ENGLEWOOD – Plenty of folks were surprised last season when Broncos seventh-round pick Devaughn Vele caught 41 passes as a rookie.

The 6-foot-5, 210-pound receiver from Utah wasn’t.

“I don’t worry too much about the outside noise, but for myself I knew what I could bring to the table, and I wanted to bet on myself,’’ Vele said in an interview during training camp at Broncos Park. “I knew I was going to come out every day to prove myself that I can play along with these guys.”

There were 32 wide receivers selected in the 2024 NFL draft ahead of Vele, the No. 235 overall pick, and only eight had more catches than he did as a rookie. Of those eight, six were taken in the first round and two in the second round.

Vele caught 98 passes for 1,288 yards in his final two seasons with the Utes. One reason he fell in the draft was being 26 at the time. He went on a Mormon mission to Samoa before he enrolled at Utah and spent five years in college.

“I’ve always had that label on me, but it doesn’t bother me as much,’’ Vele, now 27, said of his age being used against him. “I know at the end of the day what I’m going to do, what I have to do to make sure I can contribute.”

Vele had 475 yards on 41 receptions despite not playing in four games. He scored three touchdowns and impressed Denver coach Sean Payton with his ability to come down with contested balls.

“He’s strong in traffic,’’ Payton said. “He has good hands, and he’s someone that I think picks things up really quickly. It comes easy for him.”

Vele said his ability to catch balls in traffic is something he long has practiced.

“Just a lot of hard work and a lot of repetition and a lot of film study,’’ he said.

Vele is Denver’s tallest active receiver in training camp on a team that has plenty. With Payton liking big bodies, the Broncos also have 6-4 Courtland Sutton, 6-3 Troy Franklin and 6-3 rookie Pat Bryant.

Sutton is the clear No. 1 receiver after last season, catching 81 passes for 1,081 yards. Battles in training camp and the preseason will determine the pecking order after that, with 5-11 Marvin Mims Jr., a two-time Pro Bowl selection as a returner, also in the mix for significant snaps.

Mims caught 39 passes for 503 yards in 2024 while coming on during the second half of the season. Franklin, taken in the fourth round of the 2024 draft and one of the receivers selected ahead of Vele with less catches as a rookie, had 28 for 263 yards. And Bryant, a third-round pick last April, has been looking good in spring drills and training camp.

“At the end of the day, all of us guys are just trying to find a role on this team, so we’re all coming into practice every single day hungry and ready to prove ourselves,’’ Vele said. “Those rankings (of receivers) really don’t matter to me personally. I just want to make sure I’m doing what I can to be a part of this team and be able to help out whenever I can.”

Vele certainly did that in 2024. Catching balls from fellow rookie Bo Nix, Vele had six games of four or more receptions, including eight in the season opener at Seattle. But Vele suffered a broken rib against the Seahawks and sat out the next four games.

Vele also missed Denver’s mandatory minicamp in June with an excused absence. He declined to say why he wasn’t present.

“Just in-house stuff,’’ he said. “I don’t really want to comment on it. It’s nice to be back, though.”

With two acclimation practices and two days of training camp under his belt in the past week, Vele doesn’t look to have missed a beat. He expects to build upon his impressive rookie year.

“I’m just excited for this next upcoming season, and it’s going to be a good one,’’ he said.