Who Should I Start? Kyle Philips or Troy Franklin

Tuesday, February 18, 8:54 PM

The Las Vegas Raiders signed free-agent wide receiver Kyle Philips to an undisclosed deal on Tuesday. Philips, a former fifth-round selection by the Tennessee Titans in 2022 out of UCLA will head to the AFC West after spending all of the 2024 campaign on the practice squad of the Philadelphia Eagles. In 2022 and 2023, he caught only 23 of 35 targets for 259 yards and no touchdowns in 13 games played (no starts). The 25-year-old pass-catcher also saw time on special teams as a kickoff and punt returner, which will probably be his best path to a roster spot with the Raiders. Philips will be reuniting with his old head coach at UCLA in Chip Kelly, who is now the Raiders' offensive coordinator under new head coach Pete Carroll. Philips's familiarity with Kelly won't guarantee him a roster spot out of training camp, though.

Thursday, June 12, 9:28 PM

Denver Broncos second-year wide receiver Troy Franklin has had a good offseason, has looked more explosive and added about five pounds, according to head coach Sean Payton. The Broncos took the Oregon product in the fourth round (102nd overall) in last year's draft to pair him with college teammate and quarterback Bo Nix. The slim pass-catcher's chemistry with Nix didn't really translate in Year 1 in the NFL, as he finished with 28 catches for 263 yards and two touchdowns on 53 targets over 16 regular-season games (six starts). The No. 2 role behind Courtland Sutton is up for grabs in Denver, with Franklin competing with Marvin Mims Jr., Devaughn Vele and rookie Pat Bryant for a bigger role in 2025. The addition of pass-catching tight end Evan Engram won't help. Franklin is worth keeping an eye on in training camp, but for now, he's outside of RotoBaller's top-100 fantasy receivers.