This almost certainly is not the Week 1 situation coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton envisioned in April as they weighed trading up five spots for a player they feared they’d otherwise miss.

Already short on picks, the Broncos brass decided to add to a crowded position group rather than address a short-handed one.

To be sure, Payton and Paton thought Marvin Mims Jr., the speedy wide receiver from Oklahoma, could find a role as a rookie. Four months ago, though, it felt like a pick more for the future than the present.

A talented new player in an expensive, veteran position group. Not quite a luxury pick, but a bit of a splurge.

As the Broncos begin preparations for Las Vegas, Mims’ import already looks much greater.

Suddenly, the Broncos need him.

Suddenly, it feels like Denver’s rookie class might be counted on rather heavily right from the start.

Not just Mims, but third-round linebacker Drew Sanders and undrafted running back Jaleel McLaughlin, too.

Together they represent among the biggest unknowns for this team as a division rival comes to the Front Range to kick off the regular season next Sunday.

The trio runs fast and, by all accounts, learns fast. Injuries put Mims on the fast track. McLaughlin forced his way there and Sanders is a bit of both. They each have bright futures, but at the moment perhaps a more intriguing question is if they can be impact players in the present — despite none of them being top-of-the-draft talent.

“I think as a young player, there’s so many things that are speeding up for you that the whole world feels like it’s spinning faster than it ever has,” said veteran right tackle Mike McGlinchey, the No. 9 overall pick in 2018. “Both in football and, when you’re a rookie in this league, you’re put into a new city that you had no choice in coming to and there’s a lot of life stuff that comes with being a rookie as well.

“The best guys and the most impressionable guys are the ones that put it on the line between the white lines and let the rest take care of itself afterward.”

Each of this Denver three is going to get a shot at moving the needle between the white lines right away.

Here’s how they arrived at this point and where they’re headed this fall.

Mims’ steady rise

The Broncos could name a bunch of different things they liked about Mims when they drafted him. He can play inside or outside. He has return ability. He has a reputation as a smart player.

Speed, though, is his calling card.

“The one thing that I think we found that was different was, a lot of these receivers you felt were in rush hour traffic,” Payton said after picking him. “This was (a guy) that looked like he was driving on Saturday and Sunday. He was open and it was cleaner.

“That’s because of his speed.”

Back in June, veteran receiver Tim Patrick said of Mims, “He’s fast. I can tell you that.”

Mims, though, didn’t get a chance to show it right away. He had injuries to both of his hamstrings through the summer.

Now he’s been on a full workload for the past three weeks or so. Not a moment too soon.

By the time he was off the side field where injured players do conditioning work, Patrick was already lost for the year to an Achilles injury and K.J. Hamler waived with a heart condition. Then Jalen Virgil tore his ACL. Now Jerry Jeudy’s dealing with a hamstring injury that’s not considered major, but could cost him time early in the year.

That leaves Mims, Courtland Sutton and Brandon Johnson healthy on the 53-man roster for now and a quartet of practice squad options.

Thus, it’s go-time for Mims.

In the Broncos’ preseason finale, he ran past Rams defensive back Robert Rochelle, then came back to a throw from Jarrett Stidham for a 50-yard reception through defensive pass interference. In all, his 19 snaps as a receiver and as Denver’s top punt returner doubled as a continued ramp-up and final tune-up before the regular season.

“It made me feel really good,” he said of the preseason finale. “Especially to be home and kind of experience it for the first time, to go out there. No nerves or anything, just go out there and play football. It felt great.

“Going into the season, I’m feeling pretty good.”

Sanders’ unique skill set

After the biggest play of his preseason, Sanders undoubtedly took more grief than congratulations from his veteran teammates.

The rookie inside linebacker intercepted Stetson Bennett last weekend and showed off his athleticism on a 31-yard return, but then allowed the Rams backup quarterback to strip the ball away. Defensive lineman Elijah Garcia made an alert play to pounce on the ball, but nonetheless, he almost certainly heard about it later.

The first part, though, the size, speed, athleticism and awareness, is what has defensive coordinator Vance Joseph and the coaching staff so high on Sanders.

At 6-foot-5 and 233 pounds, Sanders intrigued from the day he was drafted No. 67 overall because of his status as what Payton called “a pressure player.” Also because the Broncos appeared pretty well set at inside linebacker with Josey Jewell, Alex Singleton and Jonas Griffth.

Then Griffith tore his ACL during training camp.

More than that, though, Joseph couldn’t hide his excitement about Sanders as camp progressed. The coordinator said recently that he, “makes a play a day that nobody else can make,” and forecasted yet-under-wraps plans to use him in a variety of ways Denver wouldn’t dare put on preseason tape.

What might that look like in Year 1? Sanders is capable of playing in nickel and dime as either a rusher or a coverage player, meaning he could be moved around quite a bit. Eventually, Payton said in April, Sanders prototypes as a “Mike,” the central nervous system of future defenses. At the moment, though, Justin Strnad is handling the No. 2 “Mike” duties. That appears to be part of the plan to not overload Sanders right away and free him up to do any number of other things.

Jewell said he’s seen progress from the rookie, who is in just his second year playing off the ball after starting his college career at Alabama as an edge rusher.

“Calmness out there,” Jewell assessed. “Just being able to diagnose the plays, see some pullers, understand the plays and understand pre-snap reads, which was a little bit rough because he had played some outside, but yeah, he’s getting better.”

Added Payton after the preseason finale, “The last week and a half, two weeks for him have been good. The second preseason game against San Francisco was good. For a young player, there’s a learning curve and then the confidence starts happening. He’s one of those guys that, right before our eyes we’re seeing gain confidence.”

Paton has seen similar traits for his two top draft picks through their first months in the NFL.

“Obviously, they’re both really talented, but their makeup (is impressive),” the general manager said. “Marvin had the issue with his (hamstrings), and it never phased him. He just kept working and kept working. Both of these guys have tremendous makeup. They can handle just about anything. They were pros when they walked in the door. They’re still learning the game. They’re a ways away, but you just love the makeup.

“They come to work every day. They’re not too high or too low. They’re very steady.”

McLaughlin “the star of camp”

Perhaps nobody on the roster has changed his standing more through sheer force of will than McLaughlin.

The undrafted running back has wowed in just about every way possible over the past three months. He gets to the building at 5 a.m. He makes plays. He’s overcome real adversity for almost his entire life. And he made a run from rookie minicamp to Denver’s No. 3 running back so undeniable that by mid-August Payton knew he’d have to put McLaughlin on the 53-man roster or lose him to another team.

“He passed every test,” Paton added. “From the minute he showed up in rookie minicamp, it wasn’t too big. Then he’s working out with the big boys on varsity and it wasn’t too big. Then we get the pads on and he makes plays every day. We were, really, not surprised.

“We were all looking forward to the first game to see what he could do, and he made plays every game.”

None of this necessarily means he’s going to come out and be Alvin Kamara or Darren Sproles from the start, but there may not be a single person in the Centura Health Training Center who McLaughlin hasn’t thoroughly impressed.

“I’ll tell you what, man, he’s been the star of this camp,” McGlinchey said of McLaughlin, who rushed for 8,166 yards between FCS Youngstown State and Division II Notre Dame College. “I think he’s turned a lot of heads here. It’s one of the coolest stats I’ve ever heard: He leads the NCAA at all levels in career (rushing yards), and you can see why. He’s a fun player to block for and to watch play. You see some things from him on film, some cuts that are like, ‘I don’t even know how he saw that.’ And to get there and then to accelerate through the hole? Jaleel’s going to have a hell of a career, man.

“The way that he works, the teammate that he is. I think I can speak for a lot of the veterans on this team when I say we’ve all been incredibly impressed with Jaleel.”

The Broncos, of course, have Javonte Williams and Samaje Perine at the top of their running back depth chart. Precisely what McLaughlin’s role looks like and how many touches a game he gets remains to be seen, but Payton’s never shied away from using several backs or finding ways to get the ball to playmakers. That’s exactly what McLaughlin’s been so far. He brings an element of speed and quickness the Broncos didn’t have on offense. He may also end up the team’s top kick returner.

Now the next step is here for the Broncos’ rookies. Others may well contribute over the course of the year, from undrafted tight end Nate Adkins to third-round cornerback Riley Moss, who’s nearing a return from core muscle surgery.

But this trio ù Denver’s two top picks and and a small, small-school running back — look set to be counted on right from the start.

“The rookies, it’s tough,” McGlinchey said. “The game speeds up. The decisions speed up. The expectations speed up. And it certainly makes it difficult to be a rookie, but those guys have handled it well.”

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