5 trades the Denver Broncos could make before the roster is set
Denver Broncos trade idea no. 4: TE Albert Okwuegbunam to the New York Giants
Broncos get:
- 2023 4th-round pick
New York Giants get:
- TE Albert Okwuegbunam
I think a lot of people are going to be surprised to see this kind of trade being discussed, but does nobody else find it interesting that Albert Okwuegbunam is the projected TE1 for this team and he’s playing into the fourth quarter of preseason games? Head coach Nathaniel Hackett said that Albert just needs reps out there, but I’m throwing the BS flag on that one.
Albert Okwuegbunam was playing in the 4th quarter.
— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) August 20, 2022
2021 veteran tight ends who saw any snaps in any 4th quarter preseason game last year, ranked by regular season receiving yards
1.Ricky Seals-Jones 271
2.Zach Gentry 167
3.Juwan Johnson 159
4.MyCole Pruitt 145
5.Josh Oliver 66
Why is Okwuegbunam the only starter on the team that needs reps into the fourth quarter? He may not be the only one (although actually, he might be) but he’s certainly the most prominent. We’re not even seeing Alex Singleton out there late in these games.
Typically, if you are playing deep into a preseason game, it’s because the team you’re playing for is putting as much tape out there on you as possible for a potential trade. It occurred to me that the Broncos rather quickly had Greg Dulcich working with the top offense during OTAs and they haven’t been shy about giving players like Eric Saubert looks with the first offense, either.
If not for a hamstring injury, I think Dulcich would be continually making noise as the Broncos’ TE1 but for now, they can’t really commit to that. We’ll see what the next week or so brings.
At the same time, it feels like the Broncos’ tight end position is rather unsettled and it also feels like they could easily justify moving on from Albert Okwuegbunam. Is he playing deep into the preseason because they have not seen from him what they want or need to see? If he really needs that many reps, should we be concerned with him as the projected TE1?
A team like the Giants could definitely use Okwuegbunam as a field stretcher for their offense. If the Broncos did decide to trade him, I think they’d have to get pretty good value in return. As inconsistent as Okwuegbunam has been, you’ve also got a player with unique athletic traits and multiple years left on his rookie deal.