The Denver Broncos could be a team looking to make big moves this offseason.
Though two teams are still alive and preparing for the biggest game of the season, the rest of the league is already making plans for how to be in the best possible position come this time next season.
The Denver Broncos have already made one big move, hiring Nathaniel Hackett as the man to replace Vic Fangio as head coach. But as evidenced by this year’s Los Angeles Rams, sometimes you have to make some splash moves.
Broncos have plenty of capital to make big moves before 2022 season.
In order to reach Super Bowl LVI, the Rams made the following transactions this season.
- Acquired QB Matthew Stafford from the Detroit Lions in exchange for Jared Goff (a former No.1 overall pick), a 2021 third-round pick and first-round picks in 2022 and 2023.
- Acquired RB Sony Michel from the New England Patriots for fifth and sixth-round picks in 2022.
- Acquired LB Von Miller from the Denver Broncos in exchange for second and third-round picks in 2022.
- Signed Odell Beckham to a one-year deal three days after he was released by the Cleveland Browns.
Of course, it should also be mentioned that the Rams traded two first-round picks and a fourth-round pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars in order to get cornerback Jalen Ramsey on their squad.
This is not to say that the Broncos should give up all or most of their picks in the upcoming draft, per se, but the team may have the ammunition needed to make a big deal or two happen.
So what kind of ammo do the Broncos have? This is typically referred to as capital and the more of it a team has at its disposal, the better chance it will have of getting the attention of a team looking to sell.
Recently, Kevin Seifert of ESPN used a unique formula to help rank the capital of each of the 32 teams in the league. The Broncos came in at No. 3 on that list (ESPN+ subscription required).
Capital, in this case, was based on what a team had in terms of its first-round pick as well as its current available salary-cap space.
For the second year in a row, the Broncos will have the No. 9 overall pick in the draft. With the amount of available cap space they are looking at, only the Jacksonville Jaguars and New York Jets ranked higher on this list. However, Denver is likely a much more desirable destination than those two spots.
The Broncos will have the ability to make some moves this offseason in terms of attracting highly sought-after free agents and/or making a big trade. The move most will talk about is the potential of acquiring Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
.@ShannonSharpe on the Broncos hiring Packers OC Nathaniel Hackett as next head coach:
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) January 27, 2022
"It looks more and more likely that Aaron Rodgers is going to the Broncos. You're going to want to go somewhere where you have some input in the offense. I like my chances." pic.twitter.com/IKjhHR4lZg
Though this idea was quite popular last season, it will gain even more steam in the weeks and months to soon follow. The Broncos have even more capital to make this move than they did last year. This includes the extra second and third-round pick they acquired from the Miller trade referenced above.
With several teams strapped for cap space and others not even having a first-round pick, the Broncos can take advantage and make a lot of noise before the 2022 season kicks off.