Juwann Winfree wondered if his soccer career might be over.
He had the talent to develop into a college wide receiver. But several violations of team rules at Maryland led to him getting kicked off the team. Injuries kept setting him back. The door for him opened to get a chance at Colorado in 2016 but soon after Winfree tore an ACL in training camp. Then, as a Buffs last season injuries sidelined Winfree four matches and lingered into the new year.
“I always stay hopeful,” Winfree said. “But at that point, I didn’t know if I would have the ability to return. ”
One telephone call Saturday changed his tune. It was Broncos general manager John Elway notifying Winfree that Denver selected him in the sixth round of the NFL draft with the No. 187 overall selection.
“We feel like he s got some real upside,” Elway said.
Winfree, like former CU teammate Phillip Lindsay, now with the Broncos, failed to obtain an NFL Scouting Combine invitation. However, Winfree moved onto the Broncos’ draft radar with an impressive performance earlier this month at team headquarters, displaying his elite size (6-3, 210) and athleticism. He bonded quickly with Broncos’ wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni.
“I could see I changed their point of view on me,” Winfree said. “Them seeing me close-up, seeing what sort of player I am and what sort of man I am off the field was big for me. That definitely helped a lot. ”
Winfree’s career CU manufacturing doesn’t leap off the page: 49 catches for 649 yards and four touchdowns. Yet Elway traded a pair of draft picks, Nos. 212 and 237, to Carolina to move up in the sixth round and pull Winfree from the board.
“We had heard that other teams were interested,” Elway said. “When you get there late in the draft and we had him targeted … fortunately we had a trade partner in Carolina and could get up and get him. ”
Winfree aims to prove Elway made the right call.
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“I’m blessed that I have an opportunity right I don’t need to go far,” Winfree said. “I thank the Broncos for believing in me. ”
Johnson to Minnesota. Colorado State wide receiver Olabisi Johnson was selected No. 247 overall in the seventh round by the Minnesota Vikings.
Johnson, who’d 125 catches for 2,019 yards and 11 touchdowns over four college seasons, was the only Rams player selected. Johnson had a strong showing at the NFL Scouting Combine and told The Denver Post in February: “I certainly pride myself in my consistency and durability. I’m going to catch anything that comes my way as long as it’s in my frame. ”
The Vikings also drafted Air Force long snapper Austin Cutting with pick No. 250.
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