Broncos Get 5th or 6th Round Pick From Rams For Brandon Lloyd

The Brandon Lloyd trade deal was much like a rainstorm. You knew it was coming, but you didn’t know exactly when it would hit. Lloyd packed his bags for St. Louis and didn’t even bother going to Dove Valley for Monday’s practice, the first practice since last Wednesday.

Lloyd was traded to the St. Louis Rams for either a 5th or 6th round draft pick in 2012. If Lloyd has 30 receptions over the course of the Rams’ next 11 games, the Broncos will get a 5th round pick. If he has anything less, they will get a 6th round pick.

Lloyd will try to help the winless Rams last place scoring offense by being a deep threat for promising QB Sam Bradford.

The Broncos have lost one great receiver, but who’s to say that someone else won’t step up and fill his shoes.

People were up in arms when Brandon Marshall was shipped to the Dolphins before the 2010 season. Who was going to going to be the “next man up?” Turns out that Brandon Lloyd emerged in his 8th year to not only lead the Broncos, but lead the entire NFL in receiving yards. It didn’t matter that Marshall was gone. Lloyd was more productive than him and not creating problems on or off the field.

With Lloyd’s departure, many of you think that Eric Decker will lead the team in receiving at the end of the year. However, the Broncos first pick of the 2010 draft, Demaryius Thomas, returns to the practice field this week as does Eddie Royal.

The Broncos are gearing up for a more run-oriented offense, one that John Fox has favored over his years as a head coach. That coupled with a quarterback that is equipped to run and turn broken plays into something has forced the Broncos to make this roster change.

While it was great to see Lloyd making exciting 30+ yard catches, it’s become clear that Decker can do the same thing and he’s got the size to run after the catch.

The Broncos couldn’t win with a pass-heavy offense (see Josh McDaniels’ two years with the team), so let’s see how they do with this new approach.

Make sure to follow Predominantly Orange on Facebook and on Twitter.