The NFL trade deadline is months away, but we can still identify some early targets for the Denver Broncos.
I am getting ahead of myself, but the Denver Broncos may be more likely to add players at the deadline than sell. They added a ton of talent this offseason and clearly believe that they can win a ton of games this year and perhaps even compete for the division title.
If they are in that position, it would be hard to imagine that they don't at least make some phone calls to see who could be available. Let's talk about three very early trade deadline targets for Denver.
Trade deadline targets!?
Demario Davis, ILB, New Orleans Saints
In the NFL since 2012, Demario Davis has honestly been one of the more underrated players in the NFL in quite some time. He has started 196 regular season games and has been with the New Orleans Saints since 2018, so he's played for Sean Payton before.
In 2024, Davis had seven passes defended, two sacks, and 136 total tackles, so the production is still there, and he has never had fewer than 90 tackles in a season since his rookie year. Denver may need some ILB help, and with the Saints projected to be flat-out awful, they could off-load a contract or two at the deadline.
Jordan Hicks, ILB, Cleveland Browns
Jordan Hicks could be another linebacker target for the Denver Broncos. He's a few years younger than Davis and has been in the NFL since 2015, winning the Super Bowl with the Eagles in 2017.
Hicks has also played for the Cardinals, Vikings, and is currently on the Cleveland Browns. In 2024, he played in 12 games and had four passes defended, two sacks, and 78 total tackles. The idea of adding Hicks is similar to adding Davis - Denver's ILB room could get exposed in 2025, forcing them to make some sort of move.
Jaylen Waddle, WR, Miami Dolphins
This would be quite the move, but why not? Jaylen Waddle is one of the more explosive wide receivers in the NFL and could be a downright shocking but sensational trade deadline move. If the Dolphins can't put it altogether in 2025, we could see this team sell at the deadline to try and acquire draft capital for the future.
While Waddle could be least-likely to get traded between him and Tyreek Hill, what if both get dealt? The Washington Commanders just recently traded both Chase Young and Montez Sweat, so why can't a team like the Dolphins do something similar?
Denver would have to pony up a pretty strong offer, but Waddle is under contract for a little while and has caught 309 passes for 4,129 yards and 20 scores in 62 games.
