Pat Bryant
Pat Bryant is a second-year receiver who was becoming a regular in Denver's passing game, and he is out until at least Week 9 with an ankle sprain, with a return to this season expected.
Role
Before the injury he ranked third among Broncos receivers with 91 routes run and lined up wide on 55 percent of his snaps (NBC Sports/Rotoworld). I found no target share or snap share figures. Fox Sports says Troy Franklin steps into the WR3 role behind Courtland Sutton and Jaylen Waddle while Bryant is out. Marvin Mims and Lil'Jordan Humphrey, who was signed from the practice squad to fill the roster spot, are also in the mix. Bryant was placed on short-term IR Oct. 9, so he misses at least the next four games: Chargers, Seahawks, Cardinals, Chiefs. He could return Nov. 8 against Carolina in Week 9. Denver's bye is in Week 10, so he could instead be held out until Week 11 at Las Vegas.
The MRI avoided a serious injury and he is expected back this season (Denver Sports, Oct. 9). He was described as a growing part of the passing game, and he had three catches for 47 yards, including a 30-yard catch-and-run, before he was hurt. If he returns healthy, he comes back to a WR3 job that he had started to claim.
He will miss at least four games, and the Broncos could stretch that to the bye. Sutton and Waddle sit ahead of him, and Franklin, Mims and Humphrey have been filling in. NBC Sports called him oft-injured and said it is hard to imagine Franklin or Mims becoming valuable while he is out. That also suggests the passing game is concentrated among the top two receivers, which limits what a WR3 can earn. He was carted off after a hard hit over the middle, and his practice participation on return is unconfirmed.
Where analysts split
The question is who takes the WR3 work while he is out and whether Bryant gets it back. Fox Sports and FantasyPros lean toward Franklin, with Sutton also getting more work. NBC Sports says Sutton and Mims could gain, but Waddle may absorb the targets. A second question is whether he returns in Week 9 or after the Week 10 bye. No source I found says whether Bryant keeps the WR3 job once he is healthy.
Injury: IR: assessed avoid
Ankle, placed on IR
Bryant is on IR and must miss at least four games; realistic return looks like Week 11 given the Week 10 bye, so he is unrosterable in the near term.
What would change this: Any practice return report or official activation from IR as Week 9 or Week 11 approaches.
Research confidence: reported. Outlooks are grounded in web search over current reporting and refreshed through the season.
Others at WR
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