The Denver Broncos needed another notable weapon on offense, period. The unit, as a whole, does have talent, but the lack of a No. 1 weapon was going to continue plaguing this unit until they fixed that issue.
Well, that happened on Tuesday, as Jaylen Waddle will come over in a trade with the Miami Dolphins. Denver is giving up multiple NFL Draft picks in the deal, but this year's draft really doesn't seem to be that talented, and the front office seems to have a similar feeling or else they would have likely kept their first-round pick.
Waddle is a fantastic player and has been one of the more efficient wide receivers in the NFL his entire career, but is he truly the game-changing, No. 1 receiver the Broncos have been searching for?
The Denver Broncos acquired a WR1, or did they?
Phin Phanatic Site Expert Brian Miller laid out his argument as to why the Waddle trade might not benefit the Broncos, and why he's not truly a WR1:
"There is no reason to speak ill of Waddle. He is a fantastic player, but he was never truly a number one receiver. Even after Tyreek Hill went out for the season, Waddle didn't pick up the slack like you would expect a number one receiver to do.
Waddle had a respectable 64 receptions last year, but those are far from what elite-level number one wideouts produce. He was targeted 100 times. Waddle wasn't even the top receiver for the Dolphins last season. That was De'Von Achane, who posted three more receptions.
Denver fans will point out that Miami's offense struggled all year, but even before last season, Waddle was putting up good statistics, but he was always in the shadow of Hill, even when Hill wasn't on the field.
When Waddle received his contract extension in 2024, it was widely criticized as another Chris Grier overpay. That continues to look like the case now. In 2024, Waddle appeared in 15 games while missing two due to injury.
That year, after signing his contract, his production dipped on the field. He caught just 58 passes while Jonnu Smith led the team with 88. His 744 yards receiving were third on the team behind Smith and Hill. These, again, are not WR1-type statistics."
Miller makes some solid points here. Across his first three years in the NFL, Waddle averaged 63.4, 79.8, and 72.4 yards per game, respectively. In the previous two seasons, he has averaged 49.6 and 56.9 yards per game. Waddle began his career with three 1,000-yard seasons in a row, and he averaged 1,224 yards across a 17-game season in those three years.
In the previous two seasons, Waddle has zero 1,000-yard seasons and has averaged just 907 yards per 17-game season. There has been a dip in production, but my one pushback here is that the Dolphins have had bottom-tier quarterback play over the past two seasons.
Simply put, they have not had a stable enough quarterback who can consistently get the ball to the team's playmakers. In Denver, Waddle will be inserted into an offense that is as solid and deep as it gets. Given his skill set, the Broncos will be able to deploy the receiver in the way he's best suited.
Personally, I don't believe Waddle needs to be an elite WR1 for the Broncos to make this trade worth it. He does, however, have to be a consistent top option and produce like he did at the beginning of his career. Luckily, Waddle can do a bit of everything on offense.
He can line up inside, outside, can win down the field, and can also win near the line of scrimmage and rack up a ton of yards after the catch. Given that he'll be catching passes from an efficient quarterback and have two brainiac coaches in Sean Payton and Davis Webb maximizing his skills, there is reason to believe that Waddle can eclipse that 1,000-yard mark in 2026.