3 Jerry Jeudy trade ideas the Denver Broncos might consider
The Denver Broncos wouldn't seriously consider trading wide receiver Jerry Jeudy after the 2022 season he had, would they? Fans in Broncos Country seem rather split on the idea, although it should only be an "overpay" from an inquiring team to get general manager George Paton and head coach Sean Payton to say "yes" to a deal.
Why would the Denver Broncos consider trading Jeudy? Well, this is technically the "final" year of his rookie contract. The Broncos will have the chance to exercise their fifth-year option on Jeudy in the coming weeks which means he could have two years left on his rookie deal. If he were to hit free agency today, Spotrac.com calculates his market value at over $20 million annually. Jeudy's fifth-year option would come in at just under $13 million, which is certainly a fair price for his services given the Broncos' inconsistencies at this point, but his contract situation could end up pushing the Broncos closer to a trade if they don't view him as a long-term piece.
Jeudy has dealt with injuries the past two seasons, including a high-ankle sprain that cost him six games in 2021. He had a rib injury in 2022 that cost him most of the Broncos' game against the Houston Texans and an ankle issue again that cost him most of the game against the Titans later in the season.
Still, durability is not really a concern for Jeudy. He has missed some time, but is it a reason to trade him away? Probably not.
A lot of Broncos fans seem to think that it's still 2020 as well. One of the primary complaints with Jeudy is dropped passes, which was an issue for him back in his rookie season. He was credited with 10 dropped passes that year and a drop percentage of almost nine percent. It was a clear issue then, but in his last 156 targets (25 games), Jeudy has just six drops, good for a drop percentage of 3.8 percent.
Last season, players that had a drop percentage over 3.8 percent includes so many prominent players we don't have time to go through them all. It's better than Ja'Marr Chase, Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Deebo Samuel, and Jeudy's own teammate in Denver, Courtland Sutton (8.3 percent).
Teams inquiring about trading for Jerry Jeudy might look at the trajectory he's been on the last couple of years and see someone who is ready to take the next step into stardom as an NFL player. Jeudy's only going to be 24 in April, and he has a dynamic skill set that includes elite route running and separation abilities, after-the-catch abilities, and as we've seen the past couple of seasons -- improved hands.
The only way the Denver Broncos could really justify trading a way a promising young player at a struggling position for the team is if they get a fantastic deal in return. Let's look at some trades they might actually consider.