Denver Broncos: Analyzing the depth at wide receiver after trade

Taking a look at the Denver Broncos’ depth at the wide receiver position after their trade of Demaryius Thomas to the Houston Texans.

The Denver Broncos face the daunting task of replacing the legendary Demaryius Thomas at the wide receiver position.

Despite Thomas’ incredible career numbers and his willingness to play through injury the past two years, Thomas’ numbers of late had declined significantly and he had just two games with over 100 yards receiving in the Broncos’ last 24.

Thomas will go down as one of the team’s best wide receivers but the Broncos were finally in a position where they — and frankly Thomas — could move on.

Where does the Broncos’ wide receiver position stand depth-wise after this move?

Emmanuel Sanders has already taken over as the team’s number one receiver now in his fifth year with the team and looks like an All-Pro candidate at the age of 31. Sanders has shown no signs of regression or slowing down whatsoever, on pace for his first 100-catch season since 2014 (his first season in Denver) and also currently catching the highest percentage of passes thrown his way (over 76 percent) of his career.

Sanders’ dominance this season paved the way for the Demaryius Thomas trade as he now looks to write his own legacy story in the Broncos history books. Sanders is either already in the top 10 or moving up in the top 10 in Broncos history for receptions, receiving yards, receptions per game, and yards per game.

Sanders is officially the leader of the pack now, but even without Demaryius Thomas, the Broncos’ receiver group is insanely talented.

Let’s take a look at the depth and the players who stand to benefit most from Thomas’ absence.