The Denver Broncos didn’t get much production from the wide receiver room — outside of Courtland Sutton — in 2024. With another year of development for Marvin Mims Jr., Devaughn Vele and Troy Franklin along with the addition of Pat Bryant in the draft, it looks like Bo Nix will have a little more help from that group in 2025 (even though the national pundits don’t think so).
Sutton is the clear leader and No. 1 of the room. He had more than twice as many receiving yards (1,081) last year as the next-best receiver (Mims, 503) and has been a cornerstone for this Broncos offense since 2018. He received a well-deserved third contract with the team recently as there are no plans for him to not be at the head of the room anytime soon, but there is a big question after him. Who’s going to step up and be WR2? WR3?
Sean Payton spoke about the wide receiver depth after Broncos practice on Tuesday, but didn’t give any hints as to who is going to have what designation. Instead, he made it sound like it’s going to be a collective effort this season amongst everyone in the room behind Sutton.
“I think some teams are more predictable with where the X is and the slot and the Z, and then the term, the number one, the number two, I get all that. You know, they’re all going to play in different roles, and so we probably are a little bit different with our rotation substitution patterns, that you guys can decide who the two is and three is and four is. There’s going to be a role if they’re dressing, and they’re getting on the field. They’re not going to line up in the same spot all the time. I think that would be the easiest way to describe it.”
For those who are wondering if they should draft any Broncos players in fantasy football (14 and 16-team leagues), this statement should be an advisory to stay away. Troy Franklin might have five catches for 72 yards and a touchdown one week and then follow it up with one catch for six yards. It’s a very unpredictable rotation, not ideal for fantasy players.
For Payton and the Broncos, it’s great though. The unpredictability of the offense will make it more difficult for opposing teams to formulate a defensive gameplan when watching film and preparing to take on the orange and blue. Mims could be the X-factor one week, and then Troy Franklin could come out of nowhere and make a big play when no one is expecting it like he did in the playoffs against the Bills a season ago.
Last season, Vele, Mims and Franklin combined for 108 catches, 1,241 yards and 11 touchdowns. They weren’t the greatest trio in the NFL, but they showed flashes of potential that they could be solid options for Nix. They all complement Sutton’s game well, and if they can translate their solid performances from training camp to the regular season, Nix will have a much more pleasant time trying to find open receivers in the most critical parts of games.
Payton didn’t mention anything about new tight end Evan Engram in this aspect, and even though he stylistically plays more like a wide receiver, he’s still going to be on the field as the team’s tight end in 11 personnel most of the time. The likely scenario is that him and Sutton are on the field most of the time while the other four make up the rest of the reps alongside them.