Denver Broncos: 9 tight ends the team could acquire for depth

6. OJ Howard (Buccaneers, trade)

Although he was limited to just four games last year, OJ Howard has big-time talent and was one of my personal favorite prospects in the entire 2017 NFL Draft class.

In his first three NFL seasons, Howard showed off that potential with 15.5 yards per reception and 12 touchdowns on 94 receptions. He’s excellent as an in-line blocker and has explosive speed and YAC abilities.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven’t exactly shown that they’re looking for salary cap relief with all of the big moves they have made in 2021 to keep the Super Bowl band back together, and having OJ Howard in the fold for an entire season along with Rob Gronkowski and Cameron Brate would certainly be a fun luxury.

With that being said, trading Howard would give the Buccaneers more than $6 million in cap relief and would give the Denver Broncos a former first-round pick to try and put with their other ultra-athletic tight ends Noah Fant and Albert Okwuegbunam.

At 6-foot-6, 251 pounds, Howard ran a 4.51 in the 40-yard dash and has shown that explosive vertical speed throughout his time in the league.

With as many 3WR sets as the Buccaneers utilize and how often Gronkowski is going to be on the field, perhaps Howard would be available to a team needing depth like the Denver Broncos for the right price.