The Denver Broncos wasted little time in NFL free agency going out and getting an of ball linebacker to fill a void on their already stout defense, signing former San Francisco 49ers star Dre Greenlaw to a 3-year, $31.5 million contract on March 10.
While the feedback on the signing was overwhelmingly positive, little of that praise mentioned the fact that Greenlaw missed all but 2 games of the 2024 season after he tore his Achilles tendon in a Super Bowl LVIII loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in February 2024.
Signing a player for that big of a contract and coming off that serious of an injury was a risk, bu tjust how big of a risk was recently underlined after Greenlaw suffered a mysterious injury during preseason workouts on April 27.
On one side, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Jennifer Lee Chan reported Greenlaw’s injury was a torn quadriceps muscle that would require surgery and cost him part of the 2025 season.
Conflicting Reports on Greenlaw’s Injury
On the other side, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio reported Greenlaw would only be out for 2 months. Benjamin Allbright of KOA Sports Radio reported it wasn’t that serious and would not impact his availability for the season.
“Source close to Greenlaw says it’s merely a strain, will NOT affect his season,” Allbright wrote on his official X account on April 27.
The Broncos have remained mum on the injury. So has Greenlaw. Thus, the mystery.
What’s not as vague is the Broncos’ need to have an effective inside linebacker to anchor the middle of the defense in 2025, which they won’t have if Greenlaw is out.
That’s why the Broncos should explore a trade for a player who can step in and make plays by making a deal for disgruntled Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Germaine Pratt.
What Broncos Could Trade and What Pratt Might Cost
According to a report from NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport on February 12, Pratt wants out of Cincinnati. He’s their second high profile defensive player to request a trade in the last year along with edge rusher and NFL sacks leader Trey Hendrickson.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox put Pratt on his list of the Top 10 potential NFL trade candidates at No. 8 following the NFL draft.
“Pratt should interest just about any team in need of a quality off-ball linebacker,” Knox wrote. “The Bengals defensive tallied 143 tackles, two interceptions and two forced fumbles in 2024, and he has played at least 15 games in all six of his NFL campaigns.”
Pratt was a third round pick (No. 72 overall) out of North Carolina State in the 2019 NFL draft and has been a tackling machine in 6 NFL seasons. Pratt’s career numbers of 616 tackles, 7 interceptions, 32 TFL, 7 forced fumbles and 5 fumble recoveries put him among the highest producing inside linebackers in the NFL.
Pratt is due $5.6 million in 2025 in the final season of the 3-year, $20.25 million contract he signed in March 2023.
Were the Broncos to make a move for Pratt, those negotiations might start with the Broncos offering a 2026 third round pick in exchange for him, straight up.
Greenlaw’s backup, Drew Sanders, is only one year removed from tearing his Achilles tendon in April 2024 but returned late last season to play for the Broncos.
