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Jeff Legwold, ESPN Senior Writer
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — It’s easy for Devaughn Vele‘s teammates to identify exactly when he went from intriguing seventh-round rookie wide receiver to a legitimate option in the Denver Broncos‘ offense.
“Training camp,” Broncos receiver Courtland Sutton said. “That catch.”
Running back Javonte Williams concurred: “That one got everybody’s attention.”
It happened in a rather innocuous-looking red zone drill on Aug. 8. Quarterback Jarrett Stidham lofted a pass toward the back left corner of the end zone. Vele twisted his 6-foot-5, 210-pound body, snapped his right arm into the air and pulled the ball into his chest with one hand before hitting the ground. He was immediately swarmed by almost every offensive player.
OKAY, ROOK!
Devaughn Vele with an unbelievable catch at #BroncosCamp 🤯 pic.twitter.com/PJ0NdMcM3M
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) August 8, 2024
Since that point, Vele has been cemented in the Broncos’ offense, catching 33 passes for 377 yards (second on the Broncos) and a touchdown.
He might also perfectly encapsulate the depth of their rookie class. The Broncos, of course, got their quarterback in Bo Nix at No. 12, but they also hit on many of their mid- and late-round picks. In addition to Vele, third-round edge rusher Jonah Elliss, fourth-round receiver Troy Franklin, fifth-round corner Kris Abrams-Draine and fifth-round running back Audric Estime have all helped put the Broncos on the verge of breaking an eight-year playoff drought.
And their contributions have been necessary for a 9-5 Broncos team that was limited to one selection in the top 75 of the 2024 draft and pinned down by a historic dead-money salary cap charge after the release of quarterback Russell Wilson ($85 million, including $53 million this year). Without much flexibility to add playmakers in the offseason, the Broncos needed Vele and the rest of their rookie class to play well — and the first-year group has delivered. And now, thanks in part to those rookies, Denver can clinch a playoff spot by beating the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night (8:15 p.m. ET, SoFi Stadium, Prime Video).
“I think our young guys showed they were ready,” Sutton said. “They came in prepared and put in the time every day. And [Vele] just had that way about him, like a rookie vet.”
VELE WAS THE sixth of seven players the Broncos selected in this year’s draft — 235th overall and the 33rd receiver of 35 selected. Why did he last so long? Part of it lies with his age. Vele was 26 years old on draft weekend. He turned 27 on Dec. 12.
Consider this: Vele is two days older than Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf, who is finishing his sixth NFL season. In fact, Vele is older than 32 players on the Broncos’ roster, including All-Pro cornerback Pat Surtain II and guard Quinn Meinerz, who are in their fourth NFL seasons and signed contract extensions this past offseason.
“Maybe that did bring some urgency,” Vele said. “I couldn’t look at it like other rookies. … I’ve never looked at [age] like it’s an issue, but you have to realize your circumstances aren’t like other people, so you have to adjust how you think about it. My way was to try and contribute as fast as I could.”
After graduating from high school in 2016, Vele took a two-year Mormon mission in Samoa before attending Utah. He walked on at Utah in 2019 after the mission and redshirted to get back into football shape. Then, his first on-field season in 2020 was reduced to five games because of the COVID-19 pandemic. So, Vele didn’t get a full college season until 2021, when he was already 23 years old. He proceeded to play 38 games for the Utes from 2021 to 2023, catching 121 passes for 1,677 yards and nine touchdowns.
“We saw the production and the potential,” Broncos general manager George Paton said. “We understood his age, we just liked the player — and the value, it was kind of a no-brainer.”
Broncos coach Sean Payton develops what he calls a “fit” or “vision” for every player he coaches. He saw Vele as a strong-handed, big, physical receiver with precise route running and speed (Vele ran a 4.47 40-yard dash at the combine). Payton believed he could be a reliable target for Nix and help replace the production of Jerry Jeudy, whom the Broncos traded to Cleveland in the offseason.
Vele is third on the Broncos in receptions and has turned 71.7% of his targets into catches. By comparison, Sutton — the Broncos’ No. 1 receiving target — has receptions on 58.4% of his targets.
Some of Vele’s reliability can be traced to his body type, Payton said. As a tall receiver, Vele is longer in the torso and can settle deeper into his cuts. So Vele was a quick study on the precision work in the short and intermediate routes in the Broncos’ offense.
“[Vele] has good length — Sean always talks about the inseam isn’t so long — but he’s able to move and change direction, get in and out of breaks,” Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said. “Strong hands.”
“The strengths for him certainly are his hands,” Payton said. “He has strong hands in traffic. He’s a guy that plays well over the middle. He reminds me a lot of Marques Colston.”
Payton repeatedly has mentioned Colston when gauging Vele’s progress. Colston played 10 seasons for Payton with the Saints from 2006 to 2015 after being selected in the seventh round of the 2006 draft. At 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, he was a physical player who had seven seasons with at least 70 receptions and six with more than 1,000 receiving yards. So the Colston comparison is high praise coming from the 17-year coach.
VELE, NIX AND the rest of Denver’s rookie class are a bit of an anomaly for Payton. His teams in New Orleans were often among the oldest in the league, filled with reliable veterans. But this Broncos team has eight rookies (six draft picks and two undrafted free agents) who have played this season.
The group is led by Nix, Payton’s first rookie starting quarterback. Nix has played since the opening snap of the regular season, as his 20 touchdown passes lead all rookie quarterbacks and rank 10th in the NFL overall. His 2,972 yards passing are behind only Washington’s Jayden Daniels (3,045) among rookies. The Broncos needed to find a QB in the first round, and Nix has fit the bill.
Their next-highest pick, Elliss, is in the edge rusher rotation and tied for fourth on the team with five sacks, helping the Broncos to a league-leading 49. Denver was comfortable enough with Elliss that it traded veteran linebacker Baron Browning to the Cardinals before the trade deadline.
“We felt on the college tape, a lot of times you’ll see one move: power, maybe speed,” Payton said. “[With Elliss], we felt like we saw a few different things, and we saw athleticism.”
Franklin has seen his playing time steadily increase, lining up on at least 40% of offensive snaps six times in the past eight games. The two fifth-round picks — Estime and Abrams-Draine — have also made an impact. Estime has shown flashes of talent in limited duty, averaging 4.7 yards per carry. Abrams-Draine made his debut in the Week 13 win over the Browns and could play more until Riley Moss returns from a knee sprain.
In a season with limited roster flexibility, the Broncos’ rookies are more than depth chart placeholders. They’ve been all over the field as the team clinched its first winning season since 2016 and is poised for its first postseason trip since 2015.
“At first, you’re just trying to get acclimated, learn, make the roster, be a pro. But once the season starts, you want to be a part of helping us win games and score touchdowns,” Vele said. “Everybody kind of says at this point in the year, you’re not a rookie anymore. … So maybe we don’t see ourselves as rookies in that way. We’re here to do whatever we can.”