apountry was ecstatic about the Broncos agreeing in principle to a trade for Russell Wilson. According to The Denver Post’s poll of readers, as of 10:30 a.m. Wednesday 69% gave the Broncos an “A” grade for the trade.
But how does the move look outside Colorado? Here’s a look at how national media outlets graded it:
“It’ll be easier to replace (Shelby) Harris and (Noah) Fant than it would be to find a future Hall of Fame quarterback in this year’s free agency or the draft, and we’ve seen how Denver drafts/scouts quarterback prospects (yuck), so it doesn’t matter how many picks they gave up, because if they might’ve used them the wrong way anyway, they might as well roll the dice on a still-primed All-Pro at the most important position in football,” Patrik Walker writes. .
“Denver gave up a ton in this trade, but they, more than most teams, know how important it is to land a premium quarterback. The Broncos have been through the likes of Brock Osweiler, Paxton Lynch, (Drew) Lock and Teddy Bridgewater to get to this moment. Itap easy to understand why they gave two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick, Lock, and a pair of expensive role players to acquire Wilson,” Mike Kaye writes. .
“There are also benefits that come with ascending to contender status, even if that’s only on paper right now. We see it every year: top veteran players become available, and it’s the teams with superstar quarterbacks at the front of the line for their services. The Broncos are now that type of destination, where players will see an opportunity to get a ring,” Dan Wilkins writes. .
“The Broncos made a massive upgrade to the most important position in the game. It cost them a ton, but they aren’t done making improvements yet. Wilson is the first domino to fall — and a few more tweaks could turn Denver from playoff team to unavoidable Super Bowl 57 contender,” Christian D’Andrea writes. .
“Ultimately these trade grades come down to one question: Would I have done the deal? And the answer here is a resounding yes. The Broncos have an above-average roster, and this move gives them a chance to compete for Super Bowls. Their other options were to trade for a quarterback with less upside or go through the process of developing a rookie,” Sheil Kapadia writes. .
“That’s an insane amount to give up for Wilson. The Rams had to do much less to acquire Stafford. No wonder the Commanders couldn’t compete with that. GM George Paton and John Elway knew they had to get aggressive to get their QB of choice, but there’s no feeling the Broncos are guaranteed to a much better team, now or in the near future,” Vinnie Iyer writes. .
