ENGLEWOOD – The Denver Broncos didn’t have to go far to find their second-round draft pick, Colorado State offensive lineman Ty Sambrailo.
Sambrailo, whose name is pronounced sam-BRAY-loh, was the 59th overall pick Friday night.
He projects as a left tackle, but Ryan Clady currently serves as Peyton Manning’s blindside protector, so his best chance for getting snaps as a rookie is at left guard.
A California native, Sambrailo is well-versed in the Broncos’ roster and notoriously analytical fan base.
“Being in Colorado and being around Broncos fans for the last 4½ years in college kind of showed me just how passionate of a fan base it was and how great a team it would be to play for,” Sambrailo said.
The Broncos selected Ohio State tight end Jeff Heuerman in the third round Friday night.
Sambrailo, who packs 315 pounds on his 6-foot-5 frame, has superior athleticism for a man of his size. He was a competitive ski racer as a youngster, winning USAA titles in the slalom, giant slalom and super-G and also learning backflips and freestyle flips and tricks.
“I think growing up and ski racing, that forced me to teach myself to react quicker in terms of processing of what I see and translating that to my feet,” Sambrailo said. “The ability to go down the ski slope and make judgments, kind of thinking on your feet, I wouldn’t say it helped me necessarily in football, but it kind of trained me to react to what I see a little bit quicker.”
He’s not only flexible by versatile.
“I played everything but center throughout college, so I have some experience at every position, guard and tackle, left and right,” Sambrailo said.
The Broncos’ top offseason need was upgrading the offensive line.
They lost left guard Orlando Franklin to San Diego early in free agency, let center Will Montgomery leave for Chicago and traded guard/center Manny Ramirez to Detroit.
With Louis Vasquez moving from right tackle back to his natural position at right guard, Clady is the only incumbent lineman who will be starting at the same position in 2015.
Manning turned 39 in March.
Sambrailo said there’s a lot of pressure having to shield football royalty but he’s ready to chip in.
“Protecting him and being a part of this offense is going to be an incredible experience,” Sambrailo said.
The 6-foot-5, 255-pound Heuerman caught 17 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns last season for the national champion Buckeyes. Heuerman said he’s “ecstatic” to catch passes from Peyton Manning.
Denver is trying to replace tight end Julius Thomas, who signed with Jacksonville in the offseason.
