Denver Broncos Trade Options: Jonathan Taylor, Sam LaPorta

How realistic is it that the Denver Broncos will make a trade during this season?

And which trade is the most realistic when talking about Jonathan Taylor, Tony Pollard, Sam LaPorta, and Trey McBride specifically?

How Realistic is a Denver Broncos Midseason Trade?

Not very.

Hey, let's start there. Let's not get our hopes up too high here.

The reason I say it's not very realistic they trade for anyone is twofold:

1. The Broncos traded their 2026 first-round pick for Jaylen Waddle in the offseason.
2. George Paton rarely makes in-season trades, and has only traded for a player twice in his six years with the Broncos as general manager.

Can you name who Paton traded for? Probably not.

One was outside linebacker Jacob Martin and a 5th they got in return for a fourth-rounder. He played all of five games in the Mile High City before bouncing around the league and becoming a starter in Washington in 2025.

The other was running back Chase Edmonds who did very little in Denver. Paton traded Bradley Chubb and a fifth-round pick for a first (he ended up flipping as part of the Sean Payton deal), a fourth, and Edmonds.

The other two midseason trades Paton has made as GM have sent players away from Denver.

• 2023: Traded away Randy Gregory and a seventh-round pick to the 49ers for a sixth.
• 2024: Traded Baron Browning to Arizona for a sixth.

All other trades he's made have come before the season. The first-round pick for Jaylen Waddle was the biggest of all his trades, with the move for Sean Payton being second. Oh yeah, I guess he did trade for some guy named Russell Wilson, too.

Then again, maybe the blockbuster trade for Jaylen Waddle that signals they're all in makes a trade for another star offensive player more likely?

Grading Which Trade is Most Realistic for Denver

On a 1-10 scale, 10 being most realistic, which trade makes the most sense for the Broncos: Taylor, Pollard, LaPorta, Goedert or McBride?

1. Jonathan Taylor: 4 out of 10

Taylor would be a perfect running back to push the Denver Broncos offense over the top. He is explosive, has great vision, superb speed; he's everything you can want in a running back.

To wit, he's tied for fourth-most 10-plus yard runs (18) and is third in 20-plus yard runs (5). In Indianapolis' offense, where he's the No. 1 threat, he's averaged 4.1 yards per carry this year. That's not eye-popping, but it's better than J.K. Dobbins (3.3 YPC) and Jonah Coleman (4.5 YPC) doesn't have enough carries to qualify yet.

Taylor's 54.1% success rate is also 11th-best in the NFL this year, plus he can catch balls out of the backfield. He's rushed for 610 yards and 8 touchdowns this year.

Denver's need

Denver's also been one of the worst teams in the run game this year. They've actually moved up in recent weeks to 26th in rushing yard per attempt to 3.8 per carry. They were 30th at 3.6 a few weeks ago.

That's because Jonah Coleman has come on some.

J.K. Dobbins has been really disappointing as the starter, which is why Coleman supplanted him. Dobbins is averaging 3.3 yards per carry, which is 40th, and according to FTN Fantasy he's third-worst in the NFL in rushing yards over expected.

The rumblings about the Broncos trading for Taylor go back three weeks at this point.

Will the Colts trade Taylor?

The Colts are in a straight-up fire sale. They traded away Quinton Nelson to the Seahawks and then traded DeForest Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers.

Last week, Taylor had a cryptic press conference.

“I haven’t heard anything, and I can’t control that, obviously. You guys know that I’m always proud to wear the horseshoe, proud to be here,” Taylor said, via Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan. “And similar to Quenton [Nelson] and ‘Buck’ [DeForest Buckner], they were proud to wear the horseshoe, proud to be here. But obviously, circumstances may cause otherwise. So, hopefully that day may not come. But I can’t control that."

They were also proud to wear the Colts horseshoe, but then got traded. Hmm.

In terms of the Colts actually wanting to move from the running back, this has gone back and forth for a few weeks now. As recently as this morning Ian Rapoport said the Colts are wanting a "CMC package" for Taylor. That was a 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th-round pick.

Hey, it's not a first-rounder. But that is a ton of picks for a guy like George Paton who loves to use his picks in the NFL Draft.

2. Tony Pollard: 6 of 10

Pollard isn't the star that Taylor is. But he's still a valuable running back that Denver could have their sights on.

However, unlike with Taylor the Tennessee Titans aren't even talking to potential trade partners about their running back.

Pollard's numbers aren't quite as good as Taylor's but they are very strong. He's rushed for 595 yards and 6 touchdowns this season; 246 of those yards and 5 scores have come in the last two games alone.

He's not quite as explosive as Taylor (13 10-yard runs, 3 20-yard runs) but breaks more tackles (11).

The Titans reportedly only "maybe" want a 4th-round pick for him. That gives his realistic chances a boost.

Pollard would be an upgrade in the running back room, but either one of these backs being added by the Broncos seems less likely as Coleman has come on the last two weeks.

Denver seems more likely to just ride Coleman for now and let him continue to develop.

3. Sam LaPorta: 2 of 10

LaPorta would be the kind of game-breaking tight end the Broncos have desperately needed for years.

And two weeks ago he went on record being upset about contract talks with his Detroit Lions.

"Like last year, whatever it was, Week 9, Week 10, I break my f—ing back for the team. And then I'm going out there this year and I'm balling, and maybe they're just not showing the love," LaPorta said. "…I'm going to continue to do my thing and ball out, and in three months, if I don't get to wear the Honolulu blue and play for the Lions anymore, it's going to be all good. I'll go get paid somewhere else."

The next day he came out and said "I want to play for this team."

He's in the last year of his rookie deal and will become a free agent in March if the Lions don't get a deal done. But they likely will.

Or, could they trade him?

It's unlikely they will and even more unlikely the Broncos go get a player they could end up having for only a few months.

4. Trey McBride: 1 of 10

Can a Colorado boy come home?

McBride was the Mackey Award winner — earned by the best tight end in the nation — at Colorado State University (Go Rams). And he grew up in Fort Morgan.

The Cardinals just benched and then traded away Jacoby Brissett. They're waving the white flag in the desert at 3-5.

But nothing indicates they'd be willing to trade away arguably the best tight end in the NFL.

5. Dallas Goedert: 4 of 10

Goedert ain't no spring chicken. He's 31 and although he had a resurgence in the red zone last season with 11 touchdowns, his best years are behind him.

But he's the most realistic tight end of the bunch if Denver wants to trade for one.

The Eagles are a dumpster fire and are about to start Joe Milton at quarterback this week. The Broncos have been among the teams mentioned in a potential trade.

Denver's tight ends have caught only 23 passes for 220 yards and 4 touchdowns this year. Goedert has more receptions and yards (26, 286) than all of them combined.

But even if the Broncos trade for a tight end, Bo Nix would have to actually throw to them.

Will the Broncos Trade for Anyone?

The NFL Trade Deadline is next Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 2 p.m. MT.

A lot can and will happen this weekend in terms of the teams looking to unload assets.

So, it's possible Denver pulls off a trade. But it's still on the unrealistic side of things as of today, Friday, Nov. 6.

Paton hasn't really traded for players during a season; it's been very rare.

But if I had a choice of these players I'd take Taylor first and McBride second.

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Rich Kurtzman was born and raised in Denver Colorado and attended Colorado State University in Fort Collins in the aughts. He's been a professional writer since 2011, covering Colorado State football and men's basketball, as well as the Denver Broncos, for many outlets. Current Denver Broncos work can be found on Mile High Sports. Previous credits include CBS Denver and The USA TODAY Sports Media Group.