What Marquez Callaway's role could look like on the Broncos
The Denver Broncos made a sneaky move in free agency that honestly, many people probably didn't think much about. They have been making a ton of huge moves in free agency, like the signings of Ben Powers and Mike McGlinchey, so, naturally, the signing of Marquez Callaway kind of slid under the radar. Sure, it's […]
The Denver Broncos made a sneaky move in free agency that honestly, many people probably didn't think much about. They have been making a ton of huge moves in free agency, like the signings of Ben Powers and Mike McGlinchey, so, naturally, the signing of Marquez Callaway kind of slid under the radar.
Sure, it's not a big-time signing because he isn't a big-time payer. But, that doesn't mean he won't have a role on the team. In fact, I'm willing to bet his role in 2023 may be bigger than people expect.
The Broncos went and snagged the former New Orleans Saints receiver for a reason, well, for a few. First, obviously, the Sean Payton connection is there, and secondly, they think he can bring something that they didn't already have.
Callaway had his best season in 2021 as he finished with 697 yards, but that came with a depleted wide receiver room in New Orleans. I don't think we will quite see that in Denver, but we will see something similar. We don't use his 2022 season as a reference because Sen Payton wasn't in New Orleans.
The role that Callaway will have will be something like a "chain mover." He will be the check-down guy that gets first downs. Sure, the Broncos will send him on deep or intermediate routes every now and then, but his money will come at the sticks.
In his career 2021 season, he finished with 46 catches, but 32 of those were for a first down, per Pro Football Reference. That is what we may see for the Broncos, as they will likely send Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton down the field or even on the more complicated routes, as their route tree and route running is better. They are just better players in general.
I think we see Callaway finish with roughly 35 catches and around 400 receiving yards. We likely won't see a game where he explodes for 100 yards in a game, because that just isn't what his role is. But, what his role will be is definitely more important than what you think.
