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Denver Broncos: Potential Trade Targets with the Carolina Panthers

By Chandler Hyler

DENVER, CO - JANUARY 24: College football player Christian McCaffrey of the Stanford Cardinal looks on from the sideline in the AFC Championship game between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on January 24, 2016 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - JANUARY 24: College football player Christian McCaffrey of the Stanford Cardinal looks on from the sideline in the AFC Championship game between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on January 24, 2016 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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Denver Broncos
DENVER, CO – JANUARY 24: College football player Christian McCaffrey of the Stanford Cardinal looks on from the sideline in the AFC Championship game between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on January 24, 2016 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

Heading into the offseason, George Paton knew he had to make some upgrades to the Denver Broncos roster, whether it come through the draft, free agency, or through trade. If Paton wants to deal with the Carolina Panthers, who would he potentially target?

Wow, that is a great photoshop, right?

For the ones who are not aware, Christian McCaffrey’s father, Ed McCaffrey, played for the Denver Broncos from 1995-2003. During those seasons, he tallied 6,200 receiving yards and 46 touchdowns on 462 receptions.

Ed was also a part of the Denver Broncos teams that won back-to-back Super Bowls in the late 1990s. Christian was born in 1996, shortly before Ed became a Super Bowl Champion. As a Castle Rock native, Christian grew up with the Denver Broncos.

Denver Broncos trade target with Panthers: Christian McCaffrey, RB

When he entered the draft in 2017, many Broncos fans were pounding the table for CMC, but he simply did not last as the Carolina Panthers snagged him with the 8th overall pick. It would’ve been a storybook ending to the McCaffrey journey as both father and son could have rocked the orange and blue.

Since he entered the league, McCaffrey has been on a level of his own. He has 357 receptions for 3,015 yards to go along with 17 receiving touchdowns. That’s just half of his game, he also has amassed 3,587 rushing yards and 30 touchdowns on the ground.

Christian McCaffrey in his five years in the league has more total receptions than Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick combined. He also had more total touchdown receptions than Sutton and Jerry Jeudy combined, so while the Denver Broncos do not have a dire need at the running back position, CMC is more than just a running back.

However, he does have downfalls as all of this early production has put a damper on his durability and ability to stay on the field. In the past two seasons combined, he has played in just ten total games, but maybe this break can help get him back to where his body needs to be.

It’s also known around town that the Denver Broncos have one of the best guys around to handle situations like this in Mario Vetanze.

McCaffrey does have a frightening contract for a running back, so to smooth that concern with his health, I would seek a restructure or ask the Carolina Panthers to eat some of his financials, as they did with Teddy Bridgewater last season.

It has always been my biggest belief that you can never have enough playmakers on the field, adding a dual-threat weapon like McCaffrey would provide a great security blanket for Drew Lock, or whoever the Denver Broncos quarterback is in 2022.

Having a 1-2 punch of Javonte Williams and Christian McCaffrey would be lethal and would be the quarterback’s best friend, whoever that may be.

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