Broncos Trade Up, Land Championship QB in Latest ESPN Prediction

The price would be steep, but it would get Sean Payton his quarterback lynchpin with whom to center the Denver Broncos rebuild.

Jan 8, 2024; Houston, TX, USA; Michigan Wolverines quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) celebrates after | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

In the wake of the Arizona Cardinals making it clear that they're open to offers for the No. 4 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, ESPN mock draft guru Matt Miller has the Denver Broncos striking such a deal and trading up to land their quarterback of the future.

Miller foresees the Broncos having to give up the No. 12 overall pick, a 2025 first-, and a 2026 first-rounder to the Cardinals to acquire pick No. 4 overall. With that pick, Miller projects the Broncos taking Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

McCarthy is a tough, instinctive and accurate quarterback with above-average mobility and great play from the pocket. I'm not saying he's Drew Brees, but the style of play would fit very well with what Payton ran in New Orleans. McCarthy is relatively inexperienced with just 28 starts in college, but he left Michigan with a 27-1 record. He completed 72.1% of his passes and threw only four picks last season, and his third-down QBR of 86.7 was 11th-best in the nation. McCarthy would be a sure bet to beat out Jarrett Stidham and start Week 1 for Denver.

ESPN's Matt Miller

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That would make it three first-rounders to move up to No. 4, and after two offseasons of seeing the Broncos sit out Day 1 of the draft, fans might view such a package as a small price to pay if it meant solving the big roster hole that has persisted in Denver since Peyton Manning hung up his cleats in 2016.

Time will tell whether the Broncos pull the trigger on a trade-up, but No. 4 is the floor if GM George Paton and head coach Sean Payton want to guarantee landing one of the top-four quarterbacks in the 2024 class, including McCarthy. McCarthy's draft stock has skyrocketed since leading Michigan to a National Championship vs. Washington.

McCarthy followed up that up with a productive NFL Combine, which saw his stock climb further. Since meeting with him in Indianapolis, there has been a lot of buzz connecting the Broncos to McCarthy.

Stay tuned.

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