2025 Team Preview: Denver Broncos
All ADP data is courtesy of Fantasy Pros.
** = target in drafts at this ADP
Relevant Players
Courtland Sutton, WR (ADP: 49, WR22): Sutton finally rediscovered the form he showed way back in 2019 when the fantasy community was so excited about him before he badly injured his knee a few plays into 2020. Now, Sutton is considered more of an oatmeal-ish fantasy asset, someone who doesn’t have a sky high ceiling but can deliver very useful numbers as Denver’s clear-cut top target. I’m in agreement with consensus on Sutton.
Like D.K. Metcalf in Pittsburgh, Sutton is a very traditional X receiver who is far and away the top target of this pass attack. He drew 135 targets last season, a career-high, and turned in 81 receptions, 1,081 yards and eight touchdowns. It was the first time he’d been over 1,000 yards since the 2019 campaign, and was proof of concept that he is still actually a legit WR1 for a team. His success rates are what you’d expect; he beats man and press very well, 71.2% and 68.9% win rates, respectively, and he struggles vs. zone (70.8%, 9th percentile). Those difficulties against zone cap his overall fantasy upside to me because he can be taken out of the game, but overall he’s plenty good enough to be a WR2 and that’s exactly how he’s being drafted.
RJ Harvey, RB (ADP: 53, RB22): Harvey had me very excited post-draft because I surveyed the Broncos’ RB depth chart and saw tons of opportunities and touches for this dual-threat big play waiting to happen. The signing of J.K. Dobbins definitely threw cold water on what I envisioned as a ceiling for Harvey’s workload, but he can still have a bit of an early Alvin Kamara-Mark Ingram dynamic for Sean Payton, who used both of those RBs masterfully in the past.
Harvey was a production monster at UCF, posting 1,654 yards from scrimmage as a junior and then topping it with 1,844 yards last year as a senior. He combined for 42 touchdowns in his final two seasons at UCF and flirted with 230 carries in both campaigns. Harvey is not a big back, but he’s shown durability so there’s room for his role to increase in Denver even if he starts out as a passing downs weapon. I would’ve said this is a screaming value before Dobbins was signed, but now I think it’s about right, and possibly might be a little too high.
Bo Nix, QB (ADP: 77, QB8): Nix’s ADP is pretty crazy to me, and I went into detail why here. The final stat line for Nix – 3,775 yards, 29 touchdowns – looks great, and his rushing numbers – 430 yards, four touchdowns – are notable. But Nix’s numbers are boosted big time by a massive TD surge late in the season, and touchdowns can come and go. He threw 29 touchdown passes for the season, and 12 of them came in the final four games of the year. Before a breakout Week 7 performance, Nix was averaging 178 yards per game and had thrown five touchdowns against five picks. Sure, that shows growth over the course of the season and better mastery of Payton’s offense, but it does show what the floor can be if there’s Year 2 regression.
Do I think Nix is terrible? No way. And of course, playing for Payton as his handpicked maestro is relevant. But For him to justify his ADP he’s got to build on last season, and his receiving corps is not much better, and his schedule figures to be tougher. There is very similar upside in players like C.J. Stroud, Jordan Love and Dak Prescott, all of whom are going significantly later in drafts. Don’t hate the player, but I sure do hate the value.
Evan Engram, TE (ADP: 82, TE8): Engram was one of the highest-volume pass catchers in the entire NFL in 2023, but followed up that season with an injury-plagued and overall brutal 2024 where he caught just 47 passes for 365 yards and one touchdown. Now he’s on to Denver, where he’ll play for Payton, a coach who has maximized physically gifted TEs before. Engram cannot be compared to Jimmy Graham, but this is an offense that’s definitely calling out for another reliable option behind Sutton, and Engram’s proven before to be capable.
I wouldn’t view Engram as a breakout candidate though or quietly elite potential player. He should see volume in this offense and be very useful, particularly in half and full-PPR formats, but this is about to be the ninth year of his career and he’s never been elite. Engram’s never scored more than six touchdowns in a season, and he hasn’t even gotten to five since he was a rookie. He’s never had a 1,000-yard season either. There’s a chance for him to be this year’s Jonnu Smith though, and while useful, that’s probably not enough to be drafted at his current ADP.
Interesting Sleeper(s)
**J.K. Dobbins, RB (ADP: 102, RB35): Dobbins’ ADP is likely down here because of his lengthy injury history. Understandable, but in 13 games last year he managed 905 yards and nine touchdowns for the Chargers, clearly proving himself to be their best option after they had anticipated it would be Gus Edwards. Dobbins got a chance to catch the ball a little too, and proved he can do it with 32 receptions for 153 yards. This hierarchy seems pretty straightforward with Dobbins getting early down work and Harvey being a passing downs option. Dobbins can catch a few passes though on his downs, he’s a known winner at the goal line, and overall he has a three-down skill set if Harvey gets banged up.
There’s legit RB2 upside here, and the injury risk is totally built into this ADP, because he’s got a pretty high floor when healthy. Dobbins would have to be washed overnight for Harvey to usurp him entirely, so I think Dobbins makes for very strong depth.
Notable Players
Marvin Mims Jr., WR (ADP: 156, WR57): Mims’ blazing speed and big play potential make him an attractive flier late in drafts, but I wouldn’t bother. He scored six touchdowns in 2024, but they came with just 39 receptions and 503 yards. That screams unrepeatable TD luck, and when you look at his usage it’s clear Mims is just a pure gadget player. Screens and nines made up 43% of his routes run, and he was not an above average nine winner. Mims was terrible on slants, and posted a 0% success rate on digs, making him a poor fit as a traditional slot. His man success rate was at 44.3%, a 1st percentile mark and just unusable, while his zone success was well below average (74.5%, 22nd percentile). He’s fast, he’s athletic, but he is not a pro WR at this point.
Pat Bryant, WR (ADP: 247, WR75): Bryant was pretty productive in a middling Illinois offense last year as a senior, and he has the potential to be Denver’s WR2. Who even knows if Nix is good enough to support more than Sutton and Engram as plus fantasy contributors?
Bryant’s is not an insane athlete, but he showed some real precise route running chops with a 75% success rate on digs and 80% on curls. He did struggle on nines and slants though, and overall was pretty bad vs. man coverage (50%). He’d have to pop early for me to pay attention, because I think it’s obvious which players are the ones to roster from this team.
Troy Franklin, WR (ADP: 290, WR91): Franklin was a disaster last season, going later than expected in the draft and then ending 2024 with under 30 catches for 263 yards and one touchdown. Talent-wise, Franklin probably shouldn’t just be dismissed entirely, but there’s a lot of names in front of him and no real production to point to as a reason to believe. See it before you believe it.
Handcuffs
Audric Estime, RB (ADP: 342, RB92): Estime got a little run and a chance to take control of this backfield and didn’t cut it. He’s an early down banger, and with Dobbins in the fold I don’t see any reason to draft Estime. He can maybe work back into a timeshare, but even then are you really going to use him?
Jaleel McLaughlin, RB (ADP: 311, RB83): I am a fan of McLaughlin, and I think he’s a great pass catcher and has potential, with more opportunity, to be a pretty relevant fantasy back. But the Broncos don’t seem to agree and the addition of R.J. Harvey deep sixes my hopes for potential value the way Dobbins’ arrival killed Estime. At best, he works his way into the low end of a time share so no need to draft him.