The 2026 NFL Trade Deadline is on November 10th, which follows Week 9 action. With the deadline now just about one month away, you simply have to wonder if teams have begun to start the process of figuring out if they should be buyers or sellers. It is still a bit early, but the Denver Broncos could end up being in a position to buy, despite the shaky start.
And the team's roster is far from complete. Despite being one of the best in the NFL, the team is clearly suffering at a couple positons of note through the first month of the season. This can and should lead to the front office working the phones to try and bring in some help.
We have four potential candidates listed. As of now, only one of them has come up in an 'official' report, but there is reason to believe that these four players could all be dealt. Could the Broncos come away with at least one of these veterans?
Denver Broncos trade deadline candidates could help team fix the weakest roster issues
Mack Wilson, LB, Arizona Cardinals
Mack Wilson is in the final year of his deal on a very shaky Arizona Cardinals team, and even if this regime gets replaced after this year, it's not wild to think that Wilson gets traded no matter what, as the Cardinals need younger players who can be a part of a long-term rebuild. Wilson is turning 29 years old in February, so he doesn't exactly fit that mold.
Wilson has spent the last three years with the Cardinals and has 28 tackles through four games this year. In his last healthy year, which was 2024, WIlson finished with one interception, five passes defended, three sacks, 75 total tackles, four tackles for loss, and seven quarterback hits.
Pro Football Reference notes that he's allowed an 89.1 passer rating in coverage, and his passer rating allowed was as low as 80.8 only last year.
Wilson could be a logical target.
Cody Barton, LB, Tennessee Titans
Another logical target is Cody Barton, who is another veteran on a team that just can't win games, but perhaps a very obvious reason why Barton could be traded is that he's not a great fit for Robert Saleh's defenses.
Saleh is most definitely a coach that loves more athletic linebackers, and Barton just isn't that player, but he's still quite solid.
He has 20 tackles through four games and finished his 2024 season with the Broncos with two interceptions, five defended passes, and 106 total tackles. Barton also allowed a 67.1 passer rating in coverage back in 2025, so that's also worth mentioning.
The familiarity and overall weakness at the linebacker position for the Broncos could make Barton an easy fit.
Tony Pollard, RB, Tennessee Titans
Tony Pollard is another Tennessee Titan who could be on the move, and he was in Adam Schefter's recent report of players who could be dealt, which is linked above.
Pollard has eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark four seasons in a row, and he's played in all but two games during that stretch. He's been consistently solid for six years now and has never averaged fewer than four yards per carry in a season.
He's also had at least 1,288 scrimmage yards over the last four seasons and is simply an extremely consistent player at a position that just doesn't have consistency right now for the Broncos.
J.K. Dobbins unfortunately looks like a shell of his former self, and the Broncos do have one of the worst run games in football right now. Pollard presents a near-guaranteed level of production that Denver has not had in quite some time.
Demario Davis, LB, New York Jets
From 2018-2021, Demario Davis played with Sean Payton on the New Orleans Saints. Davis actually just signed a two-year deal with the New York Jets this offseason to return to the team that drafted him, but Davis' contract is actually still tradeable financially, and with the Jets again trending toward a lost season under Aaron Glenn, and in-season coaching change could take place.
The Jets General Manager is Darren Mougey, who spent time with the Broncos, so there is an obvious connection present. With the Payton connection present as well, and Davis still being a really nice player, this could be a fun fit.
Through four games, Davis already has two sacks, 32 total tackles, three tackles for loss, and two quarterback hits. He was a Pro Bowler and a second-team All-Pro as recently as 2023, and, just last year, Davis finished the 2025 season with 143 total tackles and six tackles for loss.
He's certainly not who he once was, but the connections are there, and he's certainly better than anyone the Broncos currently have in that room.
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