Broncos' deep WR room ready to compete for spots in preseason
Devaughn Vele is listed as the backup to Courtland Sutton and Troy Franklin is listed as the backup to Mims. Pat Bryant, the team's third-round pick in this year's draft, is buried among the rookies (don't read into that).
'Courtland has been having a really good camp," offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said earlier this week. "He looks to me even better than he did last camp. We mentioned Troy. Marvin is coming along. He finished strong last year, and we expect him to keep on that upward trajectory. Vele's been dealing with some things, but he's looking good now. I think he's had a couple of his best days the last two days."
Those four players -- plus Bryant, who will have to "earn" his spot this summer -- are the team's top WRs going into 2025. Who ends up being the sixth wide receiver remains to be seen. Lombardi specifically mentioned veteran Trent Shrierfield, who was signed this spring, and Michael Bandy, who spent the last two seasons on the practice squad.
"We've added Sherfield Sr. and he's been… I think we all know he's a great blocker, but the ball keeps finding him in practice. He's making a lot of catches out here. Bandy is always Mr. Reliable. We have some young guys that are really playing well, some of our rookies that were free agents. It's been a really good class as far as that's concerned. Like you said, we have a lot of depth and it's going to be interesting as camp goes on and develops."
The competition for playing time at receiver will heat up this weekend when the Broncos face the San Francisco 49ers on the road in their preseason opener. The list of undrafted rookies competing for spots features Joaquin Davis, Courtney Jackson, Jerjuan Newton and Kyrese Rowan.
Everyone will look to impress over the next few weeks ahead of the cutdown to a 53-man roster. Several receivers who don't end up on the active roster could stick around on the practice squad -- or catch on with another team. The preseason games will be crucial. Stay tuned.
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