Sean Payton Warns: ‘Little Early’ to Draw Conclusions on WR Troy Franklin

The Denver Broncos have an unsettled situation at the No. 2 wide receiver position. A handful of Sean Payton draft picks are vying for the gig, including Marvin Mims Jr., Devaughn Vele, Troy Franklin, and rookie Pat Bryant.

"We have a lot of younger receivers that are on their first, second, third year, and they look good this year," quarterback Bo Nix said on Saturday. "They look confident. A couple of them have had a few years now in the system."

It's way too early to say which young wideout has the angle on winning the job, but Vele had himself a standout offseason, while Franklin has been one of the Broncos generating buzz since training camp kicked off officially on Friday.

No doubt, Payton likes what he's seeing from Franklin — Denver's fourth-round pick last year — but he advises pumping the brakes on the headlines.

“We just started, but do I think he has a chance to? I felt like we began to see that towards the latter part of last season," Payton said of Franklin after Friday's practice. "I’m looking forward to seeing him. He’s had a real good offseason. It’s just a little early to make headlines, ‘Troy Franklin’s making steps up.’ He had a good day.”

As a rookie last year, Franklin appeared in 16 games with six starts, totaling 28 receptions for 263 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 9.4 yards per catch. In the Broncos' Wildcard loss to the Buffalo Bills, he scored his team's only touchdown on a deep bomb from Nix in the first half.

That touchdown was the first time in NFL playoff history that a rookie wide receiver caught a score from a rookie quarterback. Nix and Franklin are just getting started in Denver, but they're history together stretches back to the University of Oregon.

Franklin was Nix's top target for two years at Oregon, and they both declared for the 2024 draft. The Broncos drafted Nix on Day 1 and Franklin on early Day 3.

It was a bit slow going for Franklin last year as he weathered his rookie trial-and-error learning curve, but after Saturday's practice, Nix explained what his friend and teammate had to endure as a rookie, and how he has become increasingly confident.

“I think he’s confident... For a guy like Troy Franklin, he’s not thinking as much anymore," Nix said. "He’s like me. When you go through the first year, you just get kind of drowned in install, and new technique, new fundamentals, new coaches telling you different things. I can be really hard, and it can be challenging. It’s not as easy as just going out there and getting open most of the time, which is what his natural gift is."

All the novelty has worn off and Franklin now has a full year under his belt. He has acclimated to NFL speed; he's five pounds heavier, according to Payton, and sporting a new jersey number. Franklin drew the No. 16 as a rookie, but changed it to his college No. 11 this offseason.

Franklin's out there getting open and being vocal with his quarterback. He looks more recognizable to his quarterback.

"Now I feel like he can take what he knows, and he can go out there and naturally get open. I’m getting a little bit more of, ‘Hey, I’m open. Throw me the ball,’ and that’s usually a good thing from guys like that who don’t usually do that," Nix said of Franklin. "I think the transition to [No.] 11 from 16 is good for him. It looks better. I think he’s just more natural and he feels comfortable. He’s a lot more confident, and that’s just what usually happens from Year 1 to Year 2.”

The NFL is curious to see what strides Nix makes in his year-two jump. Nix said that he wants to be the "best in the world," and to get there, he'll need his arsenal of young receivers to also turn the corner.

Again, it's early. If Payton's saying it's too early, take heed. But keep an eye on Franklin as training camp marches on and eventually bleeds into the preseason games.