NFL.com's Gennaro Filice admitted that the recent ranking of his top 10 active "triplets" by college affiliation was driven by this being the lowest point of the NFL offseason. Despite this dry period on the news cycle, we're taking a look anyway at Filice's list.
Broncos Country will immediately be drawn toward his Oregon triplets, listed at the seventh spot on his rundown, and featuring wide receiver Troy Franklin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving, and Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. While the former Oregon alumni Herbert edged out the Denver Broncos' rapidly ascending signal-caller Bo Nix, it's clear that the divisional gap is closing.
"Bo Nix's rousing rookie campaign forced me to briefly consider him for the QB spot here, but ultimately, Justin Herbert retained top-Duck status. The lack of postseason success is indeed a taint, with a horrendous taste still lingering from January's blowout loss in Houston. Herbert threw more picks in the Wild Card Round (four) than in 17 regular-season games (three)," Filice wrote. "That said, he grew in Year 1 under Jim Harbaugh, particularly as a leader. Long derided by critics as something of a wallflower, Herbert outwardly exhibited more moxie in 2024. And the arm talent just continued to scintillate, with Herbert hurling a handful of the prettiest passes in the league seemingly every Sunday."
Flice has identified that Herbert's crushing lack of playoff success is hurting his overall legacy. On the flip side, Nix will start to separate himself if he can lead the Broncos back to the promised land with his more intoxicating brand of leadership and win.
Until Herbert can conclusively prove his mettle in the playoffs, the jury will remain firmly out on his excellent passing abilities everyone around the NFL drools over. In the meantime, Nix is massively coming to the forefront in a quarterback-heavy division, so just making the playoffs is going to prove even more difficult for the Chargers moving forward.
Consequently, the head-to-head contest between Nix and Herbert will roll into the 2025 season with much more riding upon it than before. That is indeed a tantalizing prospect for fans, but it's also worth noting that Herbert holds a 2-0 record over Nix thus far in the pro ranks.
Turning that losing narrative on its head will require Nix getting a helping hand from Denver's developing cast of playmakers in 2025. One such burgeoning talent is Franklin, one of Filice's Oregon triplets, but largely by default.
"The third wheel, Troy Franklin. It was slim pickings among Oregon wideouts, forcing me to go with the 2024 fourth-rounder who totaled 263 receiving yards in Year 1," Filice wrote.
That's not to say that Franklin can't go on to merit his place on this rundown much more fully. After all, he had some shining moments for the Broncos last season.
Perhaps Year 2 will bring the best out in Franklin's already proven connection with Nix. The trouble is, that explosive Oregon factor was largely missing between Franklin and Nix in 2024, as the young receiver only grabbed 28 passes for 263 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Hardly an earth-shattering statistical resume that would put Franklin on any exclusive list. That being said, Broncos Country is well aware of how often the ball went frustratingly beyond Franklin’s grasp on several of the deep routes the speedster ran during his rookie year.
