What if I told you the Denver Broncos have a guy who has been a first-team All-Pro in each of his first two seasons, but he hasn't even consistently started any games for the team? Not only has 2023 second-round pick Marvin Mims Jr. been named to All-Pro teams in his first two NFL seasons, but he's been to the Pro Bowl in each of them...as a return specialist.
As easy as returning kicks and punts seems to come to a guy like Mims, he's struggled to break into the lineup consistently as a wide receiver. Mims had a couple of huge performances early in his rookie season before almost completely disappearing, and he was borderline non-existent for the first half of 2024 before the team unleashed him in the second half.
With 33 games under his belt already, Mims has just nine career starts, and even more staggering, less than 700 total snaps played. That includes just 297 snaps a year ago when Mims still found a way to lead the team in yards after the catch...by a lot.
Marvin Mims Jr. finally listed with Broncos starters on initial depth chart
The Broncos listed Mims with the starters on their initial depth chart, which usually is more of a sign of seniority than anything else. But this could be a sign of things to come for the third-year player.
Mims has the ability to be a tremendous vertical threat and gadget player, but can he transform into an all-around weapon for the passing game? How much growth will we see from Mims in his third season?
The Broncos have a handful of receivers they are banking on big breakthrough years from, including Troy Franklin and Devaughn Vele. Mims almost becomes an afterthought in the discussion because of those guys as well as rookie Pat Bryant, but he's also not stealing training camp headlines like the other receivers.
Time will tell if Mims being on top of the depth chart is just a matter of seniority or if the Broncos truly plan to feature him in the offense more. Certainly, we should expect to see more of him than the 297 total snaps offensively he played last year.
In the first half of the season (Weeks 1-8), Mims played an average of 14 snaps per game. From weeks 9-18, the final nine games of the season, he played an average of 21 snaps per game. That uptick in overall snaps down the stretch was a deliberate effort by the team after the trade deadline, when fans were clamoring for general manager George Paton to do anything to upgrade the weaponry around Bo Nix.
Mims provided a huge spark for the team, and hopefully the team's plans for him evolve into this season.