They thought that the 5'10", 182-pound Virginia Tech graduate was more suited to be a punt returner because of his quickness.
"I didn't want to be labeled as just a return guy," the second round selection said. "I knew I was more than that."
Through just five games, Royal is making the experts and opposing secondaries look foolish.
He already has accumulated 321 receiving yards, averaged 10.7 yards a reception and hauled in 30 catches -- none bigger than the two he made in his second NFL start.
It was the Broncos' home opener in the altitude-friendly confines of Invesco Field at Mile High, which turned into a high-scoring affair with the San Diego Chargers.
Down 38-31, the Broncos reached the one-yard line with under a minute remaining in the fourth quarter.
Their fortunes seemed to fade as quarterback Jay Cutler coughed up the ball to an opposing Chargers defender, but referee Ed Hochuli erroneously and, moments later, admittedly blew the play dead.
It was a disastrous call for the Chargers and a blessing for the Broncos -- especially for Royal.
Two plays after the controversial sequence, Cutler found Royal in the middle of the end zone for a four-yard touchdown with just 29 seconds left. That made the score 38-37 in favor of San Diego.
Head coach Mike Shanahan immediately held up two fingers. Despite needing just a simple extra point to tie the game and more than likely send it to overtime, Denver instead attempted a two-point conversion that would ultimately determine the outcome.
The decision surprised most, but not Royal and his team.
"I wasn't shocked that we went for two," he said. "That was our mindset. We wanted to go for two. We talked about that even before we got the ball. I was prepared for that."
Royal ran the same route, and the play ended with the same result.
Cutler's pass split three San Diego defenders, landing in Royal's hands to give Denver a 39-38 lead.
"It was a play that we had practiced a lot," Royal said. "We had been going over that play and that situation, and it just so happened to work."
They would hold that lead for the remaining time and advance to 2-0 on the young season.
Although Royal's dramatic catch against the Bolts may be his most memorable moment of 2008, it certainly wasn't the best performance of his already stellar rookie campaign.
That came in his regular season debut on Monday Night Football on the road against the AFC West rival Oakland Raiders. The Broncos' top wide receiver, Brandon Marshall, was suspended for violating the league's code of conduct -- expanding Royal's role even greater.
But the magnitude of the moment didn't faze him.
"I don't really get nervous before a game,"
Royal said. "It's more of an anxious feeling. I'm ready to get out there and play."
And as his performance indicated, he stepped in and stepped up nicely as Cutler's main target in Denver's 41-14 rout of the Raiders.
Royal was utilized early, touching the ball three times -- twice on running plays -- in the first four plays from scrimmage. To cap off the opening drive, he produced the first score of the Broncos' season and the first of his career. Cutler rolled out on third down and threw to Royal in the right side of the end zone for a 26-yard touchdown.
"The coaches did a good job getting the ball into my hands and letting me make plays," he said. "It was a good game plan that we had for Oakland; I just wanted to come out and be successful in my first game."
Royal caught three more passes on a Broncos scoring drive in the second quarter, one that ended in a touchdown run by running back Michael Pittman. He also drew a pair of unnecessary roughness penalties from fifth-year cornerback and fellow Hokie-alum DeAngelo Hall, who was defending Royal for a majority of the evening.
The rookie, however, maintained his composure.
"We've got a lot of confidence in Eddie," Shanahan said. "I don't look at him as a rookie ... He's been doing it very consistently in practice, so that's why he got the opportunity to do it in the game ... He handles himself like he's a five-year vet."
Royal finished the game with nine catches for 146 yards, a week one high. It was the best premiere by a Broncos rookie wide out since Rick Upchurch garnered 153 yards against the Kansas City Chiefs in 1975.
His performance also nabbed him the Diet Pepsi Rookie of the Week award.
Not bad for a guy who was the fifth receiver taken in the 2008 NFL Draft.
Royal's rise from relative anonymity to opening week eye-opener surprised many observers, but not the Broncos.
Denver was on the clock with the 42nd selection, and the team had little indecision on who they were taking.
"As soon as we saw Eddie, we knew there was something special here," said Broncos wide receiver coach Jedd Fisch, who was in the draft room with team personnel. "We were all extremely excited to have him. There was no question that he would be an asset to our team."
Royal's name was soon called, and he then received a call from his new head coach.
"I couldn't remember half of it because my mom was screaming so much in the background," Royal said. "He congratulated me and told me that he had a lot of faith in me and that he was looking forward to having me come in and make an impact on the team. I just thanked him and told him I wouldn't let him down."
So far, he's kept his word. Royal was initially selected to immediately contribute as a return man, with the hope that he would eventually contribute as a wide receiver.
Yet, after becoming the pleasant surprise of mini camps and training camp, he rose up the depth chart to become a starter, ahead of veteran free agents Darrell Jackson and Keary Colbert.
Royal has been lauded by the coaching staff for his work ethic and his ability to pick up the nuances of the game so quickly -- showing that he has speed in more ways than one.
"He was really ahead of the curve," Fisch said. "His ability to grasp the offense was incredible."
Royal became a quick learner through his study of the playbook, listening to the input of his older teammates and his own play on the field.
Royal also used the skills he learned when he was in Blacksburg -- mainly the fundamentals of being a receiver.
"It's the little things that are magnified up here," Royal said. "You've got to always run your route, you've got to look the ball all the way in. A tough catch in college is a routine catch in the NFL."
Royal made the tough seem routine during his four seasons for the Hokies -- making his early success in Denver no surprise to his former coach.
"I'm not surprised at all," said Tech wide receivers coach Kevin Sherman. "Eddie's always worked to get to this point in his life. We've always known he had a great skill set and explosion and big play capability."
Royal finished his Tech career as the program's career leader in all-purpose yards, with 4,686.
Those yards came through both his receiving and his special teams work.
Royal's quick impact on the next level isn't just something he established in the NFL -- he made an efficient transition to the college game, too.
As a freshman in 2004, the former Westfield High School star shined immediately. He led the team with 28 catches for 470 yards and three touchdowns.
Royal also averaged 28.8 and 11 yards on kick and punt returns, respectively. In his first collegiate start, he scored the game's first touchdown against Western Michigan.
Royal played a hand in two Atlantic Coast Conference championships -- the first in 2004, the second last year.
In 2007, he became the conference's all-time leader in punt-return yards. He also totaled four touchdowns and averaged 15 yards a catch with a senior-laden receiving group.
Royal was just one member of a stellar Hokie draft class that included linebacker Xavier Adibi and offensive lineman Duane Brown of the Houston Texans, receiver Josh Morgan of the San Francisco 49ers and cornerback Brandon Flowers of the Chiefs.
The Broncos play the Chiefs twice a season because both reside in the AFC West. Royal and Flowers had their first post-graduation football reunion in Arrowhead Stadium on Sept. 28.
"We've been talking all year and all preseason and keeping a close eye on one another. It was good to go out and play against him," Royal said.
Royal was the leading receiver -- with nine catches and 104 yards -- in the Broncos' first loss of the season.
In his most recent game, at home against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Royal had three receptions before leaving the game with a sprained ankle which occurred while returning a punt.
However, the injury does not appear to be serious. According to reports, X-rays of Royal's ankle showed no fracture. If true, it would be a sigh of relief for Denver, ranked second in the league in passing yardage and overall offense.
One reason for the aerial show in Denver is because of Royal and the players around him.
Royal and Brandon Marshall complement each other. While Royal is able to run past defenders with his speed, the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Marshall -- who caught 102 passes for 1,325 yards in 2007 -- has the ability to run over them.
Cutler's more than 1,500 yards and 10 touchdowns are thanks in part to the trust he's established with his wideouts.
"It's crucial," he said. "It's everything. He's got to trust that you're going to be open. You've got to trust that he's going to throw it in the right spot at the right time and you've got to know that you can make plays for him."
The Denver coaching staff and players already have plenty of trust in their newest wide receiver, mainly because Royal's taken advantage of the chances presented to him -- heeding the advice of Sherman.
"Get up front, be seen, and take advantage of your opportunities," Sherman said. "If you take advantage of your opportunities, they're going to keep calling on you."
Royal is well on pace to shatter the franchise record for most catches by a rookie -- 51, set by Vance Johnson in 1985.
This season, Royal has more catches for more yards than the four receivers drafted ahead of him -- combined. It seems as if the Broncos got quite a catch themselves.
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