PHOENIX — As the Broncos evaluated options for the 30th-overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, they carefully considered the players that could be available.

"We spent a lot of time looking at that selection and trying to determine [who would be an option]," Head Coach Sean Payton said Tuesday at the NFL Annual Meeting. "We could safely say that pick would've been one of these seven or eight players."

And after going through that evaluation process, it became clear that acquiring wide receiver Jaylen Waddle with that pick provided the most value.

"We didn't feel like that [pick] would help us as much as Jaylen Waddle," Payton said.

In Waddle, the Broncos are gaining a player that Payton described as dynamic.

"With regards to the player, he is explosive," Payton said. "I think if you asked me the single biggest thing that I think he does well is he's extremely fast and he stops fast. He can sink his hips in transition."

Payton also noted the importance of Waddle's character and makeup, especially given the compensation involved in the trade.

"The other thing that came up time and time again is how competitive he is," Payton said. "I'm very close with [Lions quarterback] Teddy Bridgewater. We're very close with [former University of Alabama] Coach [Nick] Saban, and we're close with a lot of people who have had the chance to work with him. Whenever you get into a big-name free agent or a trade of this magnitude, all the other stuff is important to research. When it comes to Waddle's 'all the other stuff,' it was 10, 10, 10, 10, 10. So, I think, obviously, it will help us."

Payton said Waddle will play both in the slot and outside, and the team will utilize different packages to highlight the strengths of their offense.

"We are excited to add a player like Jaylen," Payton said.

STICK WITH THE PLAN

Ahead of Denver's trade for Waddle, Payton said he was aware of the external perception as free agency began — and he also emphasized the importance of ignoring the noise.

"We spent a lot of time on this free agency class," Payton said. "We had a pecking order of what we thought was most important, and we were able to accomplish that."

Payton acknowledged the importance of hitting on several key free agents ahead of his first season in Denver in 2023, but he also estimated the success rate in signing external free agents to be south of 40 percent. As such, the Broncos prioritized re-signing players — including a slew of extensions over the past 18 months.

"[Be] steady, [make the] right decision," Payton said of the necessary approach. "'What's our plan?' Stick with our plan. Tune out the noise. Same is going to apply to this draft."

Payton also emphasized the need for a big-picture approach and not making the mistake of trying to win the day.

"We are going to do what we think is best for our team to be better when this puzzle is finished at the end of, call it, June," Payton said. "Then what do we look like at that point?"

AN ADJUSTED OFFSEASON PROGRAM

After an extended postseason run to the AFC Championship Game, the Broncos will wait to begin their voluntary offseason program until May 4.

As the Broncos have done each year in Payton's tenure, the team will focus on strength and conditioning during the first month of the program.

"I always want the first month to be weight room, nothing to do with football," Payton said. "… All of May will just be weightlifting. You'll see us on the field in June. We'll have two weeks of OTAs and a week of minicamp, but I don't want them to feel like they were just here. So, we've done that before. I think it's important, and I think the players appreciate it because they were just here."

Payton said the Broncos will take the field in June, as they hold their OTA sessions and mandatory minicamp.

SHIFTING INSIDE

Third-year linebacker Jonah Elliss will "take some snaps" at inside linebacker, according to Payton. The 2024 third-round pick has recorded 7.5 sacks across 30 games in two seasons for Denver.

Payton said the Broncos' depth at the outside linebacker position and Elliss' traits were both reasons for making the move.

"Sometimes you have to look at the skill set, and then project where you think it can go," Payton said, "and your depth on the edge that allows you to do something like that."