Denver Broncos: Can Bralon Addison make the roster?

The Denver Broncos have one of the best wide receiver duos in the NFL, but every other spot at the position is up for grabs.

Time after time, Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas have shown that they have the game-breaking talent that can allow them to take over games on their own. Though the Denver Broncos would seem to have an embarrassment of riches at the wide receiver position, backups Bennie Fowler, Cody Latimer, Jordan Norwood, and Jordan Taylor have failed to emerge to this point.

Led by a new quarterback in 2016, the Broncos competition between Mark Sanchez and Paxton Lynch shrouds some of the lesser competitions taking place across the roster.

An undrafted free agent rookie by the name of Bralon Addison is currently in two position battles. Not only is he looking to make the roster as a wide receiver, but he will also try to push Norwood for the kick-off and punt return jobs.

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Skill position players from the University of Oregon tend to carry a certain amount of weight to their names, and Addison dazzled during his time with the Ducks. The former four-star recruit caught over 60 passes and 800 yards in the 2013 and 2015 seasons, combining for 19 total touchdowns (two rushing) in those years.

Addison’s 2014 campaign was lost due to a torn ACL, and there is a belief that he didn’t fully recover from the injury in 2015.

Oct 17, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; Oregon Ducks kick returner Bralon Addison (2) stiff arms away from a tackle by Washington Huskies kicker Tristan Vizcaino (43) during the third quarter at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports /

In many ways, Addison’s success in the pros hinges on the very things that caused him to go undrafted. Back in January, Addison was praised for his acceleration to the point where CBS Sports’s Rob Rang compared him to New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks. A star at the rival Oregon State, Cooks is a former first-round pick and currently has a spot as one of the NFL’s best deep threats.

Though Addison was a touchdown machine at Oregon- he had three punt return touchdowns in 2013 and 2015- questions about his speed and explosiveness emerged during the pre-draft process.

Feb 9, 2016; Denver, CO, USA; General view of Denver Broncos fans celebrate during the Super Bowl 50 championship parade at Civic Center Park. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /

That may sound puzzling to you. How can a WR/KR/PR prospect from Oregon known for his speed and explosiveness, compared to Cooks, and criticized for being an ignored Christmas toy (insinuating that he is a gadget player…such players are known for their speed and agility) go undrafted because of speed concerns?

His Combine and pro day times are the answer here. At 5’9″, 197 pounds, Addison ran a 4.66 forty with a 6.95 three-cone drill and a 4.14 20-yard shuttle.

Bralon Addison has the worst SLA score ever recorded, at 64.86. The only worse scores came from incomplete profiles. He's the 0 percentile!
— Ethan Young (@EthanYoungFB) February 28, 2016

Not good.

But take a look at the above tweet from December. Before the underwhelming workout numbers, some in the draft community gave Addison sleeper buzz. They praised his explosiveness, they fawned over some of the tough catches he made, and they loved the heart and determination he showed over the middle of the field.

More time has passed since his 2014 ACL tear, which can only help him in his first NFL offseason. That said, Addison will have to prove real special teams worth in order to make this roster, because even though he had a great career at Oregon as a wide receiver, he likely isn’t a developed enough wideout to make the roster purely on the strength of his receiving chops.

That said, out of the many undrafted free agents the Broncos signed this draft season, Addison has as good of a chance as any of them at making the 53-man roster.

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