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The NFL trade deadline is heating up and teams around the league are getting active as Tuesday's deadline approaches. Contenders around the league are trying to add talent to make a playoff push while the bad teams around the league are collecting draft capital while unloading some of their veteran pieces.
The Denver Broncos made a big move on Monday when they traded away pass rusher Baron Browning to the Arizona Cardinals for a sixth-round draft pick. They followed that move up by giving edge rusher Jonathon Cooper to a big contract extension.
Despite already being very active on Monday, the Broncos may not be done. They are also open to trading tight end Greg Dulcich, according to Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team.
Dulcich has been a healthy scratch for the last five games for the Broncos, as he has been unable to crack the tight end rotation. He was drafted in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft, but has not been able to make a consistent impact with the Broncos. For his career, Dulcich has caught 41 passes for 464 yards and two touchdowns.
Broncos not bought into roster after Ravens blowout
The Denver Broncos are right in the middle of the AFC Wild Card race, but they still decided to be sellers at the trade deadline when they traded Baron Browning away. This took a lot of people by surprise, as the Broncos are currently sitting at 5-4 and are in the pole position to earn one of the three wild card spots.
Monday's actions shows where the front office truly stands with this roster. They don't believe that this Broncos team is ready to compete right now, and they're trying to maintain financial flexibility and accumulate extra draft capital to try and build the team with more young talent.
Truth be told, this isn't a crazy place to be with this team, even if they've exceeded expectations in the first nine games of the Bo Nix era. Sunday's loss to the Baltimore Ravens was eye-opening: you are here and they are up there, a step or two in front. The Broncos weren't even competitive in that one, and their elite defense was no match for Lamar Jackson and the explosive Ravens offense.
As a result, it's a little less surprising that the Broncos chose to go in this direction. The defense should still be good enough to carry an offense that has been volatile from week-to-week, and that should be good enough to stay in a playoff race that doesn't have a ton of very impressive teams.
The first year with Nix at quarterback has gone better than planned for the Broncos, and Vance Joseph and the defense have been a revelation so far this season. While it may be jarring to see a quality player like Browning out the door, it sets the Broncos up to try and improve this offseason.
