Surprising trade proposal lands Denver Broncos new franchise QB

It is now officially draft month as the Denver Broncos inch closer and closer to their crucial decision regarding their 12th overall selection in the first round. Will they select their quarterback of the future? Will they move up for their anticipated dream prospect? Or will the front office select the best player available and utilize the 2024 season as a "reset year"? Bleacher Report seems to have their own opinion regarding how the Broncos fix their quarterback situation.

Joe Tansey of Bleacher Report recently released a hypothetical mock trade where the Denver Broncos send the Chicago Bears their 2024 first, third, fifth, and sixth-round picks to move up and select quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the ninth overall pick. It certainly is a hefty price to move up just three spots in the first round, however, as you probably often hear, a general manager has to do whatever it takes to land their preferred prospect, especially at the quarterback position.

On the other hand, you do have to question whether or not a trade of this length could be jeopardizing your team's future. Assuming head coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton could hit on at least three of the draft picks they send to Chicago in this hypothetical trade, the Broncos could be missing on a few very talented players in order to select their quarterback of the future in J.J. McCarthy. This is a risk worth assessing from all angles, especially when you're banking on the unknown of a player's potential.

McCarthy, 21, has quickly become one of the NFL Draft's risers at any position and reasonably so. His maturity, pocket presence, accuracy, and grit at quarterback is hard to find in many draft classes. He would schematically be an instant upgrade from Russell Wilson in Sean Payton's offense and has the potential to rapidly elevate Denver's offensive weapons. However, because of these likable traits, this trade scenario doesn't appear too likely for a variety of reasons.

The Minnesota Vikings are rumored to be strong suitors for J.J. McCarthy's services and considering they possess a much deeper arsenal of draft capital, there is a very strong chance they could outbid Denver in any scenario to move up for a quarterback. At this point, Denver's best shot at landing McCarthy or even Drake Maye in the first round is if the New England Patriots decide to move down from the third overall selection via a trade with Minnesota.

In that scenario, the Broncos would have a much better chance at outbidding the Las Vegas Raiders and other teams to move up for their guy. However, as of now, the Minnesota Vikings and New England Patriots essentially control how the Broncos will address their quarterback position in the first round.