The Denver Broncos have a lot to offer at wide receiver in 2026, including an explosive player in Marvin Mims Jr. Still, a question that has begun circulating is whether this will be Mims’ final season in Denver. Zac Stevens, the Broncos beat reporter for DNVR Sports, interviewed Mims and asked him about his future in Denver, while also sharing more information on his X account about factors that will determine whether Mims returns. Now it’s time to analyze why Mims could very well be on another team after the conclusion of this year’s NFL season.
Mims is aware that his time in Denver may be coming to an end soon
Although Mims would love to earn a contract extension as time progresses, he understands that it may not happen, especially if the team chooses to prioritize extending other players, including those who were in the same draft class as him.
“[A contract extension] would be sweet, I think it’d be a huge piece of mind for me,” Mims said. “Also, with me being in Sean’s (Payton) first draft class and it being my contract year, it’s going to be me, Riley (Moss), Drew Sanders, JL Skinner, Alex Forsyth, that whole draft class and undrafted guys, Jaleel (McLaughlin), Nate Adkins, so it’s kind of getting to the point where you can’t keep everybody.”
Mims is still excited for the season ahead, even with all the uncertainty about how much longer he will be with the Broncos, while he emphasized how much he’s enjoyed being in Denver since he started his NFL career.
“If this is my last year, I’m looking forward to it with these guys because I’ve had a great time here in Denver the past three years,” Mims said.
Mims is one of several Broncos players entering a contract year
Even though Mims already mentioned several of his teammates entering contract years, other key players will make it difficult for the Broncos to decide who they want to keep on the roster.
Stevens posted on X: “The Broncos have several big-time players entering contract years: Marvin Mims Jr., Ja’Quan McMillian, Riley Moss, Ben Powers, Evan Engram, Brandon Jones.”
Mims and Stevens highlighting the players whose contracts are nearing an end shows how good a team the Broncos have the potential to be this season, while keeping Mims would become even less likely if each player maximizes their skills.
If every player under contract plays to the best of their ability, the Broncos automatically become a strong Super Bowl contender, and every time a team wins a championship, there are always impact players they can’t keep. At the same time, there’s a good chance Mims could be one of those players.
The Broncos continue underutilizing Mims
A jack of all trades is what Mims is, as he is a wide receiver who can be a threat not only on short routes but deep routes as well, while also posing a threat as a special teams returner who led the NFL last season with 452 punt return yards.
However, since Mims arrived in Denver, the frequency with which he has been used in the offense has continued to decrease. Injuries have never been an issue for Mims, but in all three years he’s been in the NFL, he’s started in fewer than 10 games each season.
In fact, Mims best season receiving-wise was in Bo Nix’s rookie season in 2024, where he saw playing time in every matchup the Broncos had, hauling in 39 receptions for 503 yards and 6 touchdowns despite only starting in two games.
It also seems like the Broncos see him more as a special-teams player and only call on him if one of the wide receivers they use more often becomes injured or struggles to be productive.
For instance, Mims played a huge role in helping Denver defeat the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round playoff game last season and had 8 receptions for 93 yards and 1 touchdown, but saw more playing time as a result of Pat Bryant and Troy Franklin exiting the game with injuries, while Courtland Sutton dropped multiple passes.
Since most of the Broncos’ wide receivers are the same as last season, it’s highly unlikely they will integrate Mims within their offense as often as they should. It’s even more unlikely for him to get a good amount of reps with the addition of former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle. Denver also signed wide receiver Hakeem Butler on June 15. Butler most recently played for the St. Louis Battlehawks in the UFL and was named UFL Offensive Player of the Year in both of his stints with the team in 2024 and 2026.
Hopefully, Davis Webb and Payton run the Broncos’ offense in a balanced manner, allowing Mims to have just as big, or even greater, an impact as the team’s other talented offensive players. All hope isn’t lost for Mims, as another NFL team would love to use him consistently as a wide receiver if Denver continues to fail to do so.
