3 Broncos Most Impacted by Acquisition of WR Jaylen Waddle

The Denver Broncos swung for the fences on Tuesday, acquiring wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and a 2026 fourth-round pick from the Miami Dolphins in exchange for 2026 first, third- and fourth-round selections.

A budding star in South Florida, Waddle should instantly vault to the top of Denver's depth chart, functioning as the de facto No. 1 WR for franchise quarterback Bo Nix, whose lack of offensive help was evident at times last season — unmistakable even to head coach Sean Payton.

"There were too many [drops] even down the stretch," Payton admitted in his January end-of-year press conference. "The thing with the draft, man, we've invested, and I like the players in that room. We've got different… We have speed, we have size, we have all the things I'm used to [and] you'd want to have in a good offense. But I think that there's a proper way to catch a football, and most of the time, it's with your thumbs together, not the other way around. The other way around, I'm serious, only exists when the ball is below your belly button. Even the deep balls should be caught with your thumbs together. So we have to be better at that.”

But while Waddle's arrival is good news for Nix, it's undeniably poorer news for a few of his new teammates.

Here are three Broncos who stand to be most impacted — largely negatively — by the bombshell trade.

WR Marvin Mims Jr.

Despite being an All-Pro special-teamer, Mims has failed to fully launch as a full-time receiver, especially in Payton's spread-the-wealth offense. He was targeted just 51 times, making 37 receptions, while appearing in 15 games last season.

Relegated to a gadget player, Mims is entering the final year of his rookie contract, due to collect $5.767 million in base salary and count $6.120 million against Denver's salary cap for 2026. The addition of Waddle could lead the team to move on from Mims — either now or later.

WR Troy Franklin

Franklin was pegged by Payton as an "ascension" candidate in 2025. The result was a 65-catch, six-touchdown campaign in which he dealt with repeated drop issues, doing little to establish himself as a permanent No. 2 WR.

Assuming he isn't traded, Franklin should still have a worthwhile role in the pecking order, if only due to his longstanding chemistry with Nix. But it likely won't be as substantial as it was last season. Anything he can do, Waddle can do better.

RB RJ Harvey

Harvey ended the Broncos' season as the de facto RB1, but after the team lost J.K. Dobbins to a foot injury, it became clear that the former wasn't ready to step into the latter's position (nor was he drafted last year to).

The team evidently felt that Harvey is better suited for RB2 duties, as they re-signed Dobbins to a two-year, $20 million contract last week. Dobbins is the favorite for early-down rushing work, leaving Harvey vying for situational snaps.

Harvey's best trait is his pass-catching ability, but that could now be muted with Waddle and Sutton dominating targets, and Franklin, Mims, WR Pat Bryant, and TE Evan Engram also in the mix.

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