Broncos Trade Candidates

[Winder23]

One thing George Paton said in one of his post draft pressers caught my attention. Mike Klis mentioned something about not having the “ten” draft picks he likes having headed into the draft. Paton said he will have more than five picks in 2023, “I promise you that.”

That being said, I was looking at the roster to see how he might accomplish just that. Basically trading away players is the only way at this point. These are some of my trade candidates and what they could possibly fetch in return. 

Lloyd Cushenberry 4th-6th We have talked about Cush not being a fit.  Injuries in camps will likely create a need somewhere.  I would be fine with the Broncos relying on Glasgow and Wattenberg at the pivot with Meinerz as an emergency option.

Malik Reed 4th-6th The Broncos will go into camp with Chubb, Gregory, Bonitto, Browning, Cooper, and Reed as their top six OLB’s. They also have Aaron Patrick who was identified by ST coach as a core special teams player. You can never have enough edge defenders, but I’m not sure there will a spot for Malik by the end of camp.

Michael Ojemudia 5th-7th I myself am an Ojemudia fan, but there are a lot of fresh faces in the CB room. I could see a scenario where he is dealt in August if the new guys really step up.

Brett Rypien 6th-7th This is a long shot, but Rypien would be a good backup for some team.  I doubt that the Broncos keep three QB’s on active roster and Rypien was a hot commodity on the PS in September with teams looking to poach him.  
 

Tim Patrick 2nd-3rd Most people will shoot this one down immediately.  That being said, there is only one football to throw around.  If Court is healthy and Jeudy can start to blossom under Russ, this might make sense from a roster management position.  Patrick could easily go somewhere else and be a solid 2nd receiver. 
 

What are some of your trade options?

Edited May 9, 2022 by Winder23

[Cutler06]

Good topic. I think there are some bigger options out there as well, wouldn't be surprised to see Chubb on the market, especially is we can get a good return (unlikely if we in a playoff hunt). We also have a glut of IOL, have also heard Muti isn't a great fit for our scheme either. 

[broncos67]

I think a lot of the above is sort of overvaluing our players, personally. No one is giving up a pick for Brett Rypien. No one is giving up a pick for Ojemudia. There's a small chance, I suppose, of Reed/Cushenberry going for a late Day 3 pick, but even that is a little bit of wishful thinking, IMO. The Broncos are not trading Tim Patrick either. They have young, cost-controlled WRs and just traded a ton of high picks for a QB. They're not going to deplete the WR room for no reason.

I think Paton's hope of 10+ picks is nice in theory, but we have to accept that for 2023, it's probably not going to happen. Clearly Denver is more of a contender than past seasons, so trading depth players doesn't really seem to jive with that belief. I actually think it's more likely we trade one of our 3rds this year at the deadline if there's an impactful player available as opposed to anything else.

[lomaxgrUK]

27 minutes ago, broncos67 said:

I think a lot of the above is sort of overvaluing our players, personally. No one is giving up a pick for Brett Rypien. No one is giving up a pick for Ojemudia. There's a small chance, I suppose, of Reed/Cushenberry going for a late Day 3 pick, but even that is a little bit of wishful thinking, IMO. The Broncos are not trading Tim Patrick either. They have young, cost-controlled WRs and just traded a ton of high picks for a QB. They're not going to deplete the WR room for no reason.

I think Paton's hope of 10+ picks is nice in theory, but we have to accept that for 2023, it's probably not going to happen. Clearly Denver is more of a contender than past seasons, so trading depth players doesn't really seem to jive with that belief. I actually think it's more likely we trade one of our 3rds this year at the deadline if there's an impactful player available as opposed to anything else.

Completely agree.

What you've got to remember for all of those players mentioned is that they are all on very short deals. The NFL isn't like the NBA where that is attractive to suitors - it's a negative, unless it's a very good player that you are certain is going to sign to a long term deal (think we can all agree that isn't the case here).

The other scenario where trades tend to happen are where there is little guaranteed money left but at least a couple of years on the contract. Again, that doesn't apply here.

If we really strike gold with 2 of Cooper, Bonitto or a UDFA, then maybe Reed gets dealt for a late round pick to an NFC contender. I just can't see anyone doing that deal though.

[Winder23]

7 hours ago, lomaxgrUK said:

Completely agree.

What you've got to remember for all of those players mentioned is that they are all on very short deals. The NFL isn't like the NBA where that is attractive to suitors - it's a negative, unless it's a very good player that you are certain is going to sign to a long term deal (think we can all agree that isn't the case here).

The other scenario where trades tend to happen are where there is little guaranteed money left but at least a couple of years on the contract. Again, that doesn't apply here.

If we really strike gold with 2 of Cooper, Bonitto or a UDFA, then maybe Reed gets dealt for a late round pick to an NFC contender. I just can't see anyone doing that deal though.

We got a 5th and a 7th for Trinity Benson last year and a 6th for Kary Vincent Jr after drafting him in the 7th. So I’m not sure why you say they are over valued. I don’t expect them to get ten picks, but Paton will certainly make some moves.  And teams rent players for a season all the time. It’s not like the old NFL you are referring to. 

[broncosfan_101]

Muti and Reed, could certainly see those guys go for late rounders. A couple guys not yet mentioned who I think other teams could take flyers on are Seth Williams and Jamar Johnson. Both guys were great value picks in 2021 who seem to be up against a serious roster crunch with us. 

[Cutler06]

10 hours ago, broncosfan_101 said:

Muti and Reed, could certainly see those guys go for late rounders. A couple guys not yet mentioned who I think other teams could take flyers on are Seth Williams and Jamar Johnson. Both guys were great value picks in 2021 who seem to be up against a serious roster crunch with us. 

Would hate to see either  young guy go, I for one would really like to see what Seth has in the tank.  Really thought he'd take over for Patrick (who I thought we could get some trade value out of). And after last year's draft, some some experts higher on JJ than on Caden, seems like something going on there to give up on a draft pick already.

[broncosfan_101]

8 hours ago, Cutler06 said:

Would hate to see either  young guy go, I for one would really like to see what Seth has in the tank.  Really thought he'd take over for Patrick (who I thought we could get some trade value out of). And after last year's draft, some some experts higher on JJ than on Caden, seems like something going on there to give up on a draft pick already.

I really liked Johnson in the draft, but he’s not exactly a guy that likes to get grimy in the box, which makes me think (although I’m not certain) that he wouldn’t rate very highly on special teams. As a 4th-string safety at best, you’ve gotta be a significant player in the kicking game to make the roster. As a 2-deep guy though, his coverage skills were incredible at Indiana. 
 

And I also loved the Williams pick, but he’s behind Court, Jeudy, and Patrick for sure. He’s most likely behind Hamler (another low key trade candidate?). Montrell Washington is almost a lock to make the roster as a KR/PR/WR, and Tyrie Cleveland was mentioned as a core special teamer, as well. And then there’s guys like Hinton and Fulgham…all told, he’s likely fighting for the 7th spot on a depth chart that will probably only go 6 deep. The calculus would absolutely change if Hamler looks good returning kicks and the team thinks they could sneak Montrell onto the practice squad, but returning kicks so soon after an ACL tear? I don’t see it. 

[paul-mac]

You have to look at talented guys who aren’t going to make the team, and maybe you get a 7th rounder for them. Patrick isn’t getting traded. We signed him to a large contract knowing that we had Jeudy, Sutton and Hamler. Paton clearly sees this as a 4 WR team.

 

Reed and Cushenberry are guys with a decent amount of starting experience so maybe someone gives up a pick for them, but then again, is a 7th round pick really worth it for losing a decent backup player?

 

Rypien, Muti and Jamar Johnson are very borderline roster players. No one is giving up a pick for them when they can probably just wait and get them after they get cut. At best you might get a conditional 7th rounder or a swap of roster bubble players. I wouldn’t be shocked if all 3 end up on the practice squad.

 

Ojemudia is a guy who potentially has a bit of value but I think we likely hold on to him given that he showed promise in his rookie year and Darby is very cuttable after this season. Won’t be shocked if he’s our 2nd outside corner in 2023. 

[broncos67]

3 hours ago, paul-mac said:

You have to look at talented guys who aren’t going to make the team, and maybe you get a 7th rounder for them. Patrick isn’t getting traded. We signed him to a large contract knowing that we had Jeudy, Sutton and Hamler. Paton clearly sees this as a 4 WR team.

 

Reed and Cushenberry are guys with a decent amount of starting experience so maybe someone gives up a pick for them, but then again, is a 7th round pick really worth it for losing a decent backup player?

 

Rypien, Muti and Jamar Johnson are very borderline roster players. No one is giving up a pick for them when they can probably just wait and get them after they get cut. At best you might get a conditional 7th rounder or a swap of roster bubble players. I wouldn’t be shocked if all 3 end up on the practice squad.

 

Ojemudia is a guy who potentially has a bit of value but I think we likely hold on to him given that he showed promise in his rookie year and Darby is very cuttable after this season. Won’t be shocked if he’s our 2nd outside corner in 2023. 

Agree with all of this, except Ojemudia. I sincerely doubt he's even on this team next year. I'm not sure he'll even be on the team this year to be quite honest.

[paul-mac]

59 minutes ago, broncos67 said:

Agree with all of this, except Ojemudia. I sincerely doubt he's even on this team next year. I'm not sure he'll even be on the team this year to be quite honest.

 

Ojemudia was actually pretty good as a rookie, then he got hurt last year and didn't do much. But he's certainly one of the better 4th corner backs in the league.

[lomaxgrUK]

On 5/10/2022 at 10:02 PM, Winder23 said:

We got a 5th and a 7th for Trinity Benson last year and a 6th for Kary Vincent Jr after drafting him in the 7th. So I’m not sure why you say they are over valued. I don’t expect them to get ten picks, but Paton will certainly make some moves.  And teams rent players for a season all the time. It’s not like the old NFL you are referring to. 

Re: Benson - we actually gave up a 6th too, so the trade worked out as a late 6th/early 7th. He had a very small cap hit and was therefore a low risk move for the Lions, although most were surprised we were able to get anything for him.

Vincent was signed to a 4 year deal with Denver having paid all of the guaranteed money. Therefore, the Eagles now have him on a 3 year deal with no guarantees, hence why we were able to trade him (clearly the Eagles liked him in the draft process, too). None of the guys suggested as trade candidates fit that profile.

I just can't see any vets on our team fetching draft capital; certainly not the vets we'd be willing to trade.

If we get another late round/UDFA guy that is in their 1st or 2nd year that kills it in the preseason at a deep position (WR, Safety perhaps), then they would be late round trade candidates perhaps.

[Cutler06]

WR Jerry Jeudy getting arrested, can't speak of the incident but could increase the chances of getting traded IMO 

Edited May 12, 2022 by Cutler06

[Broncofan]

1 hour ago, Cutler06 said:

WR Jerry Jeudy getting arrested, can't speak of the incident but could increase the chances of getting traded IMO 

Eh, it's a total nothing burger.  I remember this happened with another Bronco who had a late custody payment or some other misdemeanor issue, as soon as there is ANY domestic crime accusation, even if it's minor - there is ZERO choice, there has to be an arrest & booking without bail.  There is no choice in the matter.  That's why Jeudy got arrested. 

From the Sheriff's office, though, there's extreme clarity on what went down:

 

That's the Sheriff's office spokesperson, to be clear.    Pretty easy to see the allegation is pretty minor.   And before any more wild baseless accusations get thrown around, the Sheriff's office went one step further:

And, again, for those who aren't aware about Colorado law regarding arrests:

When the Sheriff's Office gives that kind of clarity on the nature of the accusations, stressed no violence at all, and ppl understand Colorado's law gives no choice on arrest without bond, pretty easy to see this isn't going anywhere.      TBH, it seems extreme, but it basically protects victims of DV by removing the accused in all cases.  No chances of favoritism, etc.   The flip side is every once in a while, the person in this kind of minor situation is booked and can't be released.   Overall, the benefit in protecting victims of violence outweighs the inconvenience in situations like Jeudy's.

Make no mistake, DV is a serious problem and should be treated seriously.    This clearly isn't that situation with Jeudy.   It's a total nothing burger in this case.   Don't see it having any impact.   

Edited May 13, 2022 by Broncofan

[Winder23]

12 hours ago, lomaxgrUK said:

Re: Benson - we actually gave up a 6th too, so the trade worked out as a late 6th/early 7th. He had a very small cap hit and was therefore a low risk move for the Lions, although most were surprised we were able to get anything for him.

Vincent was signed to a 4 year deal with Denver having paid all of the guaranteed money. Therefore, the Eagles now have him on a 3 year deal with no guarantees, hence why we were able to trade him (clearly the Eagles liked him in the draft process, too). None of the guys suggested as trade candidates fit that profile.

I just can't see any vets on our team fetching draft capital; certainly not the vets we'd be willing to trade.

If we get another late round/UDFA guy that is in their 1st or 2nd year that kills it in the preseason at a deep position (WR, Safety perhaps), then they would be late round trade candidates perhaps.

That fifth for Benson was an early fifth so the return was still really good for a guy who had done absolutely nothing. Despite a sixth in addition to. 
 

Vincent’s guarantees were a mere $100k so really quite insignificant to the trade. 
 

Cush and OJ still have two seasons in their deals. Someone could find them more useful than the Broncos do for a late round pick.

As for Malik Reed a trade could still be advantageous despite the one year deal. It’s not like he’s a chump. Has 13 sacks the last two years. 

My initial point being you never know who is going to value someone more than others. Injuries are a certainty so it all really depends on supply and demand. 

Paton likes to make deals so if their is opportunity he will exploit it.