Who Should I Start? Troy Franklin or Devaughn Vele

Sunday, January 25, 1:33 PM

Denver Broncos wide receiver Troy Franklin (hamstring) is officially inactive for the AFC Championship game on Sunday against the visiting New England Patriots, according to Mike Klis of 9 News. Franklin injured his hamstring early in the Divisional Round win against the Buffalo Bills and never returned. He was limited in practice all week, but the Broncos weren't comfortable making him active. Although Franklin saw his role decline late in the year, it's a notable loss for a Denver offense that is forced to start backup quarterback Jarrett Stidman against New England with Bo Nix (ankle) out for the rest of the season. The second-year wideout from Oregon was the Broncos' second leading receiver during the regular season with 65 catches, 709 yards, and six touchdowns on 104 targets. Marvin Mims Jr., rookie Pat Bryant, and Lil'Jordan Humphrey will need to step up behind Courtland Sutton against a solid Patriots defense on Sunday.

Friday, December 19, 2:45 PM

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Devaughn Vele (shoulder) has been placed on injured reserve, ending his season before the team's Week 16 matchup with the Jets. Vele suffered the season-ending shoulder injury during the fourth quarter of a Week 15 win over the Panthers and had already been ruled out for Sunday. Vele had established a strong rapport with rookie quarterback Tyler Shough, regularly seeing target shares in the high-teens to mid-20s, and his absence should see tight end Juwan Johnson step in as the team's number two pass-catching option behind Chris Olave. Olave, who has seen double-digit targets only once since Shough took over as starter, but has found the endzone in three of his last five games, could once again see the type of heavy volume that defined his early season and is RotoBaller's WR11 for Week 16.