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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – To think, just a few days ago NFL defensive coordinators probably thought Wes Welker was the most dangerous addition to the Denver Broncos offense.
That was before Julius Thomas.
Sure, Welker caught two of Peyton Manning's touchdown passes in Denver's 49-27 win against the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night. But other than how quickly he and Manning have established a rapport, Welker's production is hardly surprising for a player long-established as the NFL's best slot receiver.
Thomas, with his two-touchdown, 110-yard performance against the Ravens, flashed the potential to become the type of game-changing tight end the Broncos haven't had since Shannon Sharpe. That's the guy whom Broncos envisioned when they drafted the former college basketball player in 2011, but had yet to see because of two injury-plagued years.
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After the way Thomas played Thursday, opposing defenses might be just as concerned with covering him as they are with receivers Welker, Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker.
"I am not sure how they will answer, or if they will, but it will be interesting to see how teams play Julius all season. He is a big guy, he definitely will make teams have a conversation," Manning said. "You want guys that make teams have the discussion, 'How are we going to handle this guy?'"
The Ravens had no answer. On his first touchdown, a 24-yarder in the first quarter, he found yards of open space behind a pair of linebackers, and was untouched by safety James Ihedigbo at the goal line. On the second touchdown, Thomas blew past the Ravens' other safety, Michael Huff, then spun away from an attempted tackle by Ihedigbo on his way to the end zone.
It appeared the Ravens underestimated just how speedy the 6-foot-5, 250-pound Thomas was, and how hard he would be to tackle.
"He's a fast guy, for how big he is," said Broncos tight end Virgil Green. "A lot of people think that as tight ends, we're not that fast. But we've got some 4.5 [second 40-yard dash] guys in that room. We take a lot of pride in our speed and getting open. Julius does a great job of watching film and knowing what the defense is going to do, and all of that stuff helps you out when you're out there."
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Thomas shouldn't have snuck up on the Ravens after leading the Broncos in receiving in the preseason. But those games didn't count, and Thomas, despite being in his third season, still has so little game experience.
Thursday wasn't Thomas' debut, but it might as well have been. He had only catch, for five yards, in the second game of his rookie season in 2011. As he was tackled by a Cincinnati Bengals defender after the catch just in front of the Broncos' sideline, Thomas mangled his left ankle so badly that Denver coach John Fox thought the leg must have been broken.
It wasn't, though Fox said Friday that Thomas might have recovered more quickly from a fracture than he did from the severe high ankle sprain that eventually needed to be surgically repaired in April 2012. As he slogged through his rehab, Thomas dropped down the depth chart last season behind Joel Dreessen, Jacob Tamme and Green, and was inactive for the Broncos' final 13 games, including the playoff loss to the Ravens.
"It's one of those things that happens in life that kind of changes who you are," Thomas said. "To spend a year and two weeks trying to get back to where you left off, having setbacks, trying to find a way back on the field, then having to watch all of last season. That's something I'm never going to forget."
Yet through those two trying seasons, time when it would have been somewhat understandable had either the Broncos or Thomas given up, Fox never forgot about the potential Thomas flashed in his one year of college football at Portland State and during his rookie training camp after the Broncos selected him with a fourth-round pick in 2011.
And Thomas never stopped dreaming about not just earning a spot on the game-day roster, but about scoring touchdowns.
"I definitely saw myself in the end zone. I saw myself making plays. That's why I pushed myself so hard to get back, because I felt like I had the ability to do it. I just wanted to have the feeling of being able to contribute and do something to help this team out," Thomas said. "In your head, you see yourself making plays, so to not be able to go out on the field and do it is tough. It's just a surreal moment for me. I'm just happy to be back playing football."
Thomas' emergence will also force the Broncos to be creative with their other tight ends. Thomas already has leap-frogged Tamme on the depth chart, and is going to make it difficult for the Broncos to give the starting job back to Dreessen whenever he is cleared to return from the knee issues that kept him out of the preseason. Dreessen, the Broncos' best blocking tight end, will make $2.5 million this year in the second year of a three-year contract.
Thomas, by comparison, is a bargain, with a salary of just $555,000.
"With the Joel Dreessen injury, one door closes and other door opens," Fox said. "In Julius' case, he got a lot of those reps in the preseason, in practice, and I think it accelerated his growth. It's unfortunate for Joel, but it's been fortunate for Julius."
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