Broncos analysis: CB Jahdae Barron adds versatility and intrigue to Denver secondary long-term ...Middle East

Jahdae Barron lamented missing a chance to connect with Pat Surtain II in recent days.

The University of Texas cornerback had been playing phone tag with the Broncos’ reigning defensive player of the year and All-Pro cornerback in the leadup to the NFL draft, put in contact by a financial planner.

Barron, though, didn’t miss the next call from the Front Range.

The Broncos made him the No. 20 overall selection Thursday night in the first round of the NFL draft, adding him to an already strong defense and proving in the process that general manager George Paton and head coach Sean Payton were serious about taking the best player available.

All’s well that ends well for Barron, who now will get to pick Surtain’s brain every day once he arrives in Denver for the offseason program.

“I didn’t even get to hit him back,” Barron said with a laugh in a call with reporters after his selection. “He’s probably going to make me carry his pads for not hitting him back.”

Barron, 23, turned in one of the best defensive seasons in college football for the Longhorns in 2024. He picked off five passes and broke up 11 more, was named first-team All-America by The Associated Press and won the Jim Thorpe Award as the best defensive back in the country.

Then he went to the combine and ran 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash at 5-foot-11 and 194 pounds.

Still, this is not a direction most expected Payton and Paton to take in the first round of the draft. Running back or tight end? Absolutely. Defensive line? Sure. Wide receiver? Less likely, but still widely bandied about as a possibility.

Instead, Denver doubled down on solidifying a secondary that for much of the year was impenetrable against the pass but late in the season showed signs of weakness when Riley Moss missed time due to a knee injury.

The Broncos aren’t devoid of depth at corner beyond the top line of Surtain, Moss and nickel Ja’Quan McMillian — they saw promising signs from 2024 rookie Kris Abrams-Draine late in the season — but they could consider longer-term whether Moss is best suited for the perimeter or could bump inside and play nickel.

Barron said he could play inside, outside or even at safety and added that he “had an idea” the Broncos might be interested, even though the sum total of their pre-draft contact with him outside of the combine was a Zoom call.

“The only reason I had an idea was because they like guys that are very versatile,” Barron said. “The things that they do on that defense with that defense and with the players, they move a lot of guys around. They do a lot of different looks. At Texas, I played in a lot of different looks. I played in a lot of different spaces on defense in a lot of different roles. It’s a perfect fit. It was perfect.”

It was also unexpected in many ways.

The first round of the draft always felt like the time at which Denver might turn its offseason attention from bolstering its defense to outfitting quarterback Bo Nix with offensive firepower.

They’d already retained defensive tackle D.J. Jones and signed inside linebacker Dre Greenlaw and safety Talanoa Hufanga in free agency.

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Instead, Paton and Payton opted to double down and continue fortifying a unit that in 2024, under Vance Joseph, ranked near the top of the NFL in categories across the board.

“I can do a lot of things,” Barron said. “I’m very smart and I’m willing to do whatever to contribute and to make myself a value and a key piece. I can’t wait to learn from Pat Surtain, to be part of the DB culture and the things that he’s doing and the things that they have going down there.

“I just can’t wait to be a part of it all, and it’s really going to be amazing. I’m so excited to play in Broncos Country.”

They did so because they thought Barron was in a different category as a prospect than the offensive skill players left on the board. At No. 20, those included running backs Omarion Hampton and TreVeyon Henderson, wide receiver Matthew Golden and tight end Mason Taylor.

While Denver went defense, others in the division went the other way.

Las Vegas jumped at the opportunity to draft Boise State star running back Ashton Jeanty at No. 6. Then the Chargers followed the Broncos at No. 22 and took Hampton, the North Carolina standout who was frequently tied to Denver in the weeks leading up to the first round.

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