\n Broncos\u2019 Sean Payton excited to add \u2018explosive\u2019 Jaylen Waddle\u2019s versatility <\/p>\n
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton anticipated the question about where he puts new acquisition Jaylen Waddle in the wide receiver pecking order.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not just going to have, and I know someone\u2019s getting ready to ask me, \u2018Is he receiver (No.) 1 or 2?\u2019 So we don\u2019t have (that),\u201d Payton said Tuesday at the NFL\u2019s annual meeting in Phoenix. \u201cWe just play different packages and try to give those guys the things that they do well.\u201d<\/p>\n
What Waddle does is run really fast, and he stops fast, Payton said, and is a \u201ctremendous route runner\u201d with an expansive route tree.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best thing that I think he does is he\u2019s explosive; he\u2019s dynamic,\u201d Payton said. \u201cA lot of times, the guys run fast, but I think he sends his hips in transition. I think you\u2019ll see him play inside in the slot; you\u2019ll see him outside.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denver acquired Waddle and a fourth-round pick in next month\u2019s draft from the Miami Dolphins on March 17 in exchange for first-, third- and fourth-round selections.<\/p>\n
Waddle, 27, recorded 64 catches for 910 yards and six touchdowns in 16 games (all starts) last season for the rebuilding Dolphins. He is owed $68.6 million over the next three seasons.<\/p>\n
He has 373 receptions for 5,039 yards and 26 touchdowns in 78 career games (all starts) since being selected by Miami with the sixth overall pick of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Alabama.<\/p>\n
Payton said the organization talked to former Alabama coach Nick Saban and others who have worked with Waddle, whose competitive drive \u201ccame up time and again.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhenever you get into a big-name free agent or a trade of this magnitude, all the other stuff is important to research,\u201d Payton said. \u201cWhen it comes to Waddle\u2019s all the other stuff, it was 10, 10, 10, 10, 10. So I think, obviously, it will help us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Waddle will give Broncos quarterback Bo Nix another prime target in addition to Courtland Sutton, a two-time Pro Bowl receiver. Sutton led the Broncos in catches (74), receiving yards (1,017) and receiving touchdowns (seven) last season as the team (14-3) won the AFC West and advanced to the conference championship game.<\/p>\n
The Broncos\u2019 receivers also include Pat Bryant, Troy Franklin and Marvin Mims Jr.<\/p>\n
Waddle said after the trade that he didn\u2019t \u201cthink there are No. 1s; everyone is here to make plays and try to win. That\u2019s ultimately the goal for the team and for the organization.\u201d<\/p>\n
Payton on Tuesday said that a locker room is welcoming to any player who can help the team and is a good fit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think whenever you are able to bring in someone that is highly competitive, his personality and all of those things (help),\u201d Payton said. \u201cI think the good teams welcome those players because they know it\u2019s another piece and another opportunity to improve your team.\u201d<\/p>\n
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