Broncos add intriguing former Mr. Irrelevant to the practice squad
The Denver Broncos added an intriguing playmaker to the practice squad in 2019 7th-round pick Caleb Wilson, a tight end out of UCLA.
The Denver Broncos and general manager George Paton are always tinkering with the roster. Whether it’s through trades, waiver pickups, or even practice squad pickups, every move made is worth looking into because you never know when you’re going to find the next Shelby Harris or Tim Patrick.
The Broncos made a roster move on Wednesday to bring an intriguing offensive weapon into the fold with the acquisition of tight end Caleb Wilson, a former UCLA star who joined the team’s practice squad.
Unlike most other former seventh-round picks that join the team, Wilson is one of the unique players that was taken with the final selection of his draft class.
Broncos add intriguing former Mr. Irrelevant to the practice squad
After starting off the 2019 NFL Draft by taking Oklahoma quarterback and Heisman winner Kyler Murray, the Arizona Cardinals took Caleb Wilson with the 254th and final selection.
From 2017-18, Wilson was an extremely productive playmaker as a receiving tight end for the Bruins and caught 60 passes his final year on campus for 965 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 16.1 yards per reception.
Although his athletic metrics weren’t great overall leading up to the 2019 NFL Draft, the 6-foot-4, 240-pound receiving threat ran a blazing 4.56 in the 40-yard dash, giving the Denver Broncos yet another tremendous speed option at that position group to develop.
Wilson has only appeared in five games in his NFL career thus far, mostly on special teams, but he definitely has a worthwhile trait for developmental purposes and is an intriguing addition to the practice squad given the presence of Shaun Beyer there.
The Broncos had to place Noah Fant on the COVID/reserve list ahead of their game against the Dallas Cowboys, so perhaps Wilson is only going to be around for a quick cup of coffee before he ultimately winds up bouncing up and down the waiver wire.
Still, the Broncos getting him into the building at this particular point in time is an investment to the future one way or another. If the Broncos view Wilson as a reserve/futures contract type of player, this is a way to do some early recruiting.
One way or another, when the team adds a relatively unproven prospect to the roster in any way, it is fun to look at what kind of potential they have based on traits.
Denver certainly has no shortage of tight ends with traits.
Noah Fant and Albert Okwuegbunam are two pretty rare athletes, both able to run in the low 4.5 to high-4.4 range in the 40-yard dash.
If only Pat Shurmur could get both of those guys more chances to gain yardage after the catch, right?
Ultimately, every addition right now to the practice squad should be considered a strong candidate for a reserve/future deal and with the team’s present depth at tight end, the move to sign this former Mr. Irrelevant is all about the future.