Tavarres

King

A speedster with adequate size at just over 6-feet-tall and 189 pounds, King averaged 22.6 yards per reception as a senior for the Georgia Bulldogs. Eric Decker is in a contract year and Wes Welker won’t last forever, so there is some opportunity at the end of the tunnel if King shows well as a rookie.

It’s notable because the Broncos run so much out of their three-wide sets, and King would be an injury away from becoming relevant. King is a straight-line speedster with 4.47 wheels who averaged 22.6 YPR on 42 catches as a senior. Demaryius Thomas has missed 11 games in three seasons due to injury.

King (6-foot 1/4, 189) hauled in 42 Aaron Murray passes as a senior for 950 yards (22.6 YPR) and nine touchdowns. He lit up Alabama for 128 yards on five catches in the SEC title game. With legit speed (4.47 forty) to separate from defensive backs and long arms (33") to create a wide catching radius, King looks every bit the part of an NFL No. 2 or low-end No. 1 receiver. King will slide in as the Broncos’ No. 4 receiver.

It’s disappointing for King, who had a realistic shot to beat out Andre Caldwell for the No. 4 gig. That would have put him one injury away from a real role on a team that will use three receivers as a base formation. Through three preseason games, King has three catches for 29 yards and no scores.

Beat writer Jeff Legwold recently anointed King the Broncos’ fifth receiver, but his five-catch preseason apparently wasn’t enough. A fifth-round pick, King was initially considered a contender for the Broncos’ No. 4 receiver job. King boasts 4.47 speed and 33-inch arms to go along with his 6-0, 189 frame, so he should get some looks on waivers. If not, he’ll be stashed on the practice squad.

A fifth-round pick, it speaks to what must have been an extremely poor summer that King went through waivers unclaimed. Although he could be signed to the active roster at some point this season, King will likely develop on the taxi squad before making another roster run next summer.

"(He’s) made some big plays down the field,” Gase said. “He is catching the ball fairly consistently, and he’s done a good job of not being the guy we are calling out to fix things. He studied his book, obviously, this summer and made sure he wasn’t going to be the guy making mistakes.” King has a legitimate shot at earning No. 4 receiver duties, but obviously won’t be fantasy relevant if the Broncos keep their top three receivers healthy. For now, King is just someone to keep an eye on in Dynasty leagues.

He only managed to catch 1-of-3 targets for eight yards -- he just missed staying in bounds for what would have a been a long catch down the sideline -- but he saw significant work with the first-team offense. That spot will likely belong to Victor Cruz if he can get and stay healthy, but that is far from a given. King is not fantasy viable right now, but he is a name to watch.

According to Vacchiano, King has been the Giants’ best receiver the past two weeks of the preseason and one of the best in practice all summer. The light appears to have finally turned on for the 2013 fifth-rounder of the Broncos. He has a solid size-speed combo and would be in line for snaps if any of Odell Beckham, Sterling Shepard, or (gulp) Victor Cruz goes down injured.

The big night closed out a torrid preseason for the fourth-year journeyman, as he caught 11 passes for 206 yards and three touchdowns. He also passed the eye test in doing so. King has almost certainly assured himself a spot on the 53-man roster, but is still unlikely to start out as more than the No. 5 receiver.