Out of those three or four each year, they also find about one guy that contributes significantly week in and week out.

2017 Broncos UDFA’s

Player Pos Ht Wt School
Player Pos Ht Wt School
Jamal Carter S 6'1" 218 Miami
Tyrique Jarrett NT 6'3" 340 Pittsburgh
Shakir Soto DE 6'3" 256 Pittsburgh
Josh Banderas ILB 6'2" 220 Nebraska
Kyle Sloter QB 6'4" 214 Northern Colorado
Deon Hollins OLB 6'0" 230 UCLA
Erik Austell OT 6'3" 301 Charleston Southern
Marcus Rios CB 5'11" 181 UCLA
Ken Ekanem DE 6'3" 243 Virginia Tech
Orion Stewart DB 6'2" 185 Baylor
Anthony Nash WR 6'5" 201 Duke
Cameron Hunt OT 6'4" 295 Oregon
Dante Barnett S 6'1" 185 Kansas State
Jerrol Garcia-Williams ILB 6'2" 216 Hawaii
Dymonte Thomas S 6'2" 199 Michigan
Dontrell Nelson CB 6'1" 170 Memphis
Elijah Wilkinson OL 6'4" 331 Massachusetts

The Broncos received a ‘B’ for their UDFA class from Bleacher Report, but they dug deeper into my two favorite prospects on this list in Jamal Carter and Erik Austell. As I wrote on Monday, Austell is a guy who could develop into a starter-caliber talent for the Broncos along the interior of the offensive line. While Carter is an instant contributor on special teams.

Defensively, Miami safety Jamal Carter is another player who will take time to develop at the NFL level after starting only one year for the Hurricanes. But the 6'1" 218-pounder certainly looks the part of an NFL safety from a physical standpoint.

Add in his ability to contribute from Day 1 in special teams, and as one NFC personnel man told Zierlein, "I don't see the ball skills to be a starter, but guys that look like that make rosters."

Both players would need time on the practice squad, but the growth potential for them is huge. In fact, any of these players could surprise us, but it is unlikely more than three or four of them will be around on the roster in two years.

Some could end up like Mike Remmers, who started for the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 and helped Von Miller to an MVP award.

Who are you most excited about from the 2017 Broncos UDFA class?