Aqib Talib for Malcolm Mitchell a possible trade match
The Denver Broncos and New England Patriots are talking trade, and here’s an idea that could work: Aqib Talib for Malcolm Mitchell…
The Denver Broncos are reportedly actively trying to trade cornerback Aqib Talib, and as difficult as it is to accept the fact that he may very likely have played his last game as a Bronco, we can’t ignore the reality of the situation.
Therefore we’re here to explore some of the possibilities. The New England Patriots are most definitely not my preferred destination for Talib, but if that’s the team that makes the best offer, then both teams have already proven they are willing to do business together.
When it was reported that Talib wanted to go to New England and that the Broncos were having talks with the Patriots, I took it upon myself to try and come up with some scenarios.
The Broncos are obviously trying to dump salary in this situation, so trading for more salary wouldn’t make much sense (the idea of Talib for Dwayne Allen and a draft pick crossed my mind).
The Patriots have some free agent linemen that could interest the Broncos (Nate Solder, Cameron Fleming) but obviously the Broncos wouldn’t have to trade for them.
New England also has a league-low six draft picks this year, so what gives? What in the world are they talking about with the Broncos when it comes to a potential Aqib Talib trade?
Here’s my idea:
The Patriots are extremely deep at wide receiver, even with Danny Amendola set to hit free agency. The Broncos have some question marks there in terms of their depth behind Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders.
Because of the Patriots’ depth and the Broncos’ question marks at receiver, this is a move that could make some sense.
Mitchell, a fourth round pick out of Georgia in the 2016 NFL Draft, showed out in his rookie season and was a huge piece of the Patriots’ Super Bowl run that year. He missed the entire 2017 season with a knee issue that apparently the Patriots had been covering up, or not revealing a ton of information about.
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Mitchell said at an event this offseason that he’s feeling great, and hoping to be completely ready to go by the time OTAs start.
New England may prefer to just see what they still have in Mitchell, but some moves they’ve made recently as well as the way their roster is constructed leads me to believe they wouldn’t mind getting a great defensive player in return for Mitchell and a future day three pick.
This would be great value on Talib for the Broncos if Mitchell ends up being healthy. It would give you a legitimate number two type of player to insert into the lineup whenever you decide to move on from Emmanuel Sanders.
For the Patriots, they have to cash in on their title window. Talib helps them accomplish that. They don’t have a fifth round pick this year, and with only six picks in general, they might have to get creative if this is a move they want to make.