Tim Patrick is a wide receiver for the Denver Broncos. Patrick was born and raised in San Diego, California where he played high school football at University City High School. From there, Patrick earned a scholarship to play football in Salt Lake City at the University of Utah. Injuries plagued Patrick while in Salt Lake. After playing sparingly in his first season, Patrick got injured in the first game of the 2015 season, which forced him to miss the rest of that season. He did rebound with a solid 2016 season, which saw him register 711 yards and five touchdowns on 45 receptions. Despite the modest production, Patrick did project well with advanced numbers. The 38.1-percent college dominator (77th-percentile), 15.8 college yards per reception (64th-percentile) and 27.4-percent college target share (82nd-percentile) he posted all are great for the position.
The NFL did not see Tim Patrick’s potential through those advanced stats or his 4.52 40 time, however. He went undrafted in the 2017 NFL Draft. He latched on with the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers, but both teams let him go. Afterward, the Denver Broncos signed him to their practice squad, let him go, then brought him back for the 2018 season. That season is where Patrick got a shot. He did not miss his chance to blow. He ended that season with 19 receptions and 242 yards over his last four games to prove he belonged in the NFL. He didn’t play much in the 2019 season but did in 2020 after a season-ending injury to starter Courtland Sutton. After Sutton’s Week 2 injury, Patrick immediately scored a touchdown in the next two weeks and rattled off back-to-back 100+-yard performances. He finished that season with 51 receptions for 742 yards and six touchdowns.
If Tim Patrick didn’t prove he belonged in the NFL in 2020, he definitely did so in 2021. Again, injury to Denver’s wide receiver room (this time to Jerry Jeudy) opened up playing time for Patrick. He once again capitalized off it. Patrick scored in each of Denver’s first two games then went for 98 yards after that. He played 82.4-percent of the team's snaps (27th among wide receivers), and hauled in a 17.3-percent target share. He racked up 1,003 air yards and 18 deep targets, placing Patrick 34th and 28th at his position in those categories. His 1.82 yards of target separation finished 21st among wide receivers, and his 209 yards after the catch finished 48th. Patrick's excellence across the board helped him finish the season as the WR44 in fantasy football and totals of 53 receptions, 734 yards, and five touchdowns. The Broncos saw the work Patrick put in and rewarded him for it. During the 2021 season, Denver signed him to a 3-year $34.5 million contract extension to keep him put for the foreseeable future.
There was hope with the new coaching staff in Denver that this could be the year for Tim Patrick after a brutal 2022 season with Nathaniel Hackett, however those hopes would be dashed yet again as Patrick went down in practice on July 31st with a torn Achilles tendon. Once a player with an outside chance to become relevant in 2023, those odds become even longer for 2024.
