ENGLEWOOD Womens Phillip Lindsay Jersey , Colo. (AP)For the Denver Broncos, long-shot projects are so last year.Instead, long-term prospects are what dominants their 2018 draft class, players who spent four years in college and enter the NFL with degrees in hand.Picking higher than they’re accustomed to also allowed the Broncos to land players that initially seemed out of reach. They were thrilled when North Carolina State pass rusher Bradley Chubb, the draft’s top-ranked defender, fell to them at No. 5 , and again when SMU receiver Courtland Sutton was there at 40 .Starting with those two surprising selections, nine of Elway’s 10 picks spent four years in college. Almost all were captains and all bring a shot of maturity to a team that was besieged by a generational divide last year when several exasperated veterans charged the 2017 draft class with wanting playing time based not on merit but on draft status.Elway said Saturday he needed to inject a shot of maturity into a team that’s coming off a five-win season just two years after a Super Bowl parade.”One thing we learned last year when you’re 5-11 and you’re in a losing streak, you need that maturity and that leadership to get things turned around,” Elway said. ”So, these players have that ability.”That’s why we decided to go more in that direction.”Elway copied his cornerstone selection of Chubb on Days 2 and 3, beginning with Sutton, who took a medical redshirt his first year at SMU and graduated after his junior season.”I stayed another year and I worked on those things that some people saw as my weaknesses,” said Sutton, suggesting that decision did wonders for his maturity and his game.It wasn’t until the sixth round and their seventh pick – Arizona State guard/center Sam Jones – that the Broncos selected a player who left school before his eligibility expired.Jones declared for the draft after Sun Devils coach Todd Graham was fired.After Sutton, Elway’s next five picks – Oregon running back Royce Freeman, Boston College cornerback Isaac Yiadom, Iowa linebacker Josey Jewell, Penn State wide receiver DaeSean Hamilton and Wisconsin tight end Troy Fumagalli – all stayed through their senior seasons.So did Denver’s last two picks, Washington linebacker Keishawn Bierra and Arkansas running back David Williams, who transferred with his degree in hand after three seasons at South Carolina.Aside from Jones, the Broncos’ other nine draft picks have a combined 412 games of FBS experience.So, unlike last year’s class, which has yet to pay dividends , this group is expected to make more of an immediate impact as the Broncos try to leave behind two disappointing seasons and return to the playoff picture for the first time since winning Super Bowl 50.SNEAK PEAK: Fumagalli, Yiadom and Hamilton all caught the Broncos’ eye at the Senior Bowl, which was one bright spot from coach Vance Joseph’s dreadful debut season.”It was huge for us,” Joseph said. ”Coaching that game is a clear advantage going into the draft. We drafted three guys from Senior Bowl game. To have a chance to work with those guys for a week in meetings and on the practice field is huge. Taking three guys from that game proves it.”Not that they want to go back to Mobile, Alabama, for the annual all-star game again any time soon.”You don’t want to coach that for a long time,” Elway said. ”We had a great time at the Senior Bowl, but we are good not coaching it for a while.”KEEPING THE FAITH: The Broncos’ decision to bypass a deep class of quarterbacks shows how much faith Elway maintains in Paxton Lynch, whom he moved up to grab in the first round out of Memphis two years ago.Lynch has only started four games in two years John Elway Jersey White , but Elway keeps insisting he still believes in the raw quarterback even after signing Case Keenum in free agency and declaring him the starter in 2018.”We are not kicking him to the curb,” Elway said of Lynch. ”Paxton is going to compete with Chad (Kelly) for that backup spot.”That marked the first time Elway has thrown Kelly into the mix publicly in the year since he drafted him out of Mississippi with the final pick in 2017.HOMETOWN HERO: Among the Broncos’ undrafted signees is Colorado running back Phillip Lindsay, a Denver native who will compete in the backfield with Devontae Booker and De’Angelo Henderson to back up Freeman.—HT: Matchups to watch tomorrow vs Bears Every game has its interesting matchups. The preseason is especially interesting with evaluation of so many players happening and the process of cycling through the layers of the depth chart through the course of the game. Let’s take a look at some players with something to prove tomorrow when the Broncos take the field to face the Chicago Bears.Broncos Secondary vs Bears Passing OffenseThis is a little broad, but it’d get a bit repetitive to write about Mitch Trubisky vs the Broncos’ secondary, then Allen Robinson vs the Broncos’ secondary, and then Trey Burton vs the... you get the idea. For the first time in quite a while, there appears to be some cause for concern about Denver’s defensive backfield. Can Bradley Roby step up into Aqib Talib’s role? Can Tramaine Brock and Isaac Yiadom fill the hole that leaves at CB3? Have the Broncos finally addressed the longstanding weakness vs tight ends & running backs in the passing game? We won’t get answers to those questions tomorrrow, not full ones. But we’ll get some evidence to weigh, and it’s certainly something to watch.That said, there’s a caveat here. Chris Harris Jr & Su’a Cravens both missed significant practice time this week. If Harris in particular doesn’t play, then we’re really just evaluating the team’s depth in this game, not the starting unit.Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty ImagesCase Keenum vs the BearsWe saw so little of Keenum vs the Vikings, so it’ll be good to see him hopefully throw more than just a literal handful of passes this weekend. Demaryius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, & Courtland Sutton vs the Bears’ cornerbacks, as individual matchups, should be very one-sided in favor of the Broncos. Can Keenum take advantage of that? Will he lead sustained drives and make good decisions with the football?After the last two seasons, you can’t really blame any Broncos fan who wants a bit more assurance of that.Jeff Heuerman & Jake Butt vs Bears Linebackers/SecondaryOwen Daniels retired after the 2015 season and apparently took the concept of effective Broncos tight ends with him. We’ve had a strong week of practice from a healthy Jeff Heuerman, with the talented Jake Butt in the mix as well.Neither saw a target last weekend and that needs to change vs the Bears. The tight end position needs to start producing to match the promise we’re seeing at WR and RB.Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY SportsBradley Chubb & Jeff Holland vs Bears Offensive LineMiller & company should be on your to-watch list every week this season, because they should absolutely tear it up. It’ll be nice if Miller plays vs the Bears, though it’s understandable if the team holds him out. He’s got nothing to prove this preseason. But keep an eye out for another hopefully strong performance from rookies Bradley Chubb & Jeff Holland.Chad Kelly vs the Bears’ 2sChad Kelly played with enough skill & fire vs the Vikings to earn himself a promotion. How quickly can he build a rapport with his new cast of 2nd string receivers? And can he sustain the encouraging play from last week now that the competition has been raised a level?Last week, Kelly took Paxton Lynch’s job. Tomorrow marks the official opening of his two to three game window to defend his new position from a potential veteran acquisition.Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY SportsPaxton Lynch vs the Bears’ 3sLast week vs the Vikings, Paxton Lynch played with... well, with his usual manner. Now he’s fallen to the bottom of the depth chart and his future with the Broncos is very much in doubt. It’s time for him to start putting up some good tape and prove that he can at least outclass a bunch of guys who mostly won’t even make it to a practice squad. That’d be best for him and his career, and also for the Broncos’ ability to do the best thing they can for his career by trading him away.If he doesn’t dominate at this lowest level of NFL competition, though? Yikes.Highlights and results from Week 2 - SBNation.comThree games down, 13 more to go this weekend. Let’s get you caught up with what’s happened so far.Remembering Aretha Franklin’s 2016 national anthem performance - SBNation.comAhead of a 2016 Detroit Lions game Aretha Franklin took nearly five minutes to sing the national anthem, and the world stood still.NFL preseason 2018: The 6 best storylines to watch in Week 2 - SBNation.comNo lie, this week’s schedule is pretty great.The best and worst quarterbacks in the NFL, according to Jalen Ramsey - SBNation.com"I don’t care what nobody say. He’s trash. And it’s gonna show too."Teddy Bridgewater's rise adds intrigue to Jets' QB fray - NFL.comThe most captivating quarterback battle in the NFL got a little more interesting Thursday night with Teddy Bridgewater outperforming Sam Darnold in the New York Jets' preseason loss to the Redskins.What we learned from Thursday's preseason games - NFL.comWeek 2 of the NFL preseason kicked off with a trio of interesting games that saw Tom Brady's debut and developments in the Steelers' backup QB battle. Here's what we learned.NFL preseason puzzles: What's next for holdouts, rookie QBs? - NFL.comWhen will we see Aaron Donald, Khalil Mack and Earl Thomas again? Are trade winds blowing once more? How many rookie QBs have a chance to start in Week 1? Gregg Rosenthal examines six big questions.