Report Broncos Taking Calls From Teams Wanting A Trade Up Is Either Great For Shedeur Sanders Or A Ruse
The rumors are flying fast and furious in the hours leading up to the 2025 NFL draft and one that caught my eye is about the Denver Broncos, because it could mean Shedeur Sanders has a better chance of being taken in the first round.
Or it could be one big, fat Sean Payton ruse.
Another big, fat Sean Payton ruse.
ESPN: Broncos Taking Trade-Down Calls
ESPN's Adam Schefter, who I've known since the days he covered the Broncos as a beat writer, on Thursday morning reported the Broncos have fielded calls from teams potentially interested in moving to No. 20, which is Denver's slot.
And this report comes like a coin – with two sides.
On one side, it could be meaningful in that it suggests there are teams wanting to possibly move ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers, who hold the No. 21 overall selection. The obvious reason multiple teams would be generating "calls" is because there's interest in Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
The Steelers, you'll recall, are the odds-on favorite to pick Sanders at No. 21. The OutKick 2025 NFL mock draft has this scenario playing out.
So, if this is legit, there could be teams considering a move ahead of Pittsburgh, either by moving up in the first round or trading back into the first round from their second-round position.
If that's it, we might see fireworks sometime in the middle of the first round.
Sean Payton is leaning towards staying on TV. (Credit: Getty Images)
Perhaps Sean Payton Up To Old Tricks
But the coin has another side that bears consideration. And that could be that Broncos coach Sean Payton is up to his old tricks.
Again.
Perhaps Payton or the Broncos leaked this report to simply generate some trade-down action for themselves. Because, possibly, that's exactly what they're interested in doing.
Or possibly they leaked the report to gather intelligence in the hours prior to the draft. (By the way, if you want pre-draft intel, here you go.)
It wouldn't be the first time the Broncos coach employs draft day skulduggery to get the results he's looking for. And that's not me saying that. He's admitted this stuff.
Last year, during the first round, Payton and his team were locked in on taking quarterback Bo Nix with the No. 12 pick. But they started worrying that the Raiders, also needing a quarterback and holding the No. 13 pick, might trade up to the New York Jets' No. 11 slot and select Nix.
Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) throws a. Pass during the first half of the Buffalo Bills wild card game against the Denver Broncos at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Jan. 12, 2025.
Broncos Floated Rumors To Get Nix
So the Broncos floated a rumor about possibly trading back, hoping the Raiders would see that and feel confident they didn't have to trade ahead of Denver.
But that wasn't enough. Payton went further.
"Our concern right behind us [was] the Raiders," Payton said on the Scoop City podcast. "Then it was like, ‘Call the Raiders and tell them we might want to move back’… and they didn’t want to move up, and then there’s that minute you wait, and we stay put, and the Jets make their pick and then here we are [drafting Bo Nix]."
So Payton not only floated a fake story, he delivered it directly to the Raiders, too, in order to confirm he could draft his targeted prospect.
We're not saying he's doing this kind of stuff again. That isn't confirmed.
But we're not putting it past the clever coach, either.