Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - SWEET DEAL: Denver Broncos Jaylen Waddle Trade TRANSFORMS Roster

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Denver Broncos landed the big blockbuster in Jalen Waddle, but the deal is actually sweeter for Denver. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. What's up Broncos country? I'm Cody Rourke, joined as always by Sarah Bedinger. And on today's episode, Locked on Broncos, will tell you why Cortland Sutton benefits the most from the Jalen Waddle edition into the lineup. Plus, we'll navigate how the Broncos can work through Jalen Waddo's contract in 27 and 2028 with the larger cap hits that he is set to incur. But then we'll also kick things off by talking about how the Broncos got actually

Starting point is 00:00:45 the sweet end of the deal here in the trade with the Miami Dolphins. All today's episode of the show, Sarah, I tell you what, man, the whirlwind, the roller coaster the last 24 hours has been so fun. And I think we're seeing mixed reactions from Broncos country. I think, plain and simple, every fan should be thrilled about this move. I don't understand why there's skepticism. Well, I'm not going to spend too much time on that. The Broncos deal for Jalen Waddle, when you really look at the meat and the potatoes of it,

Starting point is 00:01:13 man, it's a sweet deal for them, actually. It really is. I mean, yes, it costs a lot to get Jalen Waddle, right? A first round pick, a third round pick, a fourth round pick. And then you get the fourth round pick coming back. We know George Payton never makes a deal, unless he's getting a little something back when it comes to draft. But certainly it's a sweet deal for the Denver Broncos to fill one of your best needs.

Starting point is 00:01:35 And obviously you still have that draft capital to work with in a really sweet spot of this year's draft. And what a lot of people are saying is like kind of the meat, like you said, Cody, it's sort of the meat of the draft where you really can find value players in the second round in the early fourth. You know, so the Broncos, they still have that capital to work with. But it's all about Jalen Wattle. It's not about what's left over in the NFL. draft capital situation, right? It's all about getting a playmaker like Jalen Waddle. And of course, it's not always unanimous.

Starting point is 00:02:07 But I think for the most part, this is exactly what the fan base wanted. This is exactly what the doctor ordered for the Denver Broncos here in the 26 offseason. You and I talked about it. If you believe that this is a Super Bowl caliber roster, go out and make impact additions. Impatience on my part, Cody, when it comes to, hey, the Broncos, do something. And, you know, we're kind of poking at the bear a little bit. Well, the bear came out of hibernation and absolutely went bananas and made this blockbuster trade.

Starting point is 00:02:38 I don't think any contender in the NFL, I don't think any team in the NFL, even just with one addition. I think the Broncos made a bigger improvement, a more substantial improvement than anybody else considering what they all brought back and now what they're adding to that mix. Yeah, we'll talk about the wide receiver room and more importantly, how Cortland Sutton stands to benefit from the addition of Waddle. later on here in today's show. But even going back to even the compensation here, you know, you see a lot of people say, wow, they gave up too much for that.

Starting point is 00:03:05 Folks, I think when you really boil it down to the, the fine details of this trade. Yes, Denver gave up the first, the third and the fourth, but here's what essentially happened. You're really giving up the 30th overall pick, right? Your first round pick.

Starting point is 00:03:17 Jalen Wattle is better than anything you're going to get with that 30th overall pick. Yes, she gave up the 30th overall pick within the third round. Okay, yeah, that's premium capital. You're 100%. I understand that. But realistically, you also give up your fourth round pick,

Starting point is 00:03:32 which was the 30th overall pick in the fourth round. But you really swap. Like the Broncos actually got the sweet end of the deal because they get the Dolphins 11th overall pick in the fourth round. So instead of picking 30th in the fourth round, they're picking 11th. And they still have the eighth overall pick in the fourth round from the New Orleans Saints. So they have those two picks right there.

Starting point is 00:03:50 And I will put money on it today, Sarah, that the Broncos will probably trade up into the back end of round three with those two picks or maybe one of those picks. right there. They will be open for business for that. But essentially the Broncos, they really gave up a first and a third for Jalen Waddle. And you get a chance to maybe even move up in the late round three because you get a little bit closer to that in the 2026 NFL draft. This is why the deal is sweet for Denver.

Starting point is 00:04:14 Like Miami has to eat over $125 million in dead cap this upcoming season, which is unheard of. I looked at that statistic. I'm like, they got to hire the guy who's filling the Coke machines down the hallway in Miami to play cornerback. or something. It's unbelievable what they have to go through. And Denver taking advantage. And I felt like the price on this one, it certainly was right. It was. I mean, there was talks during last season, right, before the deadline that, hey, the Broncos might have interest in Jalen Waddle and the price is

Starting point is 00:04:45 just way too substantial. And rightfully so. I mean, we considered their situation last year, right? I mean, they had an interim general manager, Champ Kelly, working in place of Chris Greer. And the interim general manager is not going to make any decisions on big time players on the roster that will affect whoever is getting that job in the future or affect that that's that's an organizational from the top down. They're like, do not trade Jalen Waddle essentially unless you get a king's ransom. And the Broncos weren't going to pay that during the season. Now you get an opportunity. It seems like a lot, but the price probably has gone down, Cody, from what the dolphins were previously asking for and you get an impact player who is going to be there during

Starting point is 00:05:29 Bo Nix's formative years, maybe his most important year, right? Because Bo Nix is up for a contract extension after this season. So now you get a true, I want to say number one receiver because I believe he is that, although he's been, you know, sharing the target share in Miami with Tyree Kill. I believe Jalen Waddle is a true number one wide receiver can do everything. And like you mentioned, it kind of feels. like the Broncos are having their cake and eating it too because they not only get Jalen Waddle, but he's got a low cap hit this year, which we're going to talk more about that contract,

Starting point is 00:06:02 and you get those draft picks. You moved up in the fourth round. So it's all setting up for the Broncos to be able to do exactly what they need to do to get this team past that point where, man, we felt like they're maybe just a playmaker away or whatever it is away. Well, now you've added that impact player, and he is exactly that. Teams that are trying to win a Super Bowl now, they push the chips in. They don't wait for draft picks to try to say, oh, well, maybe, maybe we'll land somebody here.

Starting point is 00:06:29 I look at the Los Angeles Rams in their approach. I look at the Denver Broncos in their approach this offseason. It tells me these are two teams who are serious about pushing their chips in. I mean, how many times too? Because people are saying, well, the draft picks, the draft picks. I don't care about the draft picks. I'm all about forget them picks if you know that you can get a quality player, a proven player already that you get with Jaylon Waddle.

Starting point is 00:06:49 Dude has over 5,000 yards receiving through his first. first five years. Dude is an impact playmaker for you and can be a difference maker. If you don't believe me, make sure you check out the L-22 stuff I posted in the everydayer club. But here's the thing, Sarah, the Broncos landed a guy that is going to excel against man coverage, zone coverage. He can beat guys in single high. He can beat zone coverage. I see it on the film. And it's very exciting stuff. I can't wait for Broncos country to dive a little bit deeper into that here. But it's all about pushing the chips in, right? And here's Denver can still draft guys in this year's upcoming draft, right? They're just going to be picking a little bit later.

Starting point is 00:07:22 For example, I believe that their second round pick is going to be 62nd overall. Isn't that close to the same spot that Nick Benito was taken in the 2022 NFL draft? Like Denver has proven that they're going to take some chances on some good players at that spot. But I think people forget, Denver has a roster that is ready right now, Sarah. They have said that Sean Payton has pounded at the table and said this roster can win a Super Bowl. This is a piece that can absolutely get them there because he adds a dynamic to this offense that the Broncos simply don't possess. And here's a couple of things to remember, too, when it comes to the draft capital and losing the 30th overall pick, not picking till number 62 overall. You're right. Nick Benito was pick number 64 overall.

Starting point is 00:08:04 Marvin Mims was pick number 63 overall. So the Broncos have found value there before, but the Broncos had nine draft picks prior to this Jalen Wattle trade. So now they have seven. Do we really think nine rookies were making this roster, which had 71 players coming back already on this 90, man roster from last year's team. So you had 71 guys already who have been in the organization in some form or capacity, right? So nine rookies, just realistically speaking, it's a little bit unrealistic.

Starting point is 00:08:36 But also the other thing to remember, too, is the team's first round pick last year barely played for the team. Like, Jadet Barron is a good player, really good prospect, and somebody that the Broncos probably have really high hopes for internally, undoubtedly. But he didn't hardly play for that. team last year. So you're not only talking about nine rookies, probably not making the team. The first round pick from last year's draft didn't really play a ton. And I don't know that you, like you said, you could not get a better player at pick number 30 overall than Jalen Waddle.

Starting point is 00:09:08 So now you've got more limited draft capital, maybe a bit more of a focused draft class, like you mentioned, could use those fourth rounders to move up, could use those fourth rounders in a future pick to get up into the second row. Who knows what the Broncos would want to do there. But I just think that, look, the reality of this roster is that that many rookies probably not making the team, certainly not all of them making an impact. And now you have a true impact player coming onto this roster. Plus you have the ability to really take advantage of the best part of this draft, which is its depth, not its top end talent. And I think that's where the Broncos, like you said, they're really, it's a sweet deal for them. They've addressed one of their biggest needs.

Starting point is 00:09:51 Was there even a chance that they were going to take a receiver with one of their first two or three picks, Cody? Because we think that was the case, right? So if that's the case, why not Jalen Waddle? Why not just make the trade? So I love it from all angles, all aspects, especially the bargain that he is on this year's salary cap. And the Broncos have 10 picks in the 2027 NFL draft and a factor and maybe a couple of more for comp picks for JFM, maybe PJ Locke here. So it could get a little sweeter. and what is arguably perceived right now early on as a better draft class than the 2026 draft class here.

Starting point is 00:10:25 So maybe the Broncos are playing chess. Well, everybody else is playing checkers here, Sarah. We'll have to see how it goes. But coming up next, we're going to talk about how the Broncos can manage Jalen Waddle's contract. It's manageable here in 2026, but in 2027, 2028, the price goes up. Today's episode of the show is brought to our friends over there at Fanddual. College basketball is nonstop. And the big tournament is coming up, folks.

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Starting point is 00:11:42 We're going to break down why not only is this contract a bargain right now, but how the Broncos can manage this through the 2028 season. You get three years for sure of Jalen Waddle, but maybe the Broncos have a little bit more in store. We're going to break down why we think that could be the case on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. And quickly want to say thank you and shout out all you every dayers out there. Every single one of you that makes us your first listen of the day,

Starting point is 00:12:06 every single day, we appreciate you so much. And we want to invite you, if you haven't done so already, join the Every Dayer Club right now. With the code March, you get your first month free. So it's a great time to sign. up. And if you sign up before the NCAA tournament tips off, you can compete against us in the bracket pools on Discord. The winner gets a $100 gift card for locked on merch. So really, really good stuff there. And you know what? It's the perfect time to join when a breaking news

Starting point is 00:12:31 like this happens, Cody. I mean, there's no better time to get all the bonus content. I know you did some film reviews over there. So check out the link in the show notes. And we appreciate you for considering that. It means a lot to us. Cody, let's talk about the Jalen Waddle contract here. So According to our friends over there at Spot Track and over the cap, very, very manageable cap hit this year, 4.9 million. I mean, speaking of first round picks, that's about what a first round pick would cost you, you know, in terms of cap space.

Starting point is 00:13:02 So it's really minimal in terms of the cap hit this year. And that's probably part of the reason why I think the Broncos felt like this was the perfect fit because, hey, you know, he fits under your cap and he's a elite impact player. a position of need. This deal just keeps getting better. You talked about it's sweet for the Broncos. It just gets sweeter, the deeper you dig into it. Yeah, and look, Denver's got flexibility. They don't have to make any big time decisions right now on Jay Leno and his future. As you mentioned, if they wanted to after this season, they could explore a contract extension. And I think also when you compare it to where Cortland Sutton is that these are the top two wideouts here on this

Starting point is 00:13:40 team. We know Cortland Sutton, he's a Broncos guy. He's more than likely going to be a guy who retires as a Denver Bronco. And coincidentally enough, their contracts kind of run through the same exact timeline here in the Mile High City. As you mentioned earlier with Bo Nix, that's where things are going to get very interesting because that's going to be, has he already gotten an extension at that point? Could he be getting one when everything's set to transpires? We know the Broncos have done a really good job of getting ahead of some deals. Pats or Tans deal is a great example of that. Zach Allen, Nick Benito, Jonathan Cooper, they've gotten ahead a lot of those deals. So they didn't necessarily have to worry about that in this year's NFL free.

Starting point is 00:14:14 agency. So Denver is very much taking the smart approach of saying, hey, we're trying to build this thing the right way. Four point nine million dollars this year in a window where you're trying to push all the chips in for Super Bowl, you like that, right? But let's take a look at what that cap hit looks like in 2027. It bumps up to about 27 million, right? So that's a pretty drastic increase. And then the next year, 2028, it goes to about 29.4 million. I would almost guarantee at this point, Sarah, the Broncos, they find a way to maneuver around, especially with the cash richest ownership group and all the pro sports, I believe that they will probably maneuver an extension or a restructure for a while

Starting point is 00:14:50 to make that a little bit more beneficial from a team cap standpoint going forward. Yeah, no doubt. And there's plenty of reasons or ways that they could do that, right? When you talk about an extension or he's already got void years built into his deal. So you kick that can all over the place when it comes to figuring out how you can manipulate the salary cap these days. And we also know that, I mean, look, 27 million cap hit next year, the salary cap is going to go up exponentially once again.

Starting point is 00:15:18 So that's even going to be a smaller percentage than it is now. It's less than 10% at this point, which is pretty insane to think about a $27 million cap hit being less than 10% of the salary cap overall. So that's going to be something to watch out for. And like I said, this one year could be a bit of an audition because of that salary cap hit next year, 27 million. And once again, that's, I think, less than. the franchise tag for wide receivers.

Starting point is 00:15:45 And by next year, it probably still will be. So Jalen Waddle will have an opportunity to showcase himself in this Denver Broncos offense, playing with Bow Nix, you know, really being a featured and focal point weapon of the Davis Webb offense. And whatever he proves this year could determine, all right, we are going to sign you to a little two-year extension on top of this, get those cap hits down, and really make sure that we can keep this core together because that's what the Broncos want to do. And this is one of those things that's like, hey, what was the phrasing that Greg Penner said

Starting point is 00:16:20 when it comes opportunistically aggressive or something like that? This is the opportunity that presented itself. And the Broncos just have so many great ways that they can go about keeping this whole thing together. It's not a short-term investment. He's at an old player. This is really a good, potentially long-term investment with the opportunity to really reap the benefits of having it be cheap early on. And I think Sean Payne's going to do everything he can to scheme weighs up for Jalen Waddle to

Starting point is 00:16:48 succeed alongside Davis Webb. I think they don't make this move just to throw six screen passes to Jalen Waddle. This is a guy who can do a lot. But I'm excited about the pairing. I know we're going to talk a little about it here in a minute going a little bit deeper in the Cortland Sutton, Jalen Waddle dynamic duo. Look, you get Waddle this year at 4.9 million. Sutton is at 13.9 million.

Starting point is 00:17:08 Next year for both. And we already talked about the 27 million for Waddle. But Cortland Sutton's cap hit rises from 13.9 to 28.4, which almost means you can almost guarantee a restructure of his deal will essentially take place. And I'm very curious for your thoughts on this as well. Considering the monetary value of where Cortland's contract is going and also with Waddle, if they really believe that these two guys can be a dynamic duo, which we'll talk about here in a minute, and it impacts maybe some of these younger guys developing, do you think that maybe opens up the Broncos possibility? of trading one of their younger guys away. I mean, I don't think that they're going to. I know a lot of people immediately said after this deal was made,

Starting point is 00:17:49 oh, who's getting traded? The Broncos, they didn't give up a single player in this trade, but it has people wondering if Denver is open to trading any of these other guys. Yeah, and I really hope that if that's the case, that it doesn't happen until next offseason. Because what you have right now, if you're the Denver Broncos, is something that you haven't had, which is not only depth at the wide receiver position where you had to use Elijah Moore and Lil Jordan Humphreys, or Lil Jordan Humphrey in the playoffs, but you had to Michael Bandi in the Packers game, one of the biggest regular season games.

Starting point is 00:18:23 So you have these three guys and others who have contributed over the last couple of years that, I mean, quite frankly, Cody, like, that's not who should be playing in the AFC championship game. That's not who should be playing in the divisional round. So you have the top end talent now plus the devs. Keep that while you can. I'm like Adam Sandler on Billy Madison. He's like, stay here as long as you can. You know what I mean? Like do this for at least a year.

Starting point is 00:18:49 Don't just say, oh, well, we got plenty of wider. Like last year, the Devon-Vele trade, I think the Broncos realized like, okay, yes, that was a trade that we couldn't pass up on the value of getting that fourth round pick, which now we're really glad to have that pick, right? But we couldn't pass up on that value, but through the course of the season,

Starting point is 00:19:06 And we kind of also learned like, kind of be nice to have Devon Bailey at, you know, right now, like multiple points throughout the season. So that's where they are right now is you've got that enviable depth. You've got youth that you believe in. Plus you've got the top end talent. Go with that. Stick with that until maybe next off season

Starting point is 00:19:27 and then revisit the idea of a trade. Imagine this is the move to that pushes the Broncos, gets into a Super Bowl, helps them win it. Could you imagine, Sarah? It's like it was all worth it, right? These are the risks that you take because how many times when people, when Tom Brady was dominating the league or Peyton Manning was dominating the league, people were waiting for draft picks to rise up to knock off the guys who were just shredding it, right?

Starting point is 00:19:48 The guys who were eventually at one point considered old timers. It did not work. Look at the Cleveland Browns. Look at the New York Jets. They've been waiting on the draft to be meaningful for them for God knows how long. It has not been the case. That's why I'm all on board. If you can acquire legit players, push the dang chips in to go do it.

Starting point is 00:20:04 Thankfully, George Payton, Sean Payton, Greg Penner. They did just that. And we talked about as well. Jalen Waddle is a huge addition here to the Denver Broncos, but Cortland Sutton is one name that's going to benefit the most from his edition. We'll talk about it on today's episode of the show. Indeed is the sponsor of today's episode of Lockdown Broncos,

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Starting point is 00:21:40 You talked about it earlier here on this show about, you know, playing alongside Tyreek Hill. Jalen Waddle took on more of a higher responsibility inside of the Dolphins offense once Tyreek went down because I think a lot of people were questioning could he be a wide receiver one? Jalen himself said, yeah, I can. And I am going to show you that. That's exactly what he did. After Tyreek went down, he shouldered the load for that Miami Dolphins offense. I'm talking about third down situation, sir, third and seven, third and long, which is third and seven plus.

Starting point is 00:22:10 This dude is constantly making big explosive plays downfield. He's beating cornerbacks who are playing off coverage in zone. He's getting behind them. He's beating guys like J.C. Horn and man-to-man coverage. He can do all the things that this Broncos offensive, that you and I on our post game shows and throughout the week of it saying, man, at the Broncos could just have this guy that could do this. He catches the football. He only had four drop passes last season.

Starting point is 00:22:34 It's not really a problem for him, but this is a guy who can win on the intermediate side of the field, attacking the middle of the field, going short, going long. The Broncos have a guy who can do it all. And that only benefits a guy like Cortland who has seen bracket coverage on a consistent basis in 2025. Cortland's got to be sitting there and thinking, you know what? I'm going to get my opportunities now here because if teams try to cheat towards me, Jalen Waddle is going to make those guys pay. Dylan Wattle could not be more of a perfect addition to this Denver Broncos offense, Cody. And for Cortland Sutton, it's going to be a situation where I feel like he's going to finally be able to see the light, right? No longer is Michael Jordan without Scotty Pippet, right, if you want to use that analogy.

Starting point is 00:23:18 I'm not saying, you know, I got reverence for Michael Jordan people. So I'm not saying Coralind is Michael Jordan. What I'm saying is that Scotty Pippet took a lot of pressure off Michael Jordan, let Michael be Michael, because now people got to defend him one-on-one. And if you got to defend Cortland Sutton one-on-one, and if you got to play more man coverage against the Broncos, man, that opens up things for this offense tremendously because we haven't really seen consistently the Broncos be able to attack deep down

Starting point is 00:23:46 field and let Cortland Sutton do what he does best, which is go up there. It's not 50-50 when you throw it to Cortland Sutton deep down the sideline. It's 60-40 because he's got the advantage, right? So the Broncos haven't been able to do a ton of that because these teams are playing the too high safety looks. They're doing bracket coverage, like you said. And they're really playing it. So, hey, you're going to have to scheme other players open in order to beat our defense. We're going to make you do the whole shots, Bo Nix.

Starting point is 00:24:15 Like go out there, take your bow and arrow and try to hit the bull's eye from far away because we're going to just dare you to do that, essentially. And it works on occasion for the Broncos. and the Broncos could beat zone coverage, certainly, but now you have somebody who exploits every type of coverage. You have an offense creator who can go out there and be that difference maker to take the pressure off of Sutton, which he's never had in his entire NFL career. He's never had a player who was that good that could do that.

Starting point is 00:24:46 So even at the age of 30 going on 31 in October, Cody, I still think, like we talked about last off season, and I think we were right, I think we still have yet to see deep. very best of what Cortland brings to the table, and this is what's going to bring it out. And according to our friends over there at NFL next-gen stats, it says in 2025, Jalen Water recorded 21 receptions on vertical routes tied for second most in the NFL for 481 yards, three touchdowns. Waddle and new teammate, Cortland Sutton were two of just five players

Starting point is 00:25:15 with at least 20 vertical receptions last season. Cortland Sutton had 20. Jalen Waddle had 21. You know who was number one? Jackson Smith in Jigba with 20. The deep ball here in the Mile High City, it's making a return here. And I'm so stoked about that too because you summarized it perfectly. The Broncos last year were begging for the wide receivers to step up. They like that room, right? But defense are saying, you know what? We know Cortland's your best guy.

Starting point is 00:25:42 We know on third down, you're going to be going to him, Bonnix. We're going to take that away. We're going to dare you to beat us with guys like Troy Franklin, Pat Bryant, Adam Troutman, so to speak, right? mentioning some of those guys. And Troy Franklin did a really good job arising with the extended opportunities that he got. But now you're getting a legitimate playmaker,

Starting point is 00:25:59 Sarah, that, okay, if defenses want to focus on taking Cortland and Jalen away because they want to play in that too high shell and they want to play quarters with the safeties, press man coverage underneath on those guys, well, guess what? That's where Pat Bryant can thrive. That's where Troy Franklin can continue to grow. It is going to make these a little more challenging.

Starting point is 00:26:18 And, man, here's the biggest thing about it, Sarah. If the Broncos have a run game, my goodness, like going back and watching, One thing the Miami Dolphins had last year, they had a good run game here. And it made Tua's job easier at times and it made the receiver's job easier at times because when you have a good run game and the defense is worried about that, specifically in the red zone goal. And this is where I saw Waddle thrive.

Starting point is 00:26:39 This is where Waddle and Sutton can both thrive. If you have a good run game, your play action game down there in the red zone, it's going to force those linebackers and safeties to maybe bite and cheat up. And that's where you maybe get those opportunities for those red zone touchdowns. I think the deep ball, the red zone offense is going to thrive. It's going to be a good time here in the Ma'i City. I'm stoked about this move. And if the deep ball is back, Cody, like you mentioned, two guys out of five who had 20 plus

Starting point is 00:27:05 receptions of whatever that was, however many yards it was deep down field, 20 plus yards. 20 plus yards. So with that statistic in mind, teams are not going to be able to cheat and stack the box against the Broncos. You want to go ahead and cheat up and stack the box against the Broncos running game. and try to limit them on early downs. Guess what? Two of the best five guys from last year

Starting point is 00:27:30 at creating vertical opportunities for an offense, they're going to absolutely kill you. So I just, I think it's such a good move. Like when we've talked this offseason about the frustration over the inactivity from the team and the perception that that gives and running it back and all these things, Cody, like we also mentioned that one move could,

Starting point is 00:27:55 wiped that feeling completely away. And we even went so far as to talk about like, it could be Cam Jordan. It could be David Njoku. It could be any of these guys, just one move, not for the sake of making a move, but to prove that you believe that impact additions to this roster that you already have, that you believe you can win a Super Bowl. An impact edition says exactly that. Well, this is, I mean, the team clearly resonating with what we're saying.

Starting point is 00:28:22 Not that our impatience was, you know, well, getting a little bit, maybe worried over nothing in a way because there's plenty of time to make moves, right? And I'm speaking to myself as much as anybody else out there in Broncos country. But the point is, is that the team agrees. Like the team didn't agree that, oh, well, we're just going to run it back with everybody. This was one Bo Nix injury away roster from winning the Super Bowl. So we're going to run it back with everybody and use our draft picks and save our caps. space to roll over for next year. No, that wasn't the perception of the, that wasn't how the team approached the off season. The team said, hey, we're trading for Jalen Waddle because we love this

Starting point is 00:29:02 roster. Uh, we're not going to not trade for Jalen Wattle because we love this roster. So I just wanted to talk about that because I think it's so important that the team believes what we've been saying and why we've been so impatient. They obviously agreed, uh, but obviously they had things going on behind the scenes that you and I didn't necessarily know about. Yeah, that's always the fresh. shredding part, right? It's like, what are they doing over there in Denver, right? That's the, that's the meme here. But, you know, we mentioned in that statistic, Jackson Smith in Jigba, right, who obviously led the NFL with 24. You want to know who the other name players were that

Starting point is 00:29:35 joined Jayne Waddell and Cortland Sutton in that conversation? Yeah, I do. It's, it's very nice. K. Nico Collins tied Jalen Waddle with 21. We know how good Nico is. Underneath, or tied with Cortland. You know who it was? You want to take a guess? Really, really important, really big play wide receiver in today's NFL. Let's, uh, I want to go with Puka Nakua, but I don't know if that. Is it him? It is Puka, man. So I, I mean, I think that's where things are exciting here.

Starting point is 00:30:03 It's like Denver has now added the best of both, right? And think about maybe what this does for Marvin Mims. Good deep downfield. Imagine having Jalen. Look, Denver's got some speed, not only with Troy Franklin, but Marvin Mims, but Jalen Waddle. Jailen Waddle, what, ran a 437, 47, Marvin runs what, a 439, 441, like. Debra's got the speed here. This is exciting on paper.

Starting point is 00:30:24 It's pick your poison. And I'm guaranteeing you, Sean Peyton Davis, whoever's sitting there right now in the office on the whiteboard, drawing up really exciting things here. And they're like, you know what? I can't wait until we get back on the actual practice field. That's not going to be for a few months here, though, folks, for at least the veterans.

Starting point is 00:30:38 We know mandatory rookie minicamp is going to be coming up at some point, but the Broncos won't be on the field physically doing football stuff until the month of June. I'm excited about it. And if the Broncos somehow still land cam, Jordan, And let's say they add Cam Jordan after all this stuff too. Man, best off season since 2014. That's where I'm going to put my hat on this one here.

Starting point is 00:30:58 This is exciting Broncos country. Hope you're excited as well. I want to say thanks once again for making us your first list. You can follow Sarah and I on Twitter at Cody Rourke NFL at Sarah Bedinger. And also make sure you tune into tomorrow's episode of the show, especially if you're an every day or we got an episode where Sarah and I are going to talk about three players that are offensive players here for the Broncos, young guys that have a really important path towards development.

Starting point is 00:31:19 And now with the addition to Jalen Waddle, makes that episode a little bit more exciting when you talk about in the grand scheme of things. We'll break all that down and much more on tomorrow's episode. Lockdown Broncos. See you next time.

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