The Denver Broncos may have made the sneakiest and best trade at the NFL trade deadline when they brought in Los Angeles Chargers inside linebacker Daiyan Henley.
The Broncos earned high praise from ESPN’s Ben Solak for the move, which sent a 2027 4th-round pick and 2028 5th-round pick to the Chargers.
“I love Daiyan Henley,” Solak said on ESPN’s Leaguewide podcast on Tuesday night. “His quarterback rating when targeted is the fourth-lowest among all linebackers. Yards per coverage sample ranks him 11th-lowest among all linebackers … all I know is from a game-planning perspective, if I had to beat the Broncos tomorrow to win the Super Bowl, one of the first things on my call sheet would be how we target (passes) for the running backs, how we target the linebackers in coverage. The moment Henley joins the team, one of my favorite Achilles’ heels to go after on this very good defense might be nicely covered up. I very much like this for the Broncos; I very much don’t understand it for the Chargers.”
Rare In-Division Trade for Chargers & Broncos
The trade for Henley, which went down in the final hour before the deadline, was also surprising because it was a trade between NFC West Division rivals.
ESPN’s Seth Walder explained that, for the winless Chargers, it was a way to weaken a division opponent by snagging a couple of draft picks for a player who could end up being a half-season rental. Henley, 6-foot and 225 pounds, was a 3rd-round pick (No. 85 overall) by the Chargers out of Washington State in the 2023 NFL Draft and is in the final year of his 4-year, $5.42 million rookie contract.
Through eight games, Henley has 51 tackles, 1 interception, 2 TFLs, 2 fumble recoveries, and 1 forced fumble. He’s had over 100 tackles in each of the last two seasons, including a career-high 147 tackles in 2024, but he slots in as a backup, at least to begin with, behind the Broncos’ starting duo of Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad.
Reactions Roll in for Broncos’ Surprise Trade
Most “experts” expected the Broncos to go after a running back at the trade deadline, but they flipped the script and went after help for their already-stout defense.
“Daiyan Henley woke up 7-2 today,” DNVR’s Zac Stevens wrote on his official X account on Wednesday. “He woke up 0-8 yesterday.”
“The Chargers reportedly tried to extend Daiyan Henley and couldn’t, so getting back a fourth and a fifth round pick back for him is a win,” Locked on Chargers wrote on its official X account. “But also, they traded away the number one locker room guy on the team to a division rival and didn’t do nearly enough at the deadline.”
“Daiyan Henley looks like a TE out there running routes for the Chiefs lol,” Mile High Huddle’s Chad Jensen wrote on his official X account. “The Broncos have needed a coverage linebacker for as long as I can remember. Henley checks that box, plus he’s super physical.”
“New Broncos LB Daiyan Henley started at QB as a 15-year-old former ball boy at Crenshaw High,” Broncos reporter Zack Kelberman wrote on X. “He also played S, DE, WR, and even placekicker, then went to college as a receiver before becoming an NFL tackling machine. His versatility is on another level.”
Broncos Trade for ‘Fast, Intelligent’ Star Earns High Praise