Mims the word.
The Broncos feature an offense devoid of playmakers and their fastest, most dynamic weapon remains on mute.
Jerry Jeudy is gone. So, what in the (bleep) is going on with Marvin Mims Jr.? With a single explosive pass in Seattle to Mims, the Broncos would have upset the Seahawks.
We were told Mims would have an expanded role this season. He played 12 of 69 snaps, or 17 percent, against Seattle. He never logged fewer than 23 percent in any game as a rookie last season. The 12 snaps tied a career low.
Coach Sean Payton put him in the dryer. Honey, I Shrunk The Kid.
The former Oklahoma star finished the opener with zero catches on one target – a short pass on the first play after the two-minute warning. Nothing screams afterthought like a pedestrian incompletion barely beyond the line of scrimmage in the fourth quarter.
“Obviously we anticipate him getting more than just 12 (plays). A lot of it depends on how much we are playing against nickel on offense, receiver sets or base sets. That can vary,” Payton said Wednesday. “But I think you will see his pitch count week-to-week, depending on the team we are playing, go up.”
Other than being inactive, it cannot go down.
In Week 1, 154 players caught a pass. Mims was not among them. It is negligence for the Broncos’ decaffeinated attack not to look his way. I’d rather stare at Raygun doing a Kangaroo breakdance than watch the same old monkey business of the Broncos throwing short of the first down marker to players who can’t break a tackle.
Speaking of yards after contact, no Broncos receiver reached double figures against the Seahawks.
Quarterback Bo Nix is not blameless. He must hit receivers in stride to give them a chance to turn their shoulders and head upfield. Still, not since Noah Fant have targets gone to the ground so quickly after receptions.
Tell me again why Mims is not more involved.
“It can be frustrating,” Mims told The Post on Wednesday. “But my job is to be ready when the ball comes my way.”
When Mims became a ghost last season we were led to believe it was because of Jeudy. Jeudy needed reps and targets. It didn’t matter that Jeudy and Russell Wilson had a worse connection than Afghanistan WiFi.
Through the first five games a year ago, Mims caught 10 passes on 12 targets for 246 yards and one touchdown, while rushing three times for 13 yards. In the 12 games since – he missed Week 16 with an injury – Mims has 12 catches on 22 targets for 131 yards with 17 yards rushing.
That averages out to one reception for 11 yards per game.
Mims boasts one catch of more than 11 yards since the win over the Bears on Oct. 1 last season.
A Lambo has become a Pinto.
The idea that Mims will never get better than the first month of 2023 is unthinkable and infuriating. If that happens it becomes an admission that Payton’s first decision in the draft as the Broncos coach was to move into the second round for a special teamer. An All-Pro returner. But a returner, nonetheless. That is a move more apt for Rockies GM Bill Schmidt, not a potential Hall of Fame coach.
Anyone who plays Madden understands the NFL is a matchup league. Game plans change week-to-week. But Mims is not on the Eagles. The Broncos wide receiver room last Sunday was one man (Courtland Sutton) and three Maybes (Josh Reynolds, rookie Devaughn Vele and Lil’Jordan Humphrey). Yes, Payton clearly has a type. Those four average 6-foot-4, 211 pounds. Mims is 5-11, 182.
But Mims has what those three don’t – the ability to get behind the defense, to outrun a defender in space.
What is preventing it? Part of it is related to the run game. Mims’ best pattern is the go route. It is best set up through play-action. To run that effectively, Payton must show more patience with the ground attack. It can pay off with a cornerback or safety peeking into the backfield, allowing Mims to get loose.
He is capable of creating separation. Few receiving groups were worse in this metric in Week 1 than the Broncos.
To be fair, Mims has to do his part. And that has been difficult since training camp when he spent more time getting yelled at by coach John Morton than delivering eye-opening plays.
But, let’s get real. And get him in rhythm. Try-hard guys are necessary. Talent cannot be overlooked or dismissed.
There’s no reason Mims should have fewer than four targets. Line him up in the slot and let him run a drag route behind the linebackers. Add pre-snap motion and race him across the formation, as they did on his preseason touchdown against the Colts, and hit him at full speed for a quick hitter.
And earmark one deep shot.
If the Broncos want Nix to make noise in his home debut, Mims cannot remain silent.
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