Broncos Draft: Tulane LB Dorian Williams
It won’t cost the Broncos much either.
The Denver Broncos struggles in several areas last season, even on defense. Sure, the struggles came more on the offensive side, but the defense wasn't innocent either.
If there was one issue the defense had, and there was more than one, I'd say it was the coverage from the linebacker spot. Jonas Griffith, Josey Jewel, and Alex Singleton got roasted and toasted every game it felt like.
Singleton was the best coverage linebacker, as he finished with a coverage grade of 73. Then Jewell at 62, and Griffith at 55. So, it's safe to say they could easily improve in that area, not to mention they already need a linebacker anyways.
Dorian Williams may be the guy to go get. In my opinion, he is a sleeper in this draft, especially when it comes to what the Broncos will use him for.
Here is what Pro Football Focus thinks of the Tulane linebacker:
Williams is a very adept zone defender with the plus athletic tools to make quarterbacks think twice about throwing his way. He allowed only 161 yards in coverage in 2022. Williams isn’t the guy you want taking on fullbacks in the hole anytime soon. He’s the one you want cleaning up for that guy. Williams has the “want to” in the run game, but his life is difficult at 228 pounds. He has to have more answers to work around blocks.
Dorian Williams was a big reason for Tulane's success this season. He was great on all three levels of defense, finishing with an 83.3 overall PFF grade to go along with 97 tackles, six sacks, two forced fumbles, and two interceptions. It’s safe to say that Williams was everywhere on the field this year for the Green Wave. He finished seventh in the entire FBS in total tackles and was one of the best linebackers in coverage as well, giving up only 161 yards while holding opposing QBs to a 67.1 NFL passer rating.
Williams can lock up his assignments when in coverage, whether it be man or zone. He doesn't get beat often and when he does it usually seems like he has the speed to recover fairly quickly.
Williams finished with a coverage grade of 87, per PFF's metrics. His sideline-to-sideline speed helped him all season long. Williams is a guy that should be on the Broncos' radar, especially with where they pick in the draft.
You can read the rest of the PFF report on Williams here.
