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When the Denver Broncos drafted Shane Ray with the 23rd overall pick, they were taking a bit of a risk. He was fresh off a marijuana citation which most scouts thought would drop him out of the first round, and Denver coughed up quite a bit to just to call his name at the Auditorium Theatre. Risk probably does not even begin to describe what the Broncos did to acquire Ray.
However, it’s a risk with a huge payout behind it.
At the University of Missouri, the consensus All-American Ray shined. He was named the 2014 SEC Defensive Player of the Year as he racked up 65 total tackles, a third of which were for a loss, and 14.5 sacks.
When he arrived at the combine, the performance he turned in was disappointing. One scout claimed he couldn’t play outside linebacker at the next level. Plus, his numbers weren’t the caliber of numbers one would expect to see from an explosive edge rusher. Still though, Ray consistently showed up positively on film which, at the end of day, is all that matters.
Now, Ray is on the horizon of his first NFL training camp. He was a sparse participant throughout OTAs and rookie camp due to a nagging toe injury from his days at Mizzou. Training camp will be the first real action for Ray and the first real chance for the Denver coaches to evaluate him.
The bad news is that this will be an uphill battle for Ray in camp as he has to compete with two All-Pros in Von Miller and Demarcus Ware. The good news is that even though he may never see time as the full-time starter on either side, (barring any catastrophic injuries, of course) he will most definitely be in the pass rushing mix.
Broncos coaches are already game planning, so that he will be in the pass rushing rotation. Expect to see Ray play prime downs and expect to see him relieve Ware the most as the Broncos want to keep the aging veteran as fresh as possible.
There are even talks to get all three heavy-hitting, explosive rushers on the field at once.
As far as skills, Ray has them unequivocally. He is a force of nature on the field with elite power. The image of an uncoiling spring comes to mind the way Ray attacks the line of scrimmage. His hands, his legs and his rushing technique are violent and effective. Even in traffic and with blockers around him, Ray has a knack for getting to the ball carrier and wrapping him up ferociously. Basically, if you put a heat-seeking Tasmanian devil in football pads, you’d get Shane Ray.
As I mentioned before, Ray may not see the field like an NFL regular in 2015. In fact, he may even play more of a supporting role in the Mile High City. But, when he does see time on the field, expect to see an impact defensive player with all the makings to be one of the NFL’s next great edge rushers.
Mike Carlson is a Denver Broncos Beat Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @deejayactual or add him to your network on Google.
