The NFL draft is one of the most exciting times of the year for NFL fans. It's a time for fans to speculate about what their team will do to improve or stock up for the upcoming season.
But the draft is also known for its unpredictability and its surprises, and that's what makes it one of the best events on the annual NFL calendar.
Over the years, the draft has provided for some incredibly shocking moments. Matt Velazquez of Bleacher Report recently put together a list of what he feels are the 20 most shocking moments in the history of the draft, and the Denver Broncos figure into three of those.
The first on that list comes from the 1992 draft when, despite having John Elway on the roster, Dan Reeves used his first-round pick on UCLA quarterback Tommy Maddox.
"When your team has John Elway in his prime, is coming off an AFC Championship Game appearance and owns the 25th overall pick in the NFL draft with which to add weapons, you know what you should do? Definitely draft another quarterback.
Wait...what?!
Yes, that's exactly what the Denver Broncos did in 1992, as head coach Dan Reeves—who clearly and famously didn't see eye to eye with Elway—wanted UCLA sophomore Tommy Maddox to be Elway's heir. It was a surprising move at the time and it certainly didn't work out, as Maddox started just four games in two years before being traded.
Reeves didn't last as long as Maddox did, as he was fired at the conclusion of the 1992 season", wrote Velazquez.
It was a surprisingly bad pick for the Broncos and it was basically Reeves' undoing. Maddox would resurface years later, helping the Los Angeles Xtreme win the inaugural XFL championship which bought him a ticket back to the NFL, where he played five seasons for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Elway would face Reeves' Atlanta Falcons in his final NFL game, Super Bowl XXXIII, a 34-19 Broncos win.
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The next moment for the Broncos on the list comes from 2005, when the team used its third-round pick on Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett.
"Two years after being dismissed from the Ohio State football program and one year after unsuccessfully suing the NFL for the right to be included in the 2004 NFL draft, Maurice Clarett finally got his chance to join the NFL in 2005.
There was no telling how teams would value the running back based on his extended time off the gridiron and unprecedented path to the NFL. His one year at Ohio State had shown flashes of enough promise to perk up interest, though his 4.72 and 4.82 40-yard times at the combine didn't inspire much confidence.
Shockingly, Clarett was scooped up by the Denver Broncos with the final pick of the third round. The Broncos' decision was even more surprising given they already had a formidable stable of running backs that included Mike Anderson, Tatum Bell and Ron Dayne.
What makes this decision even more mind-boggling is that Clarett was released by the Broncos in August 2005 before logging a single snap in a preseason game, and he wasn't picked up by anyone else", wrote Velazquez.
This was a monumentally bad pick and one of the biggest mistakes Mike Shanahan made in his entire tenure with the team. It seemed like an intriguing pick when it was made, but Maurice Clarett obviously couldn't play in the league if he didn't even make it through the preseason and never got a chance anywhere else in the league.
That is all but unheard of for a third-round pick, particularly one who rushed for over 1,200 yards and 16 touchdowns in a college season.
Finally, the first-round selection of Tim Tebow in 2010 is still considered shocking, at least to Velazquez. The Broncos traded up to get Tebow that year and while it was one of the most exciting picks in team history for some, it was met with plenty of negativity from others.
"Tim Tebow did it all during his four years at Florida. He led the Gators to two national titles, won the Heisman and racked up tons of numbers as a dual-threat quarterback. Still, teams weren't all that high on him heading into the 2010 draft, as there was no guarantee he'd be selected on Day 1, and some thought he wouldn't go until the third round.
Lucky for Tebow, there was one team that really liked him.
Despite his struggles as a passer, the Denver Broncos opted to take Tebow off the board with the 25th overall pick. In fact, head coach Josh McDaniels and the Broncos didn't just take Tebow with that pick, but they also traded their second-, third- and fourth-round picks to the Baltimore Ravens so they could move up to get Tebow.
Tebow was certainly a lightning rod in Denver and provided a glorious overtime touchdown pass during the playoffs in 2011, but it was still shocking that a team both took him in the first round and gave up picks to do it", said Velazquez.
Though I will forever argue that Tebow is not as bad as most make him out to be, there are some valid points in there, particularly the fact that the Broncos didn't need to trade up to get him.
What will the 2025 draft bring for the Broncos and the legions within Broncos Country?
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