The Denver Broncos have been criticized by their own fan base for being mostly quiet in the 2026 offseason, but they made the one move they really needed to make...unlike some of their division rivals.
The Broncos made the Jaylen Waddle trade in the middle of March, adding the top-tier playmaker and offense creator that had very obviously been missing from the offense. The other teams in the AFC West all have major needs at the wide receiver position lingering into the month of June.
And two teams expecting to contend just foolishly passed on a chance to add one of the NFL's best receivers -- AJ Brown -- who was ultimately traded to the Patriots.
Even though it seemed like Brown to the Patriots was a foregone conclusion for months, he had a list of preferred trade candidates that Albert Breer of SI.com released, and both the Chargers and Chiefs have been effectively exposed.
Denver Broncos AFC West rivals exposed in AJ Brown trade aftermath
Here's what Breer wrote in his column on SI.com, peeling back the curtain a bit on the AJ Brown trade process:
"Meanwhile, Brown’s camp gave the Eagles four AFC teams they’d be happy to land with: the Bills, Chargers, Chiefs, and Patriots. The Bills traded for D.J. Moore soon thereafter, taking themselves off the market, while the Chiefs and Chargers didn’t show much interest in a deal, leaving the Patriots, who hadn’t put a first-round pick on the table yet, much less a first-rounder and another high pick."
- Albert Breer, SI.com
What Breer is pointing out here is that both the Chargers and the Chiefs -- with clear needs at the receiver position -- failed where Broncos GM George Paton succeeded.
Even with all that extra time to swoop in and make the Eagles an offer, the Patriots were still the team that wound up ultimately making a trade for Brown despite that whole situation being telegraphed from the start.
While they could still bring him back, the Chargers let their leading receiver from last year -- Keenan Allen -- walk in free agency. Even if they bring him back, Allen just turned 34 years old this offseason.
The Chiefs have been banking on Rashee Rice being their WR1 for four years now, but Rice's inability to stay healthy and/or out of trouble has put them in a really rough spot, especially because their receiver position was already not great.
If you truly believe you're in a championship window, you make moves that reflect that. The Chargers had over $80 million in available cap space going into this offseason, and still have over $40 million. The Chiefs have been in a tough cap situation, but they made it work for other players.
Having the chance to go after Brown, with such a reasonable asking price, is already a mistake in itself. But knowing that Brown had those teams on his list on top of it all? It's a mistake those teams might live to regret, and the Broncos might soon be thanking them for.
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