Last year, we saw the Denver Broncos make a pre-draft trade with the New York Jets to acquire quarterback Zach Wilson and another trade during the draft to acquire defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers. The previous Jets regime of GM Joe Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh are obviously no longer in place, but the Broncos now have even stronger connections there with former Broncos assistant GM Darren Mougey running the Jets as their new GM. They also hired Aaron Glenn as their head coach, and Glenn was previously an assistant in New Orleans under Sean Payton.
With even stronger connections to the Jets, could we see the two sides strike up another deal before or during the 2025 NFL Draft?
The rumor mill has started to heat up as of late regarding Jets running back Breece Hall, to the point that Hall himself has begun to acknowledge it.
What would it take for the Broncos to acquire someone like Hall? How would it affect the draft?
Broncos could fill biggest hole on offense with Breece Hall trade
At this point, the Broncos should have all of their top-100 picks off the table in any hypothetical Breece Hall trade talks. The highest price Broncos GM George Paton should be willing to pay is a fourth-round pick for Hall, who has been a thorn in the Broncos' side pretty much every time the Broncos have played the Jets over the last handful of years.
Injuries have not been an issue for Hall since his rookie year against Denver where he tore his ACL, but he's now entering a contract year and is only going to be 24 this coming season. He had nearly 1,400 yards from scrimmage last season and nearly 1,600 yards from scrimmage the year before that, so he's been productive.
Hall has those "Joker" traits Sean Payton covets at the running back spot, but the Jets are planning on going with a true committee approach and the timing of that announcement seemingly couldn't be worse. Hall is entering his contract year and if he's going to be losing touches with the Jets, it might be in his best interests to try and get a trade out of town.
A trade to acquire Hall wouldn't prevent the Broncos from drafting someone, but it might take running back out of the 1st-round equation at the very least. This is such a good running back class that the Broncos don't have to overpay to trade for someone. A fourth-round pick at the position this year is probably like a second-round pick in any other year.
Still, that relationship between the Broncos and Jets' front offices will likely come into play at some point. Why not in this case? This seems like a perfect chance for the two sides to strike a deal if the price is right. The Jets are motivated to get other guys on the field, the Broncos need a guy like Hall in the mix, and the stars may be aligning.