Who Will Replace Brandon Marshall?

It seems that as the days go by we are closer and closer to seeing Brandon Marshall being traded away from the Denver Broncos.  The former fourth round pick is undoubtedly one of the most talented Broncos to ever suit up at the wide receiver position and will be missed greatly for his on the field talents.  Off the field, teammates and coaches are apparently ready to say goodbye to "baby TO" soon as possible.  It is likely that Brandon could be traded as soon as the new league year starts on March 5th 2010.

The rumored destinations for Marshall have been endless.  Miami, Cincinnati, Tampa Bay, Baltimore, Seattle, and New England have all been rumored trading partners at one time or another.  The Broncos would receive a first and fourth round picks in the best case scenarios, and as low as a second and multiple late round picks in others.

With all of this in mind, the Broncos would be left with a beast-sized hole in the depth chart with Marshall gone.  Who would replace him?  On the current depth chart you could argue that Jabar Gaffney could be that guy.  Gaffney had a huge game in Marshall's absence in the final game of the season versus Kansas City.  Could he be a long term starter?  Coming out of Florida he was supposed to be the next big thing but never materialized.  He's bounced around the league and seems like a stop gap player at best.

How about Eddie Royal?  You know, the youthful speedster from Virgina Tech.  The man who once led the Hokies in total yards and broke many Broncos rookie receiving records.  Eddie has been a great character pickup for the Broncos as well.  People generally love him, that is when we can find him. Last season he was completely missing from the offense and only made an impact in one game in which he scored on two returns against San Diego.  One could wonder if Royal's disappearance from the offense had more to do with the playcalls than his actual talent.  Eddie just doesn't seem like the right guy for the dink-and-dunk screen offense.

So then there's the draft. Denver will have multiple draft picks in its arsenal and will likely use one of these picks to replace the beast.  In the first round the prospects include Dez Bryant, Arrelious Benn, and Golden Tate.  Dez Bryant is an interesting prospect who had a great year last year but was banned from the NCAA and missed most of the year after having some kind of contact with Deion Sanders and his agent.  Some people call this a red flag, others say he is too talented to miss with Denver's 10th or 11th selection in the draft.

Arrelious Benn is another great prospect.  He has the same physical abilities as Bryant at 6'2 200 pounds.  The thing Benn doesn't have is a highlight film full of aerobatic catches because he played in an Illinois offense that was much more conservative than that of Bryant's.  He also played with a quarterback who probably won't play in the NFL in Juice Williams.  Benn is a guy who the Broncos could get the best bang for their buck with if they acquired an additional draft pick in the mid first round.

Golden Tate is a prospect that many have seen before.  He played most of his games on national television with Jimmy Clausen and Charlie Weis.  Tate doesn't have great measurables at 5'11 195 pounds and is a former running back.  He seems very similar to Eddie Royal in a lot of aspects.  The Broncos could get him with a low first round pick.

Another interesting direction the Broncos could go is that of Demaryius Thomas from Georgia Tech.  Thomas is physically stunning at 6'3 229 pounds.  In that aspect he is very similar to Marshall as another big receiver the Broncos could plug in.  The big question mark with Thomas is if he can adjust quickly to the NFL.  Georgia Tech ran a gimmick triple option offense that did not require precise timing or route running.  Thomas' stock could settle anywhere from the early third round to the bottom of the first round.

Later in the draft there will be great value picks in Mardy Gilyard, Jordan Shipley, Eric Decker, Dezmon Briscoe, and Danario Alexander. The Broncos could grab most of these players in the third round.  Guys like Briscoe and Alexander are not finished products yet but with time they could help fill Marshall's void in the offense.

There are many directions the Broncos could take this offseason should they decide that Brandon Marshall is not worth keeping around.  Will a current player step up in Marshall's role?  Will a rookie be drafted in his place?  Will the Broncos decide to sign or trade for talent from another team's roster?  All of these are options that are possible but it's clear that replacing Marshall's production will not be easy.