Adam Schefter Forecasts Broncos' Last-Minute Trade Deadline Plans

The ESPN insider doesn't expect the Broncos to sit on their hands today.

Sep 27, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos general manager George Paton looks on before the game against the Los Angeles Rams. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

All eyes are on Denver Broncos HQ to see whether GM George Paton will make a deal ahead of the NFL's 2 p.m. MDT trade deadline.

The Broncos have been linked to a handful of players over the past few weeks, including Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor and Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride, but it's been a long time since Paton made an in-season trade to acquire players.

And yet, the NFL's most famous insider — ESPN's Adam Schefter — doesn't expect the Broncos to sit on their hands ahead of the deadline. In fact, Schefter told Altitude Sports Radio 92.5 FM hosts Vic Lombardi and Brett Kane on Monday that he expects Denver to "make a deal," so long as it "makes sense."

"I think they're going to work the phones. I think they're going to look to make a move. When you win a game before the bye week, and you're sitting there at 7-2, I think that you want to look at every opportunity you can to just shore up any spot you can," Schefter told Altitude Sports Radio. "Expect them to be active, to make a deal. But unless there's something that makes sense, they're not going to make a deal just to make a deal."

Smoke or Fire? What We're Hearing

Jonathan Taylor breaks loose against the Broncos. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

If the Broncos make a move, will it be for a running back? From what we're hearing, the Broncos may have cooled on targeting a running back because of Jonah Coleman's emergence and the stiff asking price teams are sticking to around the league, and are instead looking at tight end and safety.

Tight end is understandable, given the lackluster blocking of Adam Trautman and Evan Engram and their relative lack of impact in the passing game, but even if the Broncos managed to orchestrate a blockbuster trade for a McBride or a Sam LaPorta, you have to wonder whether the capital relinquished would be worth the production on the field.

Bo Nix has always avoided the middle of the field, though he's been a bit more aggressive in this regard of late. Keeping it in context, though, Engram just had one of his bigger receiving games of the season, and we're talking only four catches for 33 yards.

Tight ends get short shrift in the Broncos' passing game. That's just the brutal truth.

Now, would having a top-tier tight end change that somehow? Maybe, but it would be in relative terms, which again calls into question whether the juice would be worth the trade squeeze, so to speak. Nix has a strong preference for targeting receivers outside the numbers.

If the Broncos really are intent on trading for a safety, it makes me a bit more concerned about the health and post-bye well-being of Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Jones — the team's starting duo. Both missed Sunday's game against the Carolina Panthers, which was Hufanga's fourth straight absence (the Broncos didn't put him on injured reserve, though).

Jones suffered a hamstring injury in Week 8's win over the Kansas City Chiefs, but the Broncos did not place him on IR, suggesting they expect him back within the next two games. If that's true, I'm not sure I see the need for a trade, as the Broncos currently have five safeties on the active roster, plus Taylor Rapp on the practice squad, the latter of whom has seen action in each of the past three games.

Granted, the Broncos' safety play has suffered with both Hufanga and Jones sidelined, but that's a temporary challenge. JL Skinner was not great in his start against the Panthers, but Devon Key was solid and made a game-changing interception in the second half on a play that was equal parts acrobatic and heads-up.

I guess I don't see the need for a safety. Perhaps what I'm hearing is a smokescreen — it's hard to say this close to the deadline.

The Takeaway

The clearest indications of any trade interest the Broncos have shown have been at running back and tight end, so if they make a move, I'd be a little surprised if it's any other position. Then again, the Jacksonville Jaguars just set a new precedent by trading for two defensive linemen and a safety at the trade deadline, so perhaps all bets should be off.

There's no rule that says the Broncos have to pick one position. They could make multiple trades, like the Jaguars. But we've heard Sean Payton say "we like the guys we have" enough that it feels like the truth, especially given the Broncos' relative inactivity in free agency this past offseason.

If anyone has a bead on the Broncos' mindset ahead of Tuesday's deadline, though, it's Schefter. That doesn't mean the Broncos make a deal, but at the very least, it sounds like Paton will be working the phones to find the right combination of value, need, and fit before the opportunity to make a trade evaporates until the offseason.

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