The Pittsburgh Steelers traded George Pickens earlier this week and a predicted trade has them replacing him with the No. 1 wide receiver on the roster of the Denver Broncos.
Courtland Sutton’s name is constantly attached to trade talks and that is continuing this offseason. Coby Leibowitz of Athlon Sports has put together a trade package between the two teams that would send the former second-round pick to the Steel City.
But it could leave the Broncos in shambles at the position. Here is the mock trade idea:
Steelers receive: Courtland Sutton, Jarrett Stidham
Broncos receive: Calvin Austin, Cory Trice Jr., fourth-round pick, sixth-round pick
It’s not the worst trade idea that has ever been presented, but it does seem more like something you would see on Madden than in reality.
In this scenario, the Broncos give up their best wide receiver and get back Calvin Austin, who is more like a WR3 on just about any team in the league. The former fourth-round pick has 53 receptions for 728 yards and five touchdowns in his career.
Cory Trice was a seventh-round pick in 2023 and is a developmental defensive back. The Broncos don’t necessarily need any more of those with the list of names already on the roster.
But the name that could be the most perplexing in this deal is that of Jarrett Stidham. It makes sense for the QB-starved Steelers to add another arm to a depth chart that currently includes Mason Rudolph, Skylar Thompson and Will Howard, but the Broncos like what Stidham brings in terms of helping Bo Nix prepare for games. They loved having Stidham and Zach Wilson in that role last season and likely didn’t want to lose Wilson.
Behind Stidham, the only other quarterback on the roster is Sam Ehlinger. The Broncos aren’t going to go into the season like that. So while this is a fun trade to discuss, it seems like one that if presented to the Broncos, would lead to a pretty easy rejection from general manager George Paton.
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