The Denver Broncos could have interest in Jonathan Taylor, but can they make a competitive enough trade package to land the stud running back? The answer is yes. The Denver Broncos can indeed make a strong trade offer for Jonathan Taylor, who was given permission to seek a trade by the Indianapolis Colts.
Taylor, only 24, was a second-round pick back in the 2020 NFL Draft and has earned one Pro Bowl, one All-Pro, and a rushing title in his short career. In 2022, he enjoyed a stellar year, rushing for 1,811 yards and 18 touchdowns. He also added 40 receptions for 360 yards. JT is arguably the best running back in football and wants out of Indy.
Well, fortunately, the Denver Broncos might be the perfect landing spot for the RB, who is also going to want a new contract. Paying running backs is generally not a good idea, but I do think the Broncos could benefit from adding someone like Jonathan Taylor. Can Denver make a competitive enough trade package for JT?
I think they can. Let's cover three of them.
3 ideal trade packages the Broncos can offer for Jonathan Taylor
I do think most any trade package that the Denver Broncos could offer will center around the Indianapolis Colts acquiring Javonte Williams as the centerpiece of the trade. In this package, I send them Williams, who is 100% healthy from his torn ACL back in 2022, and two mid-late-ish round picks in 2024. The Colts can still have a stud RB for their future in Williams and still get some draft picks out of it.
I don't think this is an overly expensive trade. Denver still keeps their highest picks in 2024 but gets a huge upgrade over Javonte Williams. Keep in mind though that Denver does have to sign Jonathan Taylor to a contract extension, so there's more resources used to get JT than just draft picks and a player.
The second trade package has the Denver Broncos giving up their first-round pick in 2024, which would be quite hard to do, but in return, they get Jonathan Taylor and the Colts' third-round pick in 2024, which is likely going to be near the top of that round. In this scenario, Denver might be able to do what they did in 2023 and jump back into the bottom of the second round by packaging this hypothetical high third-round pick with another pick or two.
Denver did this to select Marvin Mims Jr. in the 2023 NFL Draft. You'll notice that I did not include Javonte Williams in this trade package. I'm not really sure what the team would do with Williams in this scenario, because I do think he'd hate being the RB2 yet again in Denver. It's clear that Javonte Williams is one of the best pure runners in football and is an RB1 in this league.
I'm going to get a little crazy with this last trade package. Denver desperately needs help along their defensive line, so this last package includes a Pro Bowl DT in DeForest Buckner. Jonathan Taylor is obviously coming to Denver in this deal, but what I have being sent to the Colts is Javonte Williams, Garett Bolles, and the Broncos' first-round pick in 2024.
Broncos' swing tackle Cameron Fleming does fit Denver's offensive scheme better, as Fleming is a better run-blocker than Bolles is, and the Broncos appear to be a run-first team. With DeForest Buckner approaching 30, he may not fit the rebuilding plan that the Colts have, so I don't think it's out of the question to think that Buckner can be traded at some point.