Courtland Sutton channels inner 'Fresh Prince' Will Smith after Broncos trade Jerry Jeudy to Browns
Jerry Jeudy will be gone from the Denver Broncos, and his main backfield partner of four years will miss him greatly.
On Saturday, the Denver Broncos continued their massive roster overhaul by trading the wide receiver to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for fifth- and sixth-round picks. He and Courtland Sutton had been the team's primary deep threat duo since 2020.
Reacting to the news, the one-time Pro Bowler referenced the famous shot of Will Smith standing inside an empty house in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air on his X/Twitter account:
Jerry Jeudy's departure could mean more WR opportunities for Marvin Mims
One player, meanwhile, stands to benefit from Jerry Jeudy's departure: incoming sophomore Marvin Mims.
When he was first drafted 63rd overall in 2023, Mims was initially mainly on special teams, where he excelled as a returner. He had 312 punt return yards and 397 kick return yards, as well as one kick return touchdown, and made the All-Pro team and Pro Bowl in that role.
But amid the massive roster churn in Denver, Mims seems set to receive an expanded role in the Broncos' offense. During last week's Draft Combine, head coach Sean Payton hinted as much, saying that Jerry Jeudy's presence was hindering his progress at his original position:
"Look, with Mims we saw him first as a returner. And I really think the only thing that really stopped his progress as a receiver was us in trying to find roles. He’s playing the same position as Jerry (Jeudy).
Moving forward, Payton added that he would be expecting much from the soon-to-be sophomore:
"I think you’re going to see a lot of growth with this player. Every time we put his name on a certain play he hasn’t disappointed. That doesn’t mean the ball always went to him. But the point I’m making is I think his progress was hampered a little bit more with the depth in the room and what we were able to do in sometimes trying to balance that out. I think we’ll see that expand."
In the meantime, however, there is still the bigger issue of which quarterback Mims will catch passes from. Russell Wilson will be officially released on March 13, and the Broncos do not have the top picks that can give them a shot at one of Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, and Jayden Daniels.