Finding Broncos: Scouting 3 WRs for Best Payton Fit

The Broncos are rebuilding their wide receiver room and could look to add from a strong draft class.

Nov 18, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans wide receiver Brenden Rice (2) catches a / Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports

While the Denver Broncos traded Jerry Jeudy, that was the only significant change they made to their receiving corps. They also brought Tim Patrick back on a reworked deal, but a lot is riding on him staying healthy, Courtland Sutton, and Marvin Mims taking a significant step forward. 

The Broncos also added Josh Reynolds, a 29-year-old receiver with a career-high of 52 catches and 618 yards, both set in 2020. Reynolds has been a depth piece throughout his career but could be set to take a more prominent role with the Broncos. His two-year deal helps cover the short-term need, but there are still some long-term issues about the Broncos receiver room.

Adding more weapons to the offense from multiple positions is needed. Adding more help at receiver could make things easier for whoever the starting quarterback is. All three receivers are viewed as later day-two picks, and they can boost the Broncos' offense.

Nov 11, 2023; Eugene, Oregon, USA; USC Trojans wide receiver Brenden Rice (2) picks up a first down / Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Brenden Rice | USC

• Height: 6-foot-2
• Weight: 208 pounds
• Arm Length: 33 inches
• Hands: 9-5/8 inches
• Relative Athletic Score: 7.63

Pros

Many teams love legacy players, and Brenden Rice is the son of NFL legend Jerry Rice. He is big and physical and uses that advantage against tight coverage. The production is fine over his career, but he took a massive jump in 2023, catching 12 touchdowns on his 45 receptions. 

There is a great route technique, especially on slants and curls, to get instance separation and create an opening for the quarterback. When the quarterback scramble drill starts, Rice does a good job of keeping himself as an option by following the quarterbacks. 

He can make quick and sharp cuts on longer routes to get open but also does well in setting up corners for his moves with proper leverage. Rice uses his frame to protect the catch point well and does well when securing contested catches.

Cons

There are some hitches for getting off press at the line. His foot quickness isn't great, which doesn't help his get-off. You can see moments on tape where he doesn't play fast, almost like he takes it easy on certain plays. 

The consistency isn't there in all phases of his game. His lack of consistency with getting and sustaining separation leads to more contested catch situations than needed. He also lacks consistency with setting corners up and leveraging them throughout his route. 

While he is a physical player, his physicality doesn't always show when he is asked to block. His technique as a blocker on the outside is also lackluster. There is physicality in contested catch situations, but he must be more consistent with his positioning. 

Fit With Broncos

As the Broncos look to add more talent to their receiver room, Rice would be a good fit. His ability to be effective on slant routes could appeal to Sean Payton, who has made those quick slants a large part of his offense. Rice needs to develop a lot, and the Broncos can give him time to develop as part of a rotation at the position. 

Big Board Position: No. 83 overall.

What happens next on the Broncos? Don't miss out on any news and analysis! Take a second, sign up for our free newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

Michigan defensive back Mike Sainristil tackles Washington wide receiver Jalen McMillan during the / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK

Jalen McMillan | Washington

• Height: 6-foot-1
• Weight: 197 pounds
• Arm Length: 32-1/8 inches
• Hands: 10 inches
• Relative Athletic Score: 8.55

Pros

McMillan is a slot receiver with the size and talent to make an immediate impact. He is quick and a long strider, which helps him create instant separation and enhance his effectiveness in the slot. 

He knows how to leverage defensive backs and keep them on their heels in coverage with fakes throughout his routes. The speed variance and nuance with his route running are great. He knows how to sustain positioning through his routes and separation. 

While he isn't overly physical as a receiver, he is a solid blocker from the slot with solid technique. He can be trusted to sustain the edge against corners on outside runs. 

Cons

Much like his fellow Washington teammates, there is a question about how much the scheme at Washington helped the production. It favored receivers and opened the door for easy separation from receivers with the play designs. 

There is a lack of physicality when dealing with tight coverage and getting off press at the line of scrimmage. There is also a concern as he didn't face it often in college. Additionally, some injury concerns caused him to miss time in the 2023 season. 

Physical coverage is an issue, and it does disrupt his play with relative ease. There may not be that extra gear when attacking the deep ball and staying under the throw. He also doesn't have the best accelerator and can take time to get to his top speed. 

Fit With Broncos

McMillan is a slot-only receiver, which creates some issues. Marvin Mims's best spot is working out of the slot, and while the two are extremely different in their play style, it would be hard to get them on the field simultaneously. However, it is still doable, even if it could be a bit clunky. 

Big Board Position: No. 87 overall.

Kentucky Wildcats wide receiver Tayvion Robinson (9) makes a late second quarter touchdown catch / Matt Stone/Louisville Courier Journal /

Tayvion Robinson | Kentucky

• Height: 5-foot-10.5
• Weight: 191 pounds
• Arm Length: 31 inches
• Hands: 9-1/4 inches
• Relative Athletic Score: N/A

Pros

Robinson is a natural slot receiver with quickness and fluidity in his routes to find the open spot in coverages and make himself a target for the quarterback. His hips are unlocked, which makes his movements and change of direction smooth and fluid. 

There are solid hands that can pluck the ball out of the air. He adjusts to the ball well and shows good body control in those adjustments. When attacking the ball downfield, he shows good ball-tracking ability with enough burst to get under it when he is falling behind. 

He can work in space and make chunk plays, but he also does well to make defenders miss. The transition from receiver to ball carrier is quick, and he picked up almost 50% of his career yards after the catch was made. There is some gadget ability with Robinson, and he has some experience returning kicks but a lot of experience returning punts. His quickness and shiftiness are easy to see in his punt returns. 

Cons

Robinson is limited due to his size. He won’t work on the boundary and will need a scheme that prioritizes spacing and separation in their passing game. You don’t want to put Robinson in a position where he must consistently make contested catches. 

While the hands are solid, he isn’t immune to bad drops, mostly from losing focus on securing the catch before looking to see what he can do with the ball. There is also a slight concern with ball security, with a fumble every 65 receptions. When Robinson was faced with tougher defenders in coverage, he was unable to make a consistent impact. 

His route running has nuance but lacks creativity, and he has a lot of tells throughout the early stages of his route, making life easier for defensive backs. There isn’t much strength to break through tackles, and he doesn’t have great long speed to be a consistent deep threat. He needs to improve some of the change of direction techniques, primarily sinking his hips to help his breaks be sharper and less rounded. 

Fit With Broncos

With Marvin Mims being a slot-only receiver, it is difficult to find a natural fit for another slot-only receiver. Robinson also has a way onto the field as a returner on special teams, but Mims also fills that role. While the Broncos need an influx of talent at the position, Robinson doesn’t have an easy way onto the field, unlike some other receivers. 

Big Board Position: No. 94 overall.

Better Fit for Broncos

Of these three receivers, Brenden Rice would be the best fit for the Broncos. He fits exceptionally well with Sean Payton's offense. Those inside-breaking routes are a mainstay, and Rice does best at the moment. With development, he can potentially replace Tim Patrick or Courtland Sutton. 

McMillan and Robinson are a bit harder to fit. However, you can find ways to make McMillan work, even with Mims on the team, because their work is quite different. Robinson is the toughest to make fit because of the similarities with Mims, and Mims brings much more speed to the offense. 

Follow Mile High Huddle on X/Twitter and Facebook.

Subscribe to Mile High Huddle on YouTube for daily Broncos live-stream podcasts!