John Elway has been one of the busiest front office executives in the NFL the past week as he looks to keep the Denver Broncos' window for winning a Super Bowl open another year.
The team has added flashy pieces on defense like DeMarcus Ware, T.J. Ward and Aqib Talib, but there still are a few holes to fill on the offensive side of the ball. As the first wave of free-agent signings comes to a close, the Broncos figure to shift gears and turn to the NFL draft to keep Peyton Manning happy and healthy in 2014.
Wide receiver help figures to be one area the team will address with the departure of Eric Decker, but NFL Media analyst Charley Casserly thinks that offensive line might be the priority the team will have to take at the bottom of the first round before doing anything else.
"They need a big, strong guy inside," Casserly said on NFL Network's "Path to the Draft". "Xavier Su'a-Filo. Yes, that's right the UCLA guy. To me, he's got Pro Bowl potential. He's strong enough to knock people off the ball but he's athletic enough to get to linebackers and cut on the backside. In pass protection, he's big enough to anchor but quick enough to slide side-to-side to pick up stunts."
Denver allowed a league-low 20 sacks last year but as anybody who watched the Super Bowl will tell you, that doesn't mean they're completely set along the offensive line.
Su'a-Filo was a significant factor in UCLA's surge the past two seasons after returning from a Mormon mission to help solidify the Bruins' shaky offensive line play. Though he is not close to a finished product, Su'a-Filo has gained traction with scouts recently due to his ability to play multiple spots along the line.
The 6-foot-4, 307-pounder could slide in to replace guard Zane Beadles, who left the Broncos as a free agent after receiving a five-year, $30 million deal from the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Denver could still decide to look for interior line help in the middle rounds of the draft given the extensive options at the position instead of the end of the first, however. If that's the case the Broncos might end up helping a familiar foe in Seattle, as more than one analyst thinks the UCLA product could fit in effortlessly with the Super Bowl champions as well.
I'm sure that thought is a great one for the fans in orange and blue.
Follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter @BryanDFischer.
