By the time the 2022 NFL trade deadline comes along on November 1, the Denver Broncos could look like a much different team. Or, as has typically been the case in previous years, they could look much the same. Although the NFL trade deadline is typically pretty anticlimactic, the Broncos being 2-5 heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars in London has put them at the forefront of many, many trade rumors.
One thing I would bet against, at this point, is the Denver Broncos and general manager George Paton simply doing nothing. There are ways Paton could upgrade his 2023 (or 2024) NFL Draft war chest as well as potentially his current roster, and there are some obvious candidates to be dealt at this point. Approaching the 2022 NFL trade deadline, here are a handful of potential moves that could happen, even though we obviously don’t expect all (or any) of them to.
Denver Broncos 7 possible moves at the 2022 NFL trade deadline
1. Albert Okwuegbunam to the Green Bay Packers for a 6th-round pick
One player I definitely expect the Denver Broncos to trade at some point in the coming days is tight end Albert Okwuegbunam. Do I agree with this idea? Absolutely not, not even with the addition of Greg Dulcich to the lineup in recent weeks.
Okwuegbunam has multiple years of team control left on his contract including this season. The Broncos have seemingly found a way to successfully involve Dulcich in the offense which means there was/is a role that Okwuegbunam could have served as the team’s offense was struggling badly, but the Broncos wouldn’t let him do it. Instead, his role slowly diminished to the point that he’s been a healthy inactive the last couple of weeks.
How is it possible that Pat Shurmur was able to get more production out of Okwuegbunam than this innovative offensive coaching staff? At any rate, perhaps the Green Bay Packers will view Okwuegbunam as a “big WR” type that could play a versatile role for them as their pass-catchers struggle to reel in anything Aaron Rodgers throws their way.
2. Bradley Chubb to the Arizona Cardinals for 2023 1st & 3rd-round picks
Saying goodbye to Bradley Chubb would not be easy for the Denver Broncos. Chubb is the player the Denver Broncos valued so highly in the class of 2018, the passed on Josh Allen to get him. One quick side note on that — Broncos Country has to stop acting like things would have worked out exactly the same with Josh Allen in Denver. Many in the fan base want to see Nathaniel Hackett fired after seven games. Just imagine the treatment Allen would have gotten after his first seven NFL starts…
At any rate, Chubb came into Denver and had an outstanding start to his NFL career under head coach Vance Joseph, who was the primary defensive play-caller at the time as well. In Joseph’s defense, Chubb nearly set the NFL rookie sack record. Although the 2018 season wasn’t memorable for the most positive reasons, at least we got to see a fully healthy Bradley Chubb and Von Miller together that year.
The Arizona Cardinals now employ Joseph as their defensive coordinator. General manager Steve Keim never saw a trade he didn’t like. The Cardinals have made so many moves in the last few years that you might be shocked to know they actually own all their own picks in the top three rounds of the 2023 NFL Draft. I think the bidding war on Chubb — if he is to be traded — will reach beyond just first-round value.
The Broncos get a first and third-round pick back from the Cardinals for a game-changing piece like Chubb. As tough as it would be for the Broncos to trade Chubb away, getting bit-time value for him and moving forward with the quartet of Randy Gregory, Baron Browning, Nik Bonitto, and Jonathon Cooper is something the team would have to seriously consider.
3. Jerry Jeudy to the New York Giants for a 2nd and 4th-round pick
Have the Denver Broncos been readying themselves for a wide receiver trade over the last handful of weeks? Let’s look at some of the evidence that could perhaps be pointing in that direction.
- The team promoted Kendall Hinton to the 53-man roster
- The team signed Trinity Benson to the practice squad
- The team re-signed Brandon Johnson to the practice squad
Given the Broncos currently have seven wide receivers on the 53-man roster and a number of other players waiting in the wings on the practice squad, there could be a move on the horizon. If the Broncos are going to trade Jerry Jeudy, though, they would need to know they are going to be trading this year’s most consistently productive receiver.
Jerry Jeudy hasn’t been the Broncos’ go-to receiver all year — that has been Courtland Sutton — but Jeudy has been more effective on a per-target basis. The Broncos should be getting him the ball more, but unfortunately, we may only get one more game of Jeudy in orange and blue if some team makes the Broncos an offer they can’t refuse before the November 1 trade deadline.
I don’t think Jeudy is going to go for a first-round pick or more like some other receivers have in the last year, but he could definitely net the Broncos a couple of really good picks. The New York Giants are flush with 2023 NFL Draft picks and Joe Schoen (the Giants GM) knows the value of a good wide receiver trade. As a matter of fact, he and George Paton were part of one with the Buffalo Bills and Minnesota Vikings, respectively, when the deal involving Stefon Diggs went down.
Could this be their version of that trade now that they are both in the GM seats?
4. KJ Hamler to the Dallas Cowboys for 4th and 5th-round picks
One player whose name has come up in trade rumors lately is former second-round pick KJ Hamler. If there’s one player whose involvement in the new Nathaniel Hackett offense has been more disappointing than most, it’s Hamler.
Hamler is barely getting one target per week when the Broncos should really be taking at least a couple of shot plays to him every game, not to mention giving him the ball other ways. It just goes to show that right now, the Broncos’ offense is a complete shambles and there’s really nothing to write home about.
The fact that we’re talking about KJ Hamler as a trade candidate right now instead of being one of the breakout players on the roster is both annoying and saddening. But it’s where we are.
The Dallas Cowboys could use some additional depth at the wide receiver position and a player like Hamler could really help that team. Dallas likes to spread the ball around and with Dak Prescott coming back healthy along with Michael Gallup, things are falling into place for the Cowboys.
Acquiring Hamler might not cost the Cowboys a ton in terms of draft compensation and it certainly wouldn’t cost them much in terms of his remaining salary both in 2022 and 2023. If the Cowboys could get Hamler for a couple of Day 3 draft picks, why not try and make this move? He would bring something to that offense that it currently doesn’t have and perhaps Hamler could be a great third option behind CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup.
5. Melvin Gordon to the Los Angeles Rams for Cam Akers
Is the writing on the wall for Melvin Gordon with the Denver Broncos? It’s possible.
The Broncos did put Gordon back into the starting lineup and the rotation at running back, in general, the last weekend against the New York Jets. It’s been a couple of weeks without a fumble from Melvin Gordon, but it was a brutal start to the season.
Four games into the 2022 season, Gordon had four fumbles. Dating back to last year, it was five games and five fumbles. He had lost two fumbles that were recovered by the other team for touchdowns dating 12 games back to last season.
After effectively being “benched” against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football a couple of weeks ago, it appeared as though Gordon was going to be just flat-out cut by the Denver Broncos. Instead, he had a conversation with Nathaniel Hackett and was thrust back into the starting lineup against the Jets. Nobody in Broncos Country really understood.
Perhaps Nathaniel Hackett was told to keep Gordon in the rotation to preserve his trade value. If that’s the case, the Broncos still might not get much for him, but there has been a popular idea floating around that fits the “who says no?” category.
Melvin Gordon for Cam Akers — who says no?
From the Broncos’ perspective, this kind of move could give Denver a decent risk-reward option at the position and at least somebody besides Javonte Williams under contract for 2023. Akers has shown himself to be a potential featured back at times but he’s had a tough time in Los Angeles after suffering an injury in 2021.
The Broncos could get at least something of value for Gordon here and protect themselves in the event that Javonte Williams can’t go at the start of the 2023 season.
6. Dalton Risner to the Buccaneers for a 2023 5th-round pick, 2024 4th-round pick
Could the Denver Broncos really trade a starting offensive lineman after all of the injuries they have suffered in 2022? It’s possible.
The Broncos have Netane Muti waiting in the wings. Tom Compton recently returned to practice. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Broncos trade away a player like Dalton Risner as they look to make some wholesale changes to the offensive line going forward.
Perhaps after the bye week, we could be looking at an offensive line like this:
- LT: Cam Fleming
- LG: Tom Compton
- C: Quinn Meinerz
- RG: Netane Muti
- RT: Billy Turner
Certainly not the offensive line everyone envisioned before the season, but the Broncos have to actively work to find ways they can upgrade that area of the team, even if it means making major changes like this.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have suffered a bunch of injuries on the offensive line this year and could have some interest in making a move or two before the NFL trade deadline. Dalton Risner hasn’t played as well for the Broncos in 2020-22 as we saw from him in 2019, his rookie season with the team. Perhaps a change of scenery could do wonders for him.
For the Broncos, this would be more about getting future draft capital than anything else, but the draft capital could be a good excuse to also reshuffle the deck on the offensive line approaching the second half of the 2022 season.
7. OT Andre Dillard and 2025 7th to Broncos for 2025 6th-round pick
One of the most common things I get on Twitter in response to any trade ideas is that the Broncos don’t have any draft picks to trade, so why would they make any deals involving players coming back to Denver with picks going elsewhere? The answer is rather simple — teams have been more and more willing to deal picks well into the future that are basically inconsequential.
The Broncos lost starting left tackle Garett Bolles to a season-ending leg injury a few weeks back. They more recently lost his replacement — Cam Fleming — to an injury with the timeline of his absence unknown at this point. If Fleming is going to miss time, could the Broncos take a flyer on a player like Andre Dillard?
Dillard is a former first-round pick who has simply not lived up to his billing in the slightest with the Philadelphia Eagles. In the final year of his rookie contract, Dillard needs to get a shot somewhere this season so he has any semblance of value in free agency this coming offseason. Could the Broncos be that team?
Dillard was known coming out of Washington State for his ability to pass protect as well as his tremendous athleticism. Perhaps he could be a good fit in this offense, but really the primary reason to trade for him here is the risk-reward proposition of potentially finding something in a talented player.
Broncos reportedly have a trade package offer on table for Bradley Chubb
The Denver Broncos may already have a trade package on the table for pass rusher Bradley Chubb, according to one report. Who could be involved?
Unfortunately, it hasn’t really been George Paton’s style to take on reclamation projects, but perhaps a player like Andre Dillard could cause him to reconsider.