Putting together the depth charts for tomorrow's update, it was debatable where to slot Tim Patrick among the Denver wide receivers. Initially we had him last, viewing him as a roster long shot. But there is some upside potential.
Two years in a row, Patrick has suffered major preseason injuries that wiped him out for the entire year. Third time's a charm? He's healthy and practicing now, though considered to be on the roster bubble. The 30-year-old is battling a lot of younger receivers the team has draft capital invested in, and I think Sean Payton is thinking more of the future than 2024. Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims and rookie Troy Franklin make more sense as a top 3, or free-agent addition Josh Reynolds if Franklin isn't ready for a major role. Even Brandon Johnson is a possibility (I don't think Phillip Dorsett is a serious contender).
But for the sake of discussion, what if Patrick can stay healthy? He was pretty good when he was last playing.
As a full-time starter in 2020-2021, Patrick in his 31 games averaged 10.2 points per week in PPR leagues. That was better than all of Denver's other wide receivers to start at least half the time in those two years, including Sutton and since-traded Jerry Jeudy. Especially as a scorer, scoring more than three times as many touchdowns (11) as either those years (Jeudy scored just 3, and Sutton scored 2 in 18 games).
| DENVER WRS, 2020-2021 (PER GAME) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | St | No | Rec | TD | Pts |
| Tim Patrick | 31 | 3.4 | 47.6 | .35 | 10.2 |
| Jerry Jeudy | 26 | 3.5 | 50.9 | .13 | 9.3 |
| Courtland Sutton | 18 | 3.4 | 46.8 | .13 | 8.8 |
| KJ Hamler | 16 | 2.2 | 28.4 | .19 | 6.4 |
That was a couple of years, a couple of major injuries, and a couple of coaching staffs ago. I'm not suggesting anyone draft Patrick with much optimism. Sutton is a much better bet, and Mims, Franklin and Reynolds will be getting their chances.
But stranger things have happened. He looked pretty good, and was a pretty good option in fantasy leagues, back then. Maybe he turns back the clock in 2024 and has a bigger role than anyone expects.
--Andy Richardson