The Denver Broncos pulled off one of the biggest moves of the offseason, and perhaps the biggest move of the Sean Payton era by trading for Jaylen Waddle. This move was a smart, calculated decision that actually took a bit of time to finish.
The trade itself was brought up initially months ago during the regular season, and the two sides obviously circled back to finish it off. Now, Waddle is on the Broncos, and the offense has the missing piece they've needed. Outside of another running back and tight end addition, the Broncos starting offense is the best it's looked in quite some time.
Now that Denver has an 'in' with Miami, they should call the front office back up and see if one of their top defensive players is available for the right price.
Denver Broncos should see what it would cost to land LB Jordyn Brooks
As of now, it does seem like Jordyn Brooks could be available, and it would make sense. Miami has parted with guys like Tyreek Hill, Bradley Chubb, James Daniels, Tua Tagovailoa, and recently Waddle. This team is not trying to win football games this year.
Sure, 'tanking' in the NFL isn't close to how the NBA does it, for example, but we can all see that the Dolphins are building for the future, and Brooks, while still on the younger side, could help Miami do that. The cost might end up being around a third-round pick, if I had to make a guess, but that price could be very much worth it for the Broncos.
Brooks might be a top-5 linebacker in the NFL and has been a sensational player in this league for years. He was a first-team All-Pro in 2025, finishing with three passes defended, 3.5 sacks, 183 total tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and four quarterback hits.
He has 839 tackles over his six-year career and has missed just two games since the start of 2021, and just four games across his entire career. PFF was also kind to Brooks in 2025, giving him a 77.8 grade, which ranked 10th among 88 qualified linebackers.
Yes, the Broncos re-signed both Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad, but they also had a similar situation with Dre Greenlaw in the picture in 2025 - this team is most definitely going to bring in at least one more veteran linebacker, if I had to guess, and swinging for the fences like this would be a logical move.
Since the Broncos did pull off a trade with the Dolphins already, a trade that wouldn't be as intensive could be much easier and feasible for both sides. Miami is clearly wanting to stock up as many NFL Draft picks as possible, and by the time this team gets on the right track, Brooks might be on the way out.
Sure, they can't trade everyone, and they still have to field a competent roster, but most, if not every single player in the NFL has a price, and the Broncos should see what it would take to acquire Brooks.