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The Denver Broncos selected Fresno State guard Netane Muti in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft last week. Muti did 44 bench-press reps at the combine and his college highlights are absolutely fantastic.
So why did he fall so low in the draft?
After an impressive freshman year, Muti was hindered by Achilles and Lisfranc injuries from 2018-2019 and only played in six games during that time. He believes those injuries resulted in Denver landing a big steal.
“I think I’m the best guard in this class,” Muti said during a Zoom conference call with reporters on April 25. “I feel like they really got a steal. I’m just excited. I’m ready to give Broncos Nation my all, just go out there and learn from the older guys in the o-line room and just be a part of the family and just win games. I’m just excited.”
The Broncos knew that Muti has health risks but they felt his upside was worth the risk, especially so late in the draft. Based on his talent, Denver had a third-round grade on Muti. Only his medical record held him back.
“We just felt that where we were sitting and the grade that we had on him, we felt that we were going to be taking a little bit of a risk with the medical,” Broncos GM John Elway said after the draft. “But [we] really felt at the top of the sixth round, we were getting tremendous value and it was worth the risk to be able to go ahead and take a chance on him.”
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