The NFL's new league year opening is getting closer, action and roster shuffles are coming soon, specifically on March 9, the legal tampering period opens, two days later, on the 11th, signings and trades become official. The Denver Broncos have not been too active in trades recently, but things can change, and anything can happen in the upcoming weeks.
Speaking of trades, Sports Illustrated posted an article regarding one bold prediction for every NFL team in the 2026 offseason, written by Conor Orr. In this one, he predicts the Broncos to be aggressive on the offensive side of the ball, specifically at the running back and wide receiver positions, by trading for two veterans.
Denver Broncos land AJ Brown and David Montgomery via trade in Sports Illustrated's offseason predictions:
As I mentioned, Sports Illustrated's Conor Orr predicts the Broncos being aggressive in the offseason by adding a running back and a wide receiver, specifically via trades. He mentions that draft picks between rounds two and four could be moved.
The players he is talking about are Bears' running back David Montgomery and Eagles' wide receiver AJ Brown, respectively.
"Sean Payton will trade for both David Montgomery and A.J. Brown. Continuing last season’s aggressive free-agency push to bolster the defense, Payton, spurred by his near miss at reaching Super Bowl LX, will spend multiple picks between the second and fourth rounds to bring in veterans who can keep Denver in the hunt."
Both players make sense for the Denver Broncos if they get active in trade talks, and both make sense to be dealt from their current teams. Montgomery is not in a great position to be the number one running back in Detroit with Jahmyr Gibbs there, but he can easily be the workhorse guy on a team such as Denver. Gibbs is expected to land a massive contract extension in the offseason, and Montgomery leaving could make sense, especially with their cap situation.
Despite having Gibbs, Montgomery has had over 900 all-purpose yards in each of his three seasons with the Lions, and over 10 touchdowns in two out of the three (8 in 2025). Denver's current running back room features RJ Harvey, as JK Dobbins, Jaleel McLaughlin, and Tyler Badie are set to become free agents. Adding a powerful guy such as David Montgomery could make sense.
Furthermore, Eagles' wide receiver AJ Brown has been mentioned as a potential trade candidate heading into the offseason, with Denver as a potential landing spot. The Broncos must add a top wideout, and none of the free agents make sense. The Broncos must be aggressive and trade for a star.
Brown seems unhappy with the Philadelphia Eagles, most likely because they have a rushing quarterback in Jalen Hurts, so moving on from him could make sense. Regardless, he has had over 1,000 yards in every season he has been with the Eagles. Adding Brown to a wide receiver room that already features some functional, competent players could truly push that unit over the edge, as all of the receivers Denver has appear to be slotted one spot too high, meaning they're being asked to do a bit too much due to the lack of a no. 1 player.