ENGLEWOOD – When cornerback Jahdae Barron got the call from the Broncos on Thursday night informing him of his NFL draft selection, he spoke to owner Greg Penner, general manager George Paton and coach Sean Payton. Then he asked to be put on speaker phone to address the team’s entire draft room.

Why did he do that?

“They took the opportunity, and they changed my mother’s life,’’ Barron said Friday at Broncos Park, a day after he had been selected No. 20 in the first round out of Texas at the NFL draft in Green Bay, Wis. “So, I just wanted to thank everybody that was a part of doing that because it was a collective group.”

Barron’s mother, Techonia Davis, means a lot to him. She raised him as a single mother, first in Corpus Christi, Texas, and later up the road in Austin.

“My mother, the strongest woman in the world,’’ Barron said. “Even on Father’s Day, I tell her, ‘Happy Mother’s Day,’ again. She gets two. … She pushed me every single day, just what I was saying, just staying committed to the process. Whenever I got down, she made sure that she reminded me that I was staying true to what I said I would do long after the mood had changed. … I’m going to invest that and I’m going to give her the world back so that she can just be a mother.”

While Barron spoke, Davis looked on with pride. She was flanked by Barron’s older brother Trayvon, his younger sisters Taleah, Tamia, Taziah and his cousin Dejon.

Barron has spoken about wanting to provide for his mother. He is in line to sign a four-year, $18.073 million contract with Denver having an option for a fifth season. He is in a position to get a signing bonus of $9.784 million and have a cap number of $3.286 million in 2025.

Barron called it “truly a blessing” to be selected by the Broncos. As for making the NFL, that has been his goal for a long time.

“I’m a big goal guy,’’ Barron said. “I write goals every single day. All of my goals that I have, I look in the mirror every single day and I read them out (loud). If I don’t hit them, I have to hold myself accountable. … I had a lot of goals that I wanted to achieve that I wrote down (in) eighth, ninth grade.”

Barron could have reached his goal of making the NFL last year but likely as a lesser draft choice. He opted to not enter the draft to come back for a fifth season at Texas. He had five interceptions and won the Jim Thrope Award, which goes to college football’s top defensive back.

“If I were to have left last year, I think I would have regretted a lot of things, and I don’t want to live with regret,’’ said Barron, who was projected by some to go in the fourth round had he come out in 2024. “So, I took a big chance and an investment every single day, and I invested in it more. I invested more time into football, more time in the training room just to invest in it.”

Barron prides himself on his versatility. He can play outside cornerback, nickel back and both safety positions. As a rookie, he could challenge Riley Moss to be a starter at outside cornerback opposite star Pat Surtain II or could be looked at to battle Ja’Quan McMillian at nickel back.

“I’m always looking forward to any position and whatever role they want me to play and need me to play, I’m most definitely going to master it,’’ Barron said. “I’m going to try my best at it.”

Corey Chavous expects Barron will do just that. Chavous is a former Pro Bowl defensive back and nephew of former Broncos star defensive lineman Barney Chavous who puts out the publication Draft Nasty.

“I think (the Broncos) made the strength of their team stronger because they already have one of the best defenses in the league,’’ Chavous said. “(Barron) offers them a lot of flexibility.”

Barron has earned plenty of praise since his selection by Denver. Actor Matthew McConaughey, an avid Texas fan, wrote on social media Thursday night that he’s a “great defender” and a “great young man” and the Broncos are “getting a stud on and off (the) field.”

Barron said Friday he is “best friends” with McConaughey and also “friends with” Texas governor Greg Abbott. And now he’s trying to get acquainted with as many Denver teammates as he can. He spoke Friday with quarterback Bo Nix.

“He texted me (Thursday) night and called me,’’ Barron said. “Crazy night. I called him back (Friday) morning, and we chopped it up. He welcomed me, so that’s big. I told him I’m excited and I’m pumped up.”

Barron said he also has talked to Surtain, whom he called “an amazing player.” And he’s looking forward to meeting up with all the former Texas players on the Broncos’ roster. They also have safeties Brandon Jones and P.J. Locke, defensive tackle Malcolm Roach and Sam Ehlinger, a quarterback Barron said he grew up watching and was “always my G.O.A.T.”

Of course, Barron was only talking about football. He made it clear his overall greatest of all time is his mother.