INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — CJ Allen responded without a shred of hesitation to the question that’ll determine if he’s a fit for the Broncos, come April.
“No doubt,” Allen responded Wednesday at the NFL Combine when asked if he’d tell teams he’s an immediate starter in the NFL. “That’s what I tell them. No doubt, for sure.”
If Allen can convince the Broncos of the same, the Georgia inside linebacker could very well be a first-round fit for Denver at pick No. 30 in a couple of months. Broncos personnel have taken the first couple of days of the draft combine in Indianapolis to do their homework on linebackers in this 2026 draft class, bringing in a group of ILB prospects for formal meetings on Monday night.
Head coach Sean Payton said Tuesday that addressing the linebacker position is a “must” for Denver this offseason, with key pieces Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad both set to hit free agency; general manager George Paton, though, noted that it’s a tough mental task for a rookie middle linebacker to step in and contribute right away.
Georgia’s Allen and Texas Tech’s Jacob Rodriguez are among the top linebacker prospects in this 2026 draft class.
Allen, for one, said he felt he’d be in a “great spot” in the heart of Denver’s defense, and talk of his leadership has flitted around Indianapolis this week. He was a key contributor at Georgia since he was a freshman, for a reason.
“I think I have, just, a superpower — the ability to make guys around me better, on and off the field,” Allen told reporters Thursday. “I think just playing with guys, and me playing in that middle, it elevates guys around me.”
Texas Tech linebacker Jacob Rodriguez (21) speaks Wednesday during a press conference at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)Rodriguez, meanwhile, said his formal meeting with Denver went “really smooth.” The 2025 Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner doesn’t have exceptional size, listed at 6-foot-1 and 233 pounds. But he could shoot up draft boards with a strong performance at the combine this week.
“Their program’s really aligned,” Rodriguez said Wednesday, of his visit with the Broncos. “How they were asking questions, and what they wanted to know, I think it showed how much they trust each other and trust their coaching staff. That’s why they had a lot of success this year.
“And yeah, I would love to play in Denver,” Rodriguez continued. “That’d be great. I think great organization, great coaches, great place to be. Yeah, I would be very excited to be there.”
Needing to scour all possible corners of the NFL world to beef up the middle of their defense, the Broncos have done their homework already on several linebackers in a “pretty good linebacker class,” as Paton put it Tuesday. After linebackers and defensive linemen spoke at the draft combine on Wednesday, here’s a breakdown of Broncos-related observations and pieces of intel from the week’s festivities thus far.
Tracking Denver Post-confirmed Broncos meetings with combine prospects
Each NFL team is allowed a maximum of 45 total formal meetings at the NFL Combine. Note: these are conversations solely intended to gather more information on different prospects, and usually have little correlation to which players teams actually draft.
ILB CJ Allen, Georgia
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ILB Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech
ILB Sonny Styles, Ohio State
DT Caleb Banks, Florida
DT Christen Miller, Georgia
Seven takeaways from Wednesday
1. One potential ILB fit Denver didn’t meet with, which could be telling. Texas inside linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. said Wednesday he hasn’t met with the Broncos, an interesting admission given their No. 30 first-round pick and Hill’s projected draft range of late Day 1 to Day 2. This could actually mean the Broncos are concealing their hand here. Under Paton, the Broncos have intentionally minimized pre-draft contact with first-round targets like Pat Surtain (2021) and Jahdae Barron (2025). Is Hill next? He’s a 6-foot-3, 238-pound athlete who led the SEC in tackles for loss and forced fumbles in 2024, and profiles well in coverage.
2. One impending free-agent receiver name might already be off the board for the Broncos. The Colts’ Alec Pierce profiles in sheer skillset as one of the most interesting free-agent fits at receiver for the Broncos. He’s a unique deep threat who racked up 1,003 yards in 2025 on a league-leading 21.3 yards per catch. A league source, though, told The Denver Post that Indianapolis doesn’t plan on letting Pierce walk, and Colts general manager Chris Ballard said Tuesday he’s had “great discussions” with both Pierce and upcoming free-agent quarterback Daniel Jones. Denver might have to scratch this one.
Texas Tech running back J'Koby Williams (20) runs as Oregon linebacker Bryce Boettcher defends during the second half of the Orange Bowl quarterfinal game, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)3. Might Denver look at another Oregon Duck? Oregon linebacker Bryce Boettcher played two years with quarterback Bo Nix in Eugene, and said Nix was one of the quarterbacks he’d pick if he “could have any” on his team. Maybe he’ll have the chance, come April. Boettcher is currently slotted as a late-round fit, but had a pre-draft meeting with the Broncos on Monday and said he felt he shared a “like-minded mentality” with Denver’s staff regarding both physical play and mental understanding.
4. Florida’s Banks is ready. After breaking his foot in Week 1 of Florida’s season, defensive tackle Caleb Banks worked to return for the final two games of a lost 2025 season — despite the Gators firing head coach Billy Napier midseason and the program having nothing to play for.
“I want to finish hard with my teammates, no matter the circumstances of the season, or if we had a head coach or not – I want to go play football,” Banks said Wednesday.
Banks said he’d told teams who’d asked about his foot injury the same thing, an attitude that most franchises will find endearing. If Banks proves fully healthy, his measurables are off the charts: 6-foot-6, 335 pounds, good pass-rush traits. He could be an option at No. 30 for Denver.
5. Keep an eye on this FCS pass-rusher. Here’s an early sleeper name in this 2026 draft class: Southeastern Louisiana’s Kaleb Proctor, who racked up nine sacks and 13 tackles for loss for the FCS program last season. Proctor has tweener size at 6-foot-1 and 275 pounds, but could bring a power-rush dimension to an NFL team’s edge-rusher room and already takes inspiration from one Broncos star: defensive tackle Zach Allen.
“He’s got this little stutter-hesi swipe that he does, man,” Proctor said of Allen. “And you turn on the Shrine (Bowl) practices, and I’m out there hitting the swipe.”
6. Another potential Rodriguez suitor. Denver’s been jockeying with Buffalo all offseason, since the Broncos beat the Bills in the AFC wild-card round. Buffalo poached Denver’s secondary coach Jim Leonhard and senior offensive assistant Pete Carmichael. Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane also tipped the Broncos’ own hand earlier Tuesday that Sean Payton was giving up play-calling to Davis Webb. Now the Bills could swoop again on a possible Denver draft target, as Texas Tech’s Rodriguez specifically said he’s studied Bills linebackers Terrel Bernard and Matt Milano and that he can “play any position they need me to play.”
7. A little Illinois advice from a Bronco. Illinois outside linebacker Gabe Jacas played three years with Denver rookie receiver Pat Bryant in college, and Bryant reached out to Jacas a week ago to give him some tips on the NFL Combine process: be himself and don’t overthink, as Jacas recalled. Bryant’s health and continued development is one of the quieter important storylines of the Broncos’ offseason, as his outlook could dictate Denver’s faith in its current wide-receiver corps.
“I feel like every time we were in overtime or the game was on the line – Pat Bryant, he was the person to go to,” Jacas said, of Bryant at Illinois. “Like, he’s the go-to guy. So – everyone gravitates towards him. That’s who he is.”
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