Getty Denver Broncos WRs Tim Patrick, Jerry Jeudy, and Courtland Sutton running out of the tunnel.
With the NFL trade deadline approaching on October 31, the Denver Broncos seem to be among the teams most likely to be sellers.
Since Denver owns a 1-5 overall record to start the season under head coach Sean Payton, it looks like the Broncos are expected to enter a full rebuild and that means trading some of their top veteran talent.
Jeff Howe of The Athletic proposed a trade that would send Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy to the Carolina Panthers for a 2024 third-round pick along with a sixth-round pick.
“The Panthers need to get Bryce Young more help, especially at receiver. While the Broncos have rebuffed trade offers short of first-round picks in the past for Jeudy, time isn’t exactly on their side here, and Jeudy doesn’t have the trade value they’ve been seeking,” said Howe.
Denver picked up Jeudy’s fifth-year option based on his great end to the 2022 season, but he’s guaranteed $13 million in 2024. If the Broncos are going to move on from Russell Wilson at the end of the year, they’re going to need to find a way to work around his large cap hit and moving Jeudy opens up more money for the offseason.
Broncos Might be Talking to Teams Already
According to Matt Lombardo of Fan Buzz, the Broncos are already discussing moving on from starting wide receiver Jeudy.
“Multiple league sources tell FanBuzz that the expectation is that the Broncos will trade star wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, at some point prior to the Oct. 31 trade deadline,” said Lombardo.
Lombardo also mentioned that he’s been told from an NFC personnel director that the Broncos have already had “internal discussions” about a possible deal for the former first-round pick.
According to Dan Graziano of ESPN, he’s hearing similar things with the Broncos possibly moving on from Jeudy.
“It feels pretty obvious from talking to teams around the league that the Broncos are open for business.” Graziano continued, “Teams I talk to believe the Broncos will listen to offers for Jerry Jeudy.”
Jeudy’s Time in Denver has Been Disappointing
In 2020, the Broncos selected Jeudy with their first-round pick with the hopes that he can boost Denver’s struggling offense from the previous year. Jeudy was considered by most the top wide receiver in the draft because of his elite route-running ability, but that hasn’t transferred over into the NFL.
As a rookie, Jeudy caught 52 passes for 856 yards and found the endzone three times including a 92-yard touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders to close out the season.
During his sophomore season, Jeudy appeared in just 10 games after suffering a high ankle sprain early on. In his shortened season, Jeudy only racked up 467 yards on 38 catches, but failed to reach the endzone.
Last season, Jeudy had his best statistical year by catching 67 passes and tallied up 972 yards and scored six touchdowns.
This year, Jeudy has been the most disappointing. Through five games, Jeudy has yet to score and only has 222 yards.
Jeudy has failed to reach the 100-yard mark in a game this season and has not caught more than six passes in a game. He currently ranks third on the team in receiving yards behind Courtland Sutton and rookie wideout Marvin Mims.
With Jeudy being the second wide receiver taken in the 2020 NFL Draft, he ranks sixth in receiving yards from that class and is ranked 11th in receiving touchdowns among wideouts. Tight end Cole Kmet of the Chicago Bears has three more touchdowns than Jeudy.
With Jeudy’s disappointing start to this season, it seems like his Broncos career could be coming to an end.