What should Broncos Country expect from the undrafted rookie free agent from Southern Methodist University this season?
One of the biggest issues facing the Denver Broncos last season defensively and heading into the offseason was depth across their defensive line.
In order to alleviate that concern in 2024, the Broncos signed Malcolm Roach and Angelo Blackson in free agency. On top of that, they made a Day 3 draft trade and acquired John Franklin-Myers from the New York Jets. But the franchise’s pursuit of upgrading their defensive trenches didn’t stop there.
The Broncos landed former Miami Hurricanes turned Southern Methodist Mustangs nose tackle Jordan Miller as a collegiate undrafted free agent. He received $125,000 in contractual guarantees and a $15,000 signing bonus making him one of the higher-paid UDFAs the Broncos added after the draft—which makes me believe they see some long-term potential and upside.
Let’s take a deeper look at Miller and what Broncos Country should expect from him this coming season.
Player Profile
Height: 6’2” | Weight: 304 pounds | Bench Press: 27 reps | Arm Length: 33-3/8”
Vertical Jump: 28 inches | 10-Yard Split: 1.82 seconds | 40-yard dash: 5.18 seconds
Collegiate Statistics: Miami, 2019-2022: 35 games, 60 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks | SMU, 2023: 14 games, 26 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, .5 sack
How rookie defensive tackle Jordan Miller fits with the Denver Broncos
Rated as a 3-star recruit from his hometown of Jacksonville, Florida, Miller stayed local and committed to play football for the Miami Hurricanes. He was a redshirt player for them in 2018 and was mostly in a reserve and rotational player the next four years on a defensive line filled with 4 and 5-star recruits, Miller transferred to SMU last season and became an immediate starter on the Mustangs’ defensive front primarily playing the nose tackle position.
The first thing that stands out to me when watching Miller play are his size and strength at the point of attack. His wingspan is over 80” and his long arms make him a natural disrupter on the defensive interior. Moreover, his physicality and ability to hold his ground at the line of scrimmage is pretty impressive. In fact, his Pro Day bench press mark of 27 reps would have tied for the third-most at this year’s combine had he received an invite. That sort of power will play in the big leagues every day of the week.
While his strength is an asset, his overall athletic profile is just average and scored a 4.85 on Kent Lee Platte’s Relative Athletic Score system. Fans certainly shouldn’t expect him to be the next Aaron Donald. He projects best as a two-gapping nose tackle in the pros, but he does showcase a decent burst off the line of scrimmage and possesses the ability to collapse the pocket.
He was viewed as one of the best and most consistent defensive line players at this year’s East-West Shrine Bowl and received a lot of attention from various teams throughout the week. The Broncos liked what they saw and had him in for one of their 30 pre-draft visits leading up to April’s draft festivities.
#SMU DL Jordan Miller is hoping to show off his versatility as a lineman this week.
Spent most of his time as a nose tackle for the Mustangs but he has a quick first step and wants to show off his pass-rushing ability. pic.twitter.com/I4aDJjS9lh
— Jacob Richman (@JacobHRichman) January 27, 2024
Final thoughts
Miller showcases NFL size and strength, but he is fighting an uphill battle to earn one of the top six spots along the Broncos’ defensive front for their final 53-man roster. There is usually a pretty big learning curve for defensive linemen entering the pros. Talent isn’t really the issue here for Miller—it’s just a numbers game that at first glance doesn’t appear to be in his favor.
As of now, Zach Allen, D.J. Jones, John Franklin-Myers, Malcolm Roach, Angelo Blackson and Matt Henningsen are the top six players on the depth chart. In my opinion, Miller is unlikely to supplant any of them and make the final roster. But who knows? Maybe he could surprise and prove me wrong.
That being said, I do believe he is an intriguing developmental prospect that should be a prime practice squad candidate for the team in 2024. I don’t expect him to make the final 53-man roster, but I do believe he can be a backup and rotational player down the road in the years to come.