24-year old WR Eddie Royal is a very solid kickoff returner for the Broncos.  Royal played in 14 games for the Broncos last season and he returned 26 kickoffs for 621 yards (23.9 avg) with 1 TD return.  He has now played in 29 games in his career with the Broncos and he has returned 49 kickoffs for 1,221 yards (24.9 avg) with 1 TD return.  Royal is fast and he has a ton of good moves in the open field as he is a threat to score any time he gets the ball kicked to him.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BRONCOS KICKOFF RETURNERS in 2010:  B+

The Broncos will have training camp battles to determine who starts at LG and C.  LT Ryan Clady hurt himself playing basketball in the off-season tearing a patellar tendon that required surgery.  He looks on track to be ready for opening day and the Broncos are happy about that because he is a solid blind side protector for Kyle Orton.  LG will be a battle between rookie 2nd round pick Zane Beadles out of Utah and veteran Ross Hochenstein.  Beadles appears to have a slight edge heading into training camp.  Seth Olsen will battle rookie 3rd round pick J.D. Walton out of Baylor for the starting center job with Olsen holding an edge right now.  RG Chris Kuper is a very solid run blocker who is a decent pass blocker.  RT Ryan Harris is a very good pass blocker and he’s solid in the running game too.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BRONCOS O-LINE in 2010:  C+

Everyone was hailing 34-year old head coach Josh McDaniels as a new coaching superstar as the Broncos were 6-0 before their bye week.  But the season crumbled after the week off as the Broncos limped to a 2-8 finish to end the year at 8-8.  McDaniels has run talented players like Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Tony Scheffler out of town so the pressure is one him to win now.  His my way or the highway mentality might not be inspiring the players as much as most people think.  It will be interesting to see if McDaniels can get his Broncos back on the right path because his job will depend on it.

25-year old kicker Matt Prater had a outstanding season for the Broncos and they hope it’s a sign of things to come.  Prater played in all 16 games for the Broncos last season and he connected on 30 of 35 field goals (85.7%).  He also made all 32 of his extra points to finish with 122 points last year.  Prater has now played in 36 games in his NFL career and he has made 56 of 73 field goals (76.7%) and 72 of 73 extra points good for 240 points. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BRONCOS KICKERS in 2010:  A

1st round pick Demaryius Thomas and 3rd round pick Eric Decker could be the top 2 receivers for the Broncos in 2010 and that’s not really a bad thing when you look at the rest of the WR corps.  Head Coach Josh McDaniels got his way once again with the trade of Brandon Marshall to the Dolphins but make no mistake, they are going to miss him big time.  Thomas has a awesome skill set as he’s big and fast but he played at Georgia Tech which wasn’t a passing team.  Eric Decker has outstanding hands and he’s a big guy too.  He fits as more of a possession type.

29-year old Jabar Gaffney is a McDaniels’ favorite as they were together in New England.  That means he will get a lot of work in 2010.  Gaffney played in 16 games (7 starts) for the Broncos last season and he caught 54 passes for 732 yards (13.6 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has now played in 123 games (77 starts) in his 8 years in the NFL and he has caught 310 passes for 3,800 yards (12.3 avg) with 17 TD grabs.  Gaffney would be best used as the #3 or #4 receiver in 2010.

34-year old Brandon Stokley appears to be nearing the end of his NFL career.  He played in 16 games (2 starts) for the Broncos last season and he caught 19 passes for 327 yards (17.2 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Stokley has now played in 118 games (35 starts) in his 11 years in the NFL and he has caught 307 passes for 4,319 yards (14.1 avg) with 34 TD grabs.  Stokley will likely be the #4 or #5 WR in 2010 if he makes the team.

24-year old Eddie Royal got into the Broncos’ Dog House last season but he still has the potential to be the best WR on the roster.  Royal played in 14 games (12 starts) for the Broncos last season and he caught 37 passes for 345 yards (9.3 avg) without a TD.  Royal has now played in 29 games (27 starts) in his two years with the Broncos and he has caught 128 passes for 1,325 yards (10.4 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  He has also carried the ball 12 times for 110 yards (9.2 ypc) for the Broncos.  Royal has a nice upside and the Broncos would be stupid not to use him more in the passing game this season.

29-year old Brandon Lloyd better come to play this summer in training camp if he wants to make the Broncos in 2010.  Lloyd played in 2 games (1 start) for the Broncos last season and he caught 8 passes for 117 yards (14.6 avg).  Lloyd has now played in 81 games (48 starts) in his 7 years in the NFL and he has caught 164 passes for 2,370 yards (14.5 avg) with 15 TD grabs. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BRONCOS WRs in 2010:  C-