Denver Broncos DVOA, Stats, & NFL Rankings

The Denver Broncos agreed to a four-year rookie contract with third-round wide receiver Pat Bryant on Wednesday, a source told 9 News' Mike Klis. The Broncos selected the Illinois product with the 74th overall pick to give them more wideout depth behind WR1 Courtland Sutton in 2025 and beyond. It's another weapon for second-year quarterback Bo Nix, and the 22-year-old pass-catcher should give him a nice big target with a wide catch radius at 6-foot-2, 204 pounds. Bryant has drawn comparisons to former Saints receiver Michael Thomas, who had a nice history with head coach Sean Payton. He could have trouble separating from defensive backs in the NFL, but Bryant's production (17 touchdowns the last two years) speaks for itself. Bryant will most likely struggle for volume in 2025 as he competes with Marvin Mims Jr., Devaughn Vele and Troy Franklin.

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton says that rookie wide receiver Pat Bryant, who the team took at No. 74 overall in the third round in last week's NFL draft, reminds him of former New Orleans Saints wideout Michael Thomas. "(Bryant) has just a lot of traits that Mike had," Payton said. "Especially at the line of scrimmage." Bryant was a surprise top-75 pick because of his lack of speed -- he ran the second-slowest 40-yard dash (4.61 seconds) at the combine among receivers. While the 22-year-old didn't show off-the-charts athleticism, the Broncos think he'll bring an edge to the receiver room and push second-year players Devaughn Vele and Troy Franklin in the passing attack. The 6-foot-2, 204-pounder had 17 touchdowns at Illinois in his last two seasons. Behind WR1 Courtland Sutton, Bryant will be competing with Vele, Franklin and Marvin Mims Jr. for playing time in his first year in the NFL.

Denver Broncos rookie running back RJ Harvey, who was taken 60th overall in last week's NFL draft in the second round, could end up doing it all for the Broncos as a runner and pass-catcher, even though he caught only 20 passes in 2024 in his final season at UCF. "This was kind of our pet cat throughout the process," general manager George Paton said. "His running style we feel he's dynamic. He has really good vision, really good instincts, really good contact balance. Highly explosive. We thought maybe he had the best vision in the draft." Harvey wasn't used a lot as a pass-catcher in college, but that's going to change in Denver with head coach Sean Payton. In addition to his potential as a pass-catcher, Harvey had 1,577 rushing yards and 22 touchdowns in 2024. With home run ability and a three-down skill set, expect Harvey to be the team's RB1 come the fall.