ESPN names Broncos one of two biggest winners at NFL trade deadline

There are a variety of opinions on how Broncos GM George Paton handled the NFL trade deadline.

By now, you know he sent Bradley Chubb to the Dolphins for a package that included a first-round pick and running back Chase Edmonds in return. He also acquired special teams and pass-rushing help from the Jets in the form of local kid Jacob Martin.

Yes, Denver lost a key defender and locker room leader in Chubb. But they also recouped a badly needed first-round selection, since they didn’t have one in 2023 thanks to the Russell Wilson trade last March. With injuries to Javonte Williams and Mike Boone, adding to the running back room was important as well.

So, how did Paton do overall? 104.3 The Fan’s Mike Evans thinks he waved the white flag on this season. Our senior Broncos writer Andrew Mason had a different viewpoint, saying Paton had been preparing to move Chubb for a bit of time. There are many different ways to look at it.

And one of those from a national perspective is overwhelmingly positive. ESPN named the Broncos one of the two biggest winners at the deadline, along with the Baltimore Ravens. Here’s part of what ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote as to why:

They made the best out of a difficult situation, getting premium draft capital for Chubb while avoiding a fire sale… Trading away Chubb made sense because Denver likes its young pass-rush depth, including Nik Bonitto and Baron Browning… And the Edmonds addition is sneaky good, because Denver’s running game has been uneven… Paton recoups some of the capital lost in the Wilson trade without shipping out his wide receivers, who are more important than ever because of Denver’s early passing-game struggles.

Fowler makes some good and interesting points. First, Paton didn’t have a fire sale, as some suggested might happen, especially if the Broncos lost to the Jaguars in London. Second, if Edmonds can offer anything in the running game, hopefully that allows Denver to finally move on from Melvin Gordon.

And finally, it was key not to trade Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler and take away weapons from Wilson. If you’re going to invest so much in Wilson, why would you possibly get rid of two of his top receivers? Paton acknowledged as much during his press conference on Tuesday.

So, there you have it. Probably the top sports outlet in the country is a fan of what Paton did. Now it’s up to the new players, the future first-round draft pick and the guys still in the locker room to win some games and make Denver’s GM continue to look good.

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