As with every trade that goes down in sports, there are obvious winners and losers in the fallout. The Denver Broncos made a blockbuster deal with the Miami Dolphins to acquire star wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, a deal that sent shockwaves through the NFL world.
So what are the ripple effects in the Mile High City? There are plenty.
As much as Waddle feels like the missing piece to the equation for a team that hosted the AFC Championship Game last season, the fallout from a move like this will be tremendous, in both a positive way and in a negative way, at least for some. Who are the biggest winners (and most unfortunate losers) after this deal?
Bo Nix is the biggest winner of the Jaylen Waddle blockbuster trade
Broncos winner: Bo Nix, quarterback
Without question, there is nobody who benefits from acquiring a star receiver in a trade more than his new quarterback. Bo Nix has been sensational for the Broncos in his first two NFL seasons, despite a hefty amount of criticism, but one fact that cannot be ignored is that Nix's receivers have let him down on more than one occasion.
In fact, the Broncos were one of the league leaders in dropped passes over the last two seasons. During the team's AFC Divisional Round win against the Buffalo Bills, Nix was throwing to the likes of Lil'Jordan Humphrey and Elijah Moore. As much as we all believe the Broncos when they say they like their young receivers, the top-end talent needed to be upgraded, and the depth needed to be upgraded as well.
The arrival of a player like Waddle is going to make every receiver on the team better, and thus, Bo Nix's life is about to get better. And the arrival of Waddle couldn't be more timely. Nix is eligible for a new contract after the 2026 season, so this is the Broncos investing in his long-term future as well.
Broncos loser: Pat Bryant, WR
We know that a hallmark of the Sean Payton offense is a wide variety of personnel groupings. The Broncos have plenty of young receivers to spread the ball to, but with Jaylen Waddle likely coming in and playing a lot of snaps out of the slot, the receiver this move most immediately impacts is probably Pat Bryant.
Bryant was banged up a little bit during his rookie season, though he showed plenty of promise as well, and will have to wait his turn with Waddle now in the fold. He's not strictly a slot player just like any receiver can line up anywhere, but Waddle will most likely play the lion's share of his snaps from the slot, and with players like Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims, and Troy Franklin doing their best work on the outside, Bryant is the receiver who likely will lose the most immediate opportunities after this trade.
Broncos winner: Courtland Sutton WR
We did an entire post about this, but outside of Bo Nix, there is no player on the Broncos' roster who benefits more from the addition of Jaylen Waddle than Courtland Sutton.
Sutton has been the Broncos' WR1 from basically the time he was drafted, and he's gotten all of the attention that comes along with that. Despite that fact, Sutton has produced at a very high level. He's just coming off of the first back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in his NFL career. He's also still been one of the NFL's best vertical threats despite teams bracket covering him and giving him extra attention.
Now, the Broncos have two of the five best in the NFL when it comes to vertical routes downfield. According to Next Gen Stats, Waddle ranked 2nd in the NFL last season with 21 receptions on vertical routes, and Sutton ranked 4th with 20. Now you've got those two guys on the same team.
Sutton isn't going to have to constantly deal with bracket coverage anymore, because teams will have to respect Waddle. And if Waddle gets extra attention, it gives Sutton chances to do what he does best and beat single coverage.
Broncos loser: NFL Draft fans
It's not all bad for the biggest fans of the NFL Draft in Broncos Country, but this one does sting for the mock draft machines out there. You know who you are.
The Broncos only went from having nine picks in this year's draft to now having seven, but they no longer pick in the 1st or 3rd round at all. Thankfully, George Paton was able to actually move up in the fourth round of the draft with this trade, but the 30th pick is gone. The 94th pick is gone.
Lovers of the draft are going to have to wait (again) until the late portion of the 2nd round for the Broncos to be on the clock unless they trade up.
Broncos winner: Sean Payton & George Paton
We have also talked about this before, but two of the biggest winners of this trade are GM George Paton and head coach Sean Payton. The perception of the offseason approach is that the team was truly just sitting on its hands and willing to run it back with the squad they had last year.
And many folks were okay with that because the Broncos were just "a Bo Nix injury away" from reaching the Super Bowl, maybe even winning it.
That's a valid take and opinion, but that's precisely the reason to add to this roster, not be satisfied with the status quo. And the Broncos weren't. A blockbuster trade of this magnitude indicates that the chips are all in, and because of Waddle's immediate impact, George Paton and Sean Payton have sent clear Super Bowl-level messages to the entire fan base.
This move completely changed the vibe in Broncos Country after a completely inactive week, and has simply validated that George Paton and Sean Payton know exactly what they're doing. It just took more time than the fan base wanted.