The Denver Broncos achieved a small victory by selecting Utah wide receiver Devaughn Vele in the seventh round (No. 235 overall) of the 2024 NFL draft.
Vele greatly surpassed expectations as a rookie, recording 41 catches for 475 yards and 3 touchdowns in 13 games, contributing to the Broncos’ first postseason appearance since 2015. His potential suggests even greater success in the future.
Standing at 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, Vele has drawn comparisons to former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Marques Colston, who recorded six seasons with over 1,000 receiving yards in his first seven years in the NFL under current Broncos head coach Sean Payton.
Pro Football Network believe the Broncos will go back to that same formula in the 2025 NFL draft by selecting a wide receiver in the mid to later rounds. This time, it will be Colorado State wide receiver who is projected to go to Denver in the fourth round (No. 121 overall) in PFN’s latest 7-round mock draft.
“Horton has been hyper-productive since transferring from Nevada after his first two seasons of college football,” The 33rd Team’s Kyle Crabbs wrote. “However, his career ended prematurely in mid-October 2024 due to a season-ending knee injury against San Jose State. Horton tracks as a Z-receiver who can be a role-specific contributor early before hopefully expanding and developing his game to be a more versatile route runner and threat.”
Horton Transferred Within Mountain West
Horton played the first 2 seasons of his college career at Nevada, where he had 72 receptions for 995 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2020 and 2021 before transferring to another Mountain West Conference school in Colorado State.
Horton was the MWC’s best wide receiver over the next 2 seasons with 71 receptions for 1,131 yards and 8 touchdowns in 2022 followed by 96 receptions for 1,136 yards and 8 touchdowns in 2023. He also had a signature performance in front of a national television audience in a 48-45 double overtime loss to the Colorado Buffaloes in 2023.
That game, Horton went off for 16 receptions for 133 yards and 1 touchdown while matched up against Colorado cornerback Travis Hunter, a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft and the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner.
In 2023, Horton had 5 games of over 130 receiving yards, including 10 receptions for 227 yards and 3 touchdowns in a win over Utah Tech and 9 receptions for 186 yards and 1 touchdown in the season finale against Hawaii.
In 2024, Horton’s draft stock took a hit after he only played 5 games before suffering a season-ending knee injury and finished with just 26 receptions for 353 yards and 1 touchdown.
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