Tight end Jake Butt’s college career ended with a torn ACL in the Orange Bowl, which led to a draft drop for a player projected to be picked in the first couple of rounds before he was injured.
Butt was able to cushion the fall thanks to an insurance policy and it came to an end at the start of the fifth round. The Broncos took Butt with the 145th overall pick and first selection of the fifth round.
Butt won the Mackey Award as the nation’s best tight end last year and caught 138 passes for 1,646 yards and 11 touchdowns for the Wolverines over his career. It will be some time before the Broncos know when Butt will be able to get on the field, but playing time should be available if he can play at the same level as he did before getting hurt.
Michigan has now had 10 players selected in this year’s draft. It’s the first time since 1974 that they’ve had that many players picked.