Getty Denver Broncos General Manager George Paton
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton told NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport during the AFC Coaches Breakfast on March 25 that trading up in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft was “realistic.”
It’s unclear what the Broncos would have to give up to get an earlier pick than No. 12, but Nick Kosminder, who covers the Broncos for The Athletic, hinted at the price.
“It’s safe to say the Broncos would have to give up No. 12, their 2025 first-rounder and a first- or second-round pick in 2026 to get into the range you’re talking about,” he wrote in his April 2 mailbag, responding to a reader question about what it would take to move up “to select quarterback J.J. McCarthy, assuming he goes somewhere in picks three through five?”
After two years of going without a first-round pick, the Broncos are back in a position to make a splash early in the draft. In 2021, the last time they had a first-rounder, Denver drafted a gem, cornerback Pat Surtain II, who earned two Pro Bowl selections and an All-Pro nod in his first three seasons.
But with the glaring need to bolster their quarterback depth chart, trading up for one of the top prospects makes sense. Payton might have hinted at a potential scenario when he told Rapoport, “It’s good to be Monti [Ossenfort] right now.”
Ossenfort and the Arizona Cardinals own the fourth overall pick in the 2024 draft and appear to be open to trading it. “We’re always going to be listening,” Ossenfort said, according to ESPN’s Josh Weinfuss. “I think we will always have the conversation.”
In Trading with Patriots, Broncos Can Follow 49ers Lead
GettySan Francisco 49ers General manager John Lynch
Aside from the Cardinals, the Broncos could also engage the New England Patriots in trade talks.
“Look, we sit at a very enviable spot at No. 3 where we can take someone, or if someone offers ‘a bag,’ as we would say — you know, a lot of first-round picks — we definitely have to talk about those things,” Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo said, according to The Athletic’s Chad Graff.
Going for a quarterback with the third overall pick makes sense for New England, especially after trading Mac Jones to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Kosminder recalled how the San Francisco 49ers traded up for Trey Lance.
“There is a recent template to go from No. 12 to No. 3. In 2021, the San Francisco 49ers gave up the No. 12 pick, first- and third-round selections in 2022, and a first-round pick in 2023 to move up to No. 3,” Kosminder wrote in the same mailbag article.
The Patriots will likely put the same price tag for their pick, leaving teams wanting to trade up time to satisfy their demands.
ESPN Writers Predict Broncos Trading Down From Round 1
GettyDenver Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton
Conversely, ESPN’s Jeff Logwold and Jordan Reid envision the Broncos swapping their No. 12 pick for more draft capital. The move makes sense, considering Denver doesn’t have a second-round pick.
Logwold wrote in an April 11 collaborative article, “The Broncos also lack the capital to make a move up to have a chance at one of the top three quarterbacks — at least without surrendering even more first-round picks or their most talented player in cornerback Pat Surtain II.”
Meanwhile, Reid shared what he’s hearing among NFL circles regarding the Broncos No. 12 pick. “‘No way Sean [Payton] goes into the year with that quarterback room.’ That’s how an AFC executive summed up draft expectations for the Broncos. … I could see them trading back from No. 12 before selecting their signal-caller of the future.”