Devaughn Vele was the 33rd of 35 wide receivers taken in the 2024 NFL Draft. More importantly, he was the second receiver Denver took in their own draft class. The 6’4”/205 pounder had a solid career at Utah and tested well in workouts. One major drawback? He turned 26 before his first NFL training camp and several teams looked the other way. Sean Payton saw the value. It did not take long before the team realized they had one of the top values of draft weekend. He was a key part of the offense right away, catching eight of eight targets in week one against Seattle. By season’s end, Vele was the team’s third leading receiver. Only seven rookie receivers finished the season with more catches. All five of his deep targets (20+ yards) were caught and he caught 9 of 15 contested targets.
Franklin was also drafted by Denver in April of 2024, except it was 133 slots before Vele. The 22 year-old was a college teammate of quarterback Bo Nix at Oregon for two seasons finishing as an All-American in 2023. He has credible 4.4 speed but the rawness to his skill set as both a route runner and pass catcher put somewhat of a project label on him. It was interesting to see him behind Vele on the depth chart for the entire season but it was also interesting to see Franklin was more involved down the stretch and in the playoffs. In fact, Franklin was on the receiving end of a 43-yard touchdown in the first two minutes of the playoff game in Buffalo. He had multiple catches in seven of their final eight games and he had the highest average depth of target on the team all season.
Prediction: Franklin
Initially the answer looks like Vele because he simply proved more as a rookie. However, reading between the lines of what Sean Payton has been saying, it was known Franklin would be a two year project. His speed and explosion is simply on another level and Payton always wants to have the true vertical threat to open up his offense underneath, Vele’s average depth of target was just 8.7 yards and he was a non-factor after the catch. Franklin’s weight gain this offseason and notably faster routes will likely give Payton that speed threat he wants in an interchangeable alignment role with Marvin Mims.