John Elway said the Broncos “were not hell bent" on trading Demaryius Thomas, but the bottom line is they simply want Courtland Sutton to play more. And sitting at 3-5 at the season’s halfway point, Elway said the time is now.

Sutton leads the Broncos wide receivers with a 19.1 yards-per-catch average and has already proven himself to be a difficult matchup for opposing defensive backs, especially in contested-pass situations. Recently Broncos coach Vance Joseph summed up the reason to throw the ball Sutton’s way with “it’s either a big play down the field or a penalty on the guy who’s covering him."

Related players: DaeSean Hamilton, Tim Patrick

While all the hype is obviously around Sutton, and with good reason, he should get a huge boost in fantasy value with the departure of Thomas, but, guys like Hamilton and Patrick also have a chance to see increased playing time.

In the moments after Sunday’s 30-23 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, a plainly frustrated Demaryius Thomas put the odds at "50-50" that he will be traded in the coming days.

“How would you feel at your job [if] your boss, whoever, said they wanted you someplace else?" Thomas said. “And you come into work every day and have to think about it? How would you feel? But I had to do it for my team, like it was normal, act like it was normal. It just kept coming up, from left and right … I had to think about it … It’ll be interesting to see what happens in next couple days."

Related players: Courtland Sutton

Thomas is second on the team in receptions (36) and receiving yards (402) and tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns (three) this season. But his hefty salary-cap figure for 2019 -- $17.533 million in what is the last year of his deal -- and the emergence of the rookie Sutton as a big-play threat have raised the possibility of Thomas being shipped elsewhere. The story mentioned the Patriots and Eagles as possible destinations. If Thomas is moved, Sutton would become a must-own, and it's probably worth stashing him as soon as possible if he's still on your wire.

NFL teams have no obligation to disclose injury information during the preseason. The Broncos opted to do so on Saturday night, in connection with the fact that veteran receiver Demaryius Thomas did not play.

“He’s got a sore wrist,” coach Vance Joseph told reporters after the game. “It happened in practice I think on Thursday and he couldn’t go tonight.”

Related players: Courtland Sutton, DaeSean Hamilton, Carlos Henderson

The story went on to speculate Thomas could end up being the subject of trade talks, mostly because the team has a group of very young receivers in Sutton, Hamilton and Henderson they seem to feel pretty good about. The injury doesn't appear to be serious.

Denver’s 2017 third-round NFL Draft pick Carlos Henderson has missed the entirety of training camp while on the “Did Not Report” list with a personal family issue. Henderson, who tallied 1,535 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior at Louisiana Tech, was already on thin ice after missing part of the offseason program with a hamstring injury.

“He’s got to get back on the field if he wants to make this football team,” Broncos coach Vance Joseph said at the time.

Then, after training camp practice Thursday, Joseph was asked if he had an update on Henderson.

“None,” Joseph said. That was it.

Related players: Demaryius Thomas, Emmanuel Sanders, Courtland Sutton and DaeSean Hamilton, Corey Brown, Bryce Bobo, Mark Chapman, John Diarse, River Cracraft, Isaiah McKenzie, Tim Patrick, Jordan Leslie

Of course Thomas, Sanders, Sutton and Hamilton are locks to make the roster, the story said. It's one of the more talented, crowded positions on the team, the story added. Henderson could still make the practice squad even if he doesn't report back in time to make the 53-man roster, especially considering a third-round pick is a valuable asset to spend.

NFL.com's James Palmer reports that the number three wide receiver job for the Broncos appears to belong to rookie Courtland Sutton. Denver's veteran cornerbacks told Palmer, "He is the third receiver. It's not even a competition. Everyone on this team knows it."

This is to be expected after the Broncos spent a second-round draft selection on Sutton this spring, but it is good to see him showing out enough early in camp to receive such praise from members of the defense. While Denver has implied that they would like to run the ball this season, they have the personnel for a surprisingly good spread attack. Sutton may have more value than fantasy owners think, being drafted outside of the top 75 wideouts in redraft leagues.