Over the last three weeks, Courtland Sutton’s involvement in the passing game has greatly diminished. Could this be a continuing trend? Going into the season, Sutton was clearly the top wide receiver on the Denver Broncos.
When Tim Patrick went down, more pressure was put on him and Jerry Jeudy to pull through for the pass catchers. Speaking of pass catchers, the Denver Broncos made Greg Dulcich their third-round selection of the 2022 NFL Draft.
He missed the first five games but was activated three games ago. Not only that, but Jerry Jeudy has had a very strong last several weeks. Over the last five games, Jeudy has not had a game with less than 53 receiving yards, and Dulcich himself has had 182 receiving yards over the last three games.
In that same timeframe, Sutton has caught just six passes for 50 yards. With the recent emergences of Jeudy and Dulcich, is Sutton now a third option in the passing game? With Jeudy, his talent is undeniable. His route running is exquisite and does have some very nice speed, so he can be used in gadget-type roles.
Greg Dulcich has emerged as a TE/WR hybrid. He’s 6’4″ and 245 pounds, so he is a tight end in the size sense, but he has above average athleticism for the position, so it almost feels like his role can be similar to that of Tim Patrick’s, while he is out with a torn ACL.
Jerry Jeudy is averaging 71 receiving yards over the last three games, and Greg Dulcich is averaging 61 yards over the same timeframe. Courtland Sutton, over this timeframe, is averaging 17 receiving yards per game.
It’s clear that the involvement of Sutton in the passing game has greatly diminished. Heck, even KJ Hamler has 100 receiving yards over the last three games. Maybe this is just a coincidence, or maybe Russell Wilson is beginning to develop some chemistry with certain players.
If this trend continues through the rest of the season, I think another discussion can be had about Sutton’s role with the Denver Broncos going forward.