Pat Bryant

Patrick Bryant II (born December 10, 2002) is an American professional football wide receiver for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Illinois Fighting Illini and was selected by the Broncos in the third round of the 2025 NFL draft.

Early life Bryant attended Atlantic Coast High School in Jacksonville, Florida. During his high school career, he had 128 receptions for 2,261 receiving yards and 23 touchdowns. He committed to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to play college football.

College career

As a true freshman at Illinois in 2021, Bryant had six receptions for 98 yards. As a sophomore in 2022, he started 11 of 12 games and recorded 34 receptions for 453 yards and two touchdowns. As a junior in 2023, he had 43 receptions for 560 yards and seven touchdowns over 12 games and nine starts. Bryant returned to Illinois as the team's number one receiver his senior year in 2024, where he recorded 54 receptions for 984 yards and ten touchdowns over 12 games. In the game at Rutgers, Bryant had a 40-yard game-winning touchdown in the closing seconds of the game. He opted out of the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl so he could prepare for the draft.

Professional career

Bryant was selected by the Denver Broncos in the third round (74th overall) of the 2025 NFL draft.

To begin the season, Bryant saw a minor role in the Broncos' offense. He caught his first career reception in Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts, and scored his first career touchdown on a back-shoulder pass from Bo Nix in Week 8 against the Dallas Cowboys.

As the season progressed, Bryant solidified himself as a regular contributor, posting 292 yards over the next seven games despite only having 86 yards during the first eight games of the season. During a Week 11 victory against the rival Kansas City Chiefs, Bryant recorded a season-high 82 yards on five receptions.

Near the end of the Broncos' Week 16 loss against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Bryant was carted off the field on a back board after taking a hit from cornerback Montaric Brown and subsequently taken to the hospital in an ambulance. It was later determined that Bryant had suffered a concussion, but escaped what was initially feared to have been a major neck injury.

For the remainder of the season, Bryant struggled to stay on the field. During the Divisional Round against the Buffalo Bills, he left the game early with another concussion, and had a similar premature exit in the AFC Championship against the New England Patriots after injuring his hamstring.

NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles GP GS Tgt Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fmb Lost 2025 DEN 15 7 49 31 378 12.2 48 1 0 0 Career 15 7 49 31 378 12.2 48 1 0 0

Postseason Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles GP GS Tgt Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fmb Lost 2025 DEN 2 2 4 4 34 8.5 15 0 0 0 Career 2 2 4 4 34 8.5 15 0 0 0