Denver Broncos: Why an Antonio Brown trade makes sense

1. Antonio Brown is the best WR in football

You could split hairs here and say you prefer DeAndre Hopkins of the Houston Texans or Michael Thomas of the New Orleans Saints but the fact of the matter is, Antonio Brown has been the best wide receiver in football for the majority of the past decade.

He averages 13.4 yards per catch for his career and has hovered within about a yard of that number every year except for 2016 when he had 15.2 yards per catch.

This past season — distractions and all — Brown set a career-high with 15 touchdown catches. He may be 30 years old but he’s not slowing down at all when it comes to on-field performance.

Over the past three seasons, he’s averaging about 11-12 targets per game and rightly so. This is a guy who finds a way to get open and has six straight seasons with more than 100 receptions.

He wins so many different ways as a receiver — quickness, speed, route running, strong hands — and bails out his quarterback by making absolutely unreal catches on a consistent basis. I shouldn’t really need to sell Brown as the best wide receiver in football unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past nine years.

The Broncos have never had a receiver of his caliber in their prime suit up in the orange and blue, all due respect to everyone else who has played in Denver through the years. He’s a special type of talent who changes games.