10. Demaryius Thomas (DEN)
Fresh off his Super Bowl win and fourth consecutive season of 1,300 plus yards receiving, Demaryius sadly slips down the rankings of top wide receivers in the league.
Hopefully Thomas will surprise us all, but there is one enormous factor that will seriously work against him, Peyton Manning is now retired. Oh yeah! Brock Osweiler, who was expected to take the reins after Manning’s retirement, decided to pack his bags and move to Houston to quarterback the Texans.
Mark Sanchez will now be who everyone is relying on to keep up Thomas’ numbers. Yes, it is perfectly normal to let out a sigh of concern because Sanchez is not going to wow anyone with his performance. I’m sure Broncos fans everywhere are still crossing their fingers for a Ryan Fitzpatrick signing or a Colin Kaepernick trade before training camps begin.
Demaryius’ talent could very well overshadow the fact that Sanchez is only a low-level or average quarterback at best. Of course he can always blow away secondaries and leave them in the dust on his way to big touchdowns or his incredible route running ability. He has also been incredibly reliable having not missed a game in four straight seasons.
In six seasons, Thomas has compiled 6,621 yards on 546 catches and 47 touchdowns. The only issue is that his first two seasons were not highly impressive. The reason for that may be the fact that it was a mixture of Kyle Orton and the ever so “impressive” Tim Tebow.
As soon as The Sheriff came to town in 2012, though, it was a different story. Peyton Manning seems to make any receiver better, but what he did with Demaryius was insane. Catching 92, 94, 111, and 105 balls in those four seasons while gaining 5,787 yards and hauling in 41 touchdowns is what fantasy owners love.
Until the Broncos make that trade, succumb to Fitzpatrick’s contract demands, or Paxton Lynch becomes a Godsend, Thomas will be planted at the number 10 spot for the foreseeable future.
