Denver Broncos: Full Position Breakdown and Depth Chart Analysis at Tight End

The Denver Broncos are fortunate to have future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning leading the way in the passing game. His ability as a passer is well-known, and Manning will be tossing the ball to a couple of talented tight ends this season in Rick Dennison's new offense.

Owen Daniels is a proven veteran who signed with the Broncos as a free agent earlier this offseason. He should instantly become a favorite target for Manning because he knows where to be and regularly wins at the point of the catch.

Virgil Green has gone from a seventh-round draft pick in 2011 to one of the best blocking tight ends in the league. An underrated receiver, Green should set a career high in catches this year.

In fact, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him snare more catches this season than he has in his entire pro career (23).

New head coach Gary Kubiak will feature the tight ends in the offense this season. A strong rushing attack will keep defenses honest, and Manning should be able to take advantage with better looks in the passing game.

Here is a full position breakdown and depth chart analysis of the tight ends on the Broncos' roster.

Starters: Owen Daniels and Virgil Green

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This offense is going to regularly feature two-TE sets. It’s almost the base formation under Kubiak, and that’s why the Broncos emphasized adding—or keeping—talent at the position this offseason.

Daniels is the top tight end for the Broncos this season. Having rarely played an NFL game without the guidance of Kubiak, Daniels knows the system like the back of his hand. Last year, Daniels and Kubiak were in Baltimore with the Ravens, and Daniels came through with 48 catches for 527 yards and four touchdowns.

Those numbers should be beaten by Daniels this year.

The last time Daniels played a full 16-game season (2008), he finished with 70 catches for 862 yards and two receiving touchdowns. If Daniels stays healthy this year, his numbers could be somewhat similar to those.

The savvy veteran knows how to find a soft spot in a zone. Daniels can get open underneath, and he does a good job of squaring his shoulders to present the biggest possible target for his quarterback. He’ll also drift back to the passer on comeback routes and prevent defenders from getting at the football.

Daniels is out to prove that he still has plenty left in the tank, and the 32-year-old should get every opportunity to do that this season.

While Julius Thomas was allowed to move on in free agency, the Broncos decided to keep Green around. They signed him to a reasonable three-year, $8.4 million contract with $3.2 million guaranteed earlier this offseason.

Green’s best asset is his blocking, and that will continue to shine through this season for the Broncos. The team has almost nothing but question marks on the offensive line, so having a strong blocker like Green up front is going to be an immense help.

Green is strong, powerful and dominant at the point of attack.

He is also an underrated receiver and should see more targets than he ever has this year.

According to NFL.com, Green tested better than Thomas at the 2011 Scouting Combine, but he’s more rigid as a route-runner. His added strength has only made him stiffer in the open field. Green can find the weak spots in coverage, and his hands and concentration are very good.

Make no mistake about it, Daniels is the primary receiving weapon here. However, Green will see a similar number of snaps this year and is incredibly important because of his all-around ability.

Hybrid TE/H-Back/Fullback: James Casey, Joe Don Duncan

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In addition to using plenty of two-TE sets, the Broncos will also be using a fullback for the first time in years. They haven’t officially had a fullback on the roster since Chris Gronkowski in 2012. It’s been even longer since they actually used a fullback frequently.

Kubiak’s offense will need a fullback to sometimes blast open holes for the ground game. The fullback will also play H-back and be required to catch passes out of the backfield.

This offseason, the Broncos added both James Casey and Joe Don Duncan to the roster to compete at the position.

Casey is a jack-of-all-trades who originally came into the NFL as a Kubiak draft pick with the Texans. He stayed with the Texans from 2009-2012 playing all over the field as a tight end, H-back and fullback. Casey went to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2013 and played there for two seasons.

He jumped at the chance to rejoin Kubiak, this time in the Mile High City.

He’s chiseled like a Greek god and can line up all over the field. Casey is athletic enough to create mismatches against linebackers because of his speed and run-after-the-catch ability.

With 72 catches over his pro career, Casey has only flashed his potential in the NFL. The role won’t be there for him this year to explode on to the scene, but he’s a reliable receiver who can be a solid contributor for the Broncos offense.

Duncan was an incredibly athletic tight end in college at Dixie State. He’s built like a brick house, but he can fly all over the field and plays with little regard for his personal safety. Duncan has a linebacker’s mentality, and he’s an aggressive player who loves to make defenders look silly.

Foot surgery knocked him out of action for the 2014 season, as he was out of football after going undrafted earlier that year. The Broncos saw enough in him to work him out at fullback and sign him to a contract.

Duncan has the functional strength to push his man out of the way. This power also helps him run through arm tackles after he’s secured a catch. He’s a deep sleeper and long shot to make the 53-man roster, but his natural skill set makes him worth taking a chance on.

Backups: Dominique Jones, Marcel Jensen

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The Broncos have a couple of interesting tight ends buried on the depth chart.

Dominique Jones went undrafted out of Shepherd University in 2011. He didn’t make it to the NFL at that time, instead playing for the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the UFL. In 2012, he played in the Indoor Football League for the Reading Express.

The NFL finally came into his picture when the Indianapolis Colts picked him up in 2012. Jones bounced to three other NFL teams (including a second stop with the Colts) before landing with the Broncos in 2014. He was inactive for three games last year but did get to dress for one game.

Jones is mostly known as a blocker who can move his man out of the way with proper core strength. He does a nice job of using his hands to drive a defender back after the snap, but he may be a better receiver than he’s getting credit for.

This offseason in OTAs and minicamp, Jones has made several catches on balls he had no business snaring. He’s going all out to catch high passes, low passes and passes near the sideline.

Jones is a known quantity as a blocker, but his receiving skills seem to be sharper than ever this offseason.

Earlier this year, the Broncos added free-agent tight end Marcel Jensen. Originally an undrafted free agent out of Fresno State in 2014, Jensen joined the Jacksonville Jaguars as a rookie. He appeared in one game for the Jaguars, getting one target and one reception for eight yards.

When the Jaguars released Jensen earlier this year, the Broncos pounced on the talented developmental prospect.

Jensen is a huge target, measuring in at 6’6”, 270 pounds. He’s got long arms and the leaping ability to easily play above the rim. Jensen knows how to use that size to box out smaller defenders and win at the point of the catch.

He’s not a seam-ripper, but Jensen does have good speed after the catch. Jensen presents a mismatch at the linebacker level because of his wingspan and fearlessness when running routes over the middle.

Like Jones, Jensen has been impressive in making difficult catches at Dove Valley this offseason. The team may decide that Jensen is too valuable to try and sneak through to the practice squad. He’s a long shot to make the final roster, but Jensen’s natural skill set makes him an intriguing prospect.

Injured Reserve: Jeff Heuerman

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He’s out for the season, but rookie Jeff Heuerman needs to be highlighted in this article. The rookie from Ohio State went down earlier this year with a season-ending injury he suffered in rookie minicamp, but he was set to be a larger part of this offense than some think.

A third-round pick this year, Heuerman is more athletic than some think. He’s got good straight-line speed and is a threat to pick up yards after the catch.

A former high school hockey player, Heuerman has a nasty disposition and plenty of toughness to play in the NFL. He not only blocks his man, he wants to dominate his opponent at the point of attack.

To be a better pro, Heuerman will need to refine his route-running ability. Too often, he’ll round off his break and tip off defenders as to where he’s headed.

He can be moved all over the field, lining up out wide, in the slot or as a traditional in-line tight end. Heuerman needs to stay healthy after suffering a foot injury in his final season with the Buckeyes and now this torn ACL.

We won’t see Heuerman until next season, but he’s a player to watch upon his return.

Summary

The Broncos have done a great job of assembling quality talent at the tight end position.

Daniels and Green will be on the field for most of the snaps in 2015. While Daniels can be reliable as a pass-catcher, Green can help out greatly as a devastating blocker. We could see Daniels snare about 50 catches this year, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see Green catch about 25 passes in 2015.

The fullback in Denver isn’t really a traditional fullback. Casey should win the starting job and do a fine job as a lead blocker.

However, he should really shine when creating mismatches as a receiver out of the backfield. It’s not outlandish to think that Casey could match the number of receptions that Green gets this year.

The Denver offense is not going to be as pass-happy as it has been in past seasons. However, the Broncos tight ends are going to be an integral part of what this team does through the air. A great deal of their success relies on the type of play they get from this position.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via the Broncos' media department unless otherwise noted. Advanced stats via ESPN's employees-only database.

Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac. Transaction history provided by Pro Sports Transactions.