The Denver Broncos have done an awesome job in the NFL Draft in recent years. The duo of General Manager George Paton and head coach Sean Payton has been precisely what this franchise has needed. Paton himself was doing a rather solid job in the NFL Draft before Payton arrived, but it's clear that the former New Orleans Saints head coach is what this team needed.
The Broncos could have absolutely won it all during the 2025 NFL Season, which proves just how good this entire operation is. Whether it's battle-tested veterans or blossoming young players, the Broncos are doing it better than most teams across the NFL right now.
And on that note of young players, the Broncos seeing these two offensive weapons break out in 2026 would give the team an awesome problem on this side of the ball.
Bleacher Report names Troy Franklin and RJ Harvey as top breakout candidates for the Denver Broncos
Kristopher Knox, for Bleacher Report, briefly talked about why both Troy Franklin and RJ Harvey could be breakout candidates in 2026:
"Top Breakout Candidates: WR Troy Franklin, RB RJ Harvey
Sutton is signed through 2029, but he's also set to turn 31 in October and could be a potential cap casualty next offseason—Denver could save $20 million in 2027 cap space by releasing him with a post-June 1 designation.
The Broncos very well may give Franklin the chance to take over the No. 2 role this season, and if that happens, he could see a sizeable jump in production. Franklin took positive steps in 2025, and his chemistry with Nix goes back to their time together at Oregon.
RJ Harvey could also be in store for a breakout campaign. While Denver re-signed J.K. Dobbins and drafted Jonah Coleman in Round 4, Harvey has a ceiling that can't be ignored.
Despite starting only seven games as a rookie, Harvey tallied 896 scrimmage yards and 12 touchdowns. A bigger role could have him in line for Pro Bowl numbers."
Seeing Troy Franklin and RJ Harvey breakout in 2026 would likely give the Broncos a top-3 offense in the sport. To be fair, though, both Franklin and Harvey did end up being quite productive in 2025. Both players combined for 1,617 scrimmage yards and 18 touchdowns.
Harvey, a rookie in 2025, amassed nearly 900 scrimmage yards and got into the endzone 12 times. While Harvey didn't make a notable impact as a runner, his receiving ability is clearly a weapon that the Broncos can continue to deploy.
Franklin went from 271 yards to 721 yards from 2024 into 2025. He nearly tripled his receiving yardage, did triple his touchdowns, and also caught nearly 40 more passes. While Franklin probably got targeted more than he should, the jump in year two was obvious.
The funny thing here is that the Broncos went out and addressed both the wide receiver and running back rooms in a clear indication that the front office didn't think either was good enough. The wide receiver room saw Jaylen Waddle enter the mix, and the running back room saw Jonah Coleman added to it.
To an extent, the front office might not necessarily think that Franklin and Harvey are going to breakout. If that was the case, perhaps Waddle and Coleman aren't added to the mix, but if both players do breakout, the Broncos suddenly have a major, but awesome problem on offense.
This could end up being a case of having too many mouths to feed, but it could also put a ton of strain on opposing defenses, which is always the goal. One thing that could prevent both players from breaking out, though, is them suddenly being pushed down the depth chart.
It might be hard for a de-facto WR3 in Franklin to breakout with Waddle and Courtland Sutton ahead of him, and Harvey's situation could end up being the same. J.K. Dobbins is clearly the team's starter at the position, and Coleman does possess a skill set that could get him on the field a lot earlier than you think.
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