Denver Broncos general manager George Paton and Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman are two of the most aggressive, trade-happy executives in the NFL today. Even if the results of their trades have taken them to different places up to this point, it wouldn't be out of the question to see the two of them come together on a deal in 2023. Especially with the inclusion now of Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton, it feels like these two teams might be able to make each other better in 2023.
But will a deal actually come to fruition? That remains to be seen.
But we have some ideas, anyway. What types of trades would we like to see go down between the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles in 2023? Here are three possibilities.
3 trade ideas between the Denver Broncos and Philadelphia Eagles in 2023
1. LB Josey Jewell to the Philadelphia Eagles
One area the Philadelphia Eagles might look to address throughout the course of training camp is the off-ball linebacker position. The Denver Broncos just so happen to have a bit of a surplus at the moment, and a player like Josey Jewell could become available if Drew Sanders and Jonas Griffith show well throughout camp and preseason play.
The Eagles' top two tacklers from last season departed in free agency with TJ Edwards heading to the Chicago Bears and Kyzir White following Jonathan Gannon to the Arizona Cardinals. The Eagles brought in Nicholas Morrow, who was a starter the last two seasons for the Bears and Raiders. They also have Nakobe Dean coming up through the ranks and expected to take on a major role.
Despite those two players being in line to start for the Eagles' defense, I think Josey Jewell would be an obvious upgrade. Jewell has 0 guaranteed money in his contract for this season, and the Broncos would save nearly $5 million by trading him. If they feel they have some viable alternatives at linebacker (Sanders, Griffith) to pair with former Eagle Alex Singleton, this is a tough call the Broncos might make in order to get some value in return for Jewell as well as some cap relief.
2. RB Kenneth Gainwell to the Denver Broncos
It feels like we've been trying to find at least one more viable option for the Denver Broncos at the running back position all offseason. The Broncos skipped out on drafting anyone in 2023, leading some to believe that they might be in the market for a veteran this offseason on top of already having signed Samaje Perine.
And they still could be. Players like Dalvin Cook, Ezekiel Elliott, Kareem Hunt, and Leonard Fournette are all still available and in need of teams leading up to training camp.
But there is also a logjam at the running back position in Philadelphia and perhaps the Denver Broncos could take advantage of that, making Howie Roseman an offer for one of his talented players in the backfield. Specifically, one option I like a lot for the Denver Broncos is running back Kenneth Gainwell. Why would the Eagles be motivated to trade a talented player like this?
Well, first of all, the Eagles traded for D'Andre Swift during the 2023 NFL Draft. They signed former first-round pick Rashaad Penny in NFL free agency. They still have Gainwell, Boston Scott, and Trey Sermon on the roster. Gainwell had a little more involvement in the Eagles' offense last year compared to Boston Scott thanks to Scott playing in two fewer games, but those guys received pretty similar touches with Gainwell being favored more in the passing game.
Gainwell would bring an element of speed to the running back position for the Denver Broncos and someone who is proven as opposed to the slight risk involved with someone like, say, Tyler Badie.
3. WR KJ Hamler to the Philadelphia Eagles
One thing Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman is great at doing is taking shots on reclamation projects or players who are on their "last chance" before hitting free agency. He's also not afraid to take calculated risks when the price is right. He's done that a number of times in his tenure as Eagles GM and a number of those types of players have really worked out well for him.
It also appears as though Roseman has taken a liking to the Denver Broncos' last couple of draft classes, swinging a trade a couple of years ago for Broncos 7th-round cornerback Kary Vincent Jr. and picking up 2020 7th-round pick Tyrie Cleveland last year.
We saw the Eagles add Olamide Zacchaeus in free agency so we know they are looking to add another element of speed to that position group. Adding all of that up, doesn't it seem like KJ Hamler is exactly the type of player Howie Roseman would go after?
Hamler was a second-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft out of Penn State. He'd be returning to the state where he became a top-flight NFL prospect and joining an offense that has had a ton of success the last two seasons both on the ground and through the air. It also wouldn't be shocking if the Eagles would see Hamler as a great option for them in the return game.
They traded Jalen Reagor to the Vikings last offseason, so perhaps this year they'd like to replace him with another one of his former 2020 NFL Draft classmates. The Broncos and Hamler recently re-worked his contract to basically incentivize it, not only making the contract more favorable for the Broncos but also more favorable for a team that might want to trade for Hamler.
If the Broncos don't see Hamler in their 2023 plans, the Philadelphia Eagles might be a great landing spot for him.