Broncos Trade Targets 2026: Realistic Tight Ends and RBs

By RookieRanks Staff

Dallas Goedert is the tight end the Broncos should call about first. Tony Pollard is the most practical running back upgrade, while Tyjae Spears offers a younger, cheaper-to-acquire alternative with a substantial medical caveat.

The timing matters: the NFL's official calendar puts the 2026 trade deadline on Tuesday, November 10, at 2 p.m. MST. As of November 7, Denver can still make a deal this season. This is a deadline shopping list, not a claim that any negotiation is happening.

Young stars are usually building blocks, not clearance items. This board separates immediate upgrades from conditional upside bets.

The Broncos' shortlist: fit first, age second

The Denver Gazette's November 2 discussion identifies the real tension: Denver could use more from its tight ends, but rookie Jonah Coleman deserves a longer look in the backfield alongside J.K. Dobbins. Buying a running back should not automatically mean burying Coleman.

Our preference is a tight end who can catch without announcing a pass every time he enters. At running back, the question is whether Denver needs reliable carries or a receiving complement. Those are different jobs.

Contract years and ages come from the player-specific Over The Cap pages linked below. These are not six players confirmed to be available. LaPorta and Hall are considerably less attainable than Goedert and Pollard.

Dallas Goedert is the clearest tight end fit

Goedert is not young, but he offers a credible upgrade without a cornerstone acquisition price.

Over The Cap lists 26 catches, 258 receiving yards and two touchdowns in six appearances this season. That is useful production rather than a reason to trade premium picks. CBS Sports' November 6 assessment also singles him out for Denver, highlighting his receiving ability down the seams and competitive blocking.

That matters for Sean Payton. Goedert could stay involved when a run changes to play-action, rather than just competing with Evan Engram for obvious passing snaps. Bo Nix gets a middle-of-the-field option without losing disguise.

Philadelphia's incentive is contractual. Goedert is playing on a 2026 deal before void years, and the Gazette identifies him as a possible late-round acquisition as the Eagles fall out of contention. That is a reported analyst assessment, not an Eagles asking price.

OTC lists a $1.3 million base salary and a $10.23 million Philadelphia cap charge for 2026. Those are not interchangeable numbers, and Denver would not simply inherit that entire cap hit. Remaining salary, unpaid bonuses and Philadelphia's retained bonus accounting would determine the actual transaction.

The Eagles' latest report shows full Thursday participation despite a knee listing and no final game designation. Explore a Day 3 deal, but remember: without an extension, this is a rental.

Andrews is a fallback; LaPorta is a longer-term watch

Mark Andrews: buy the current player, not the reputation

For The Win's November 7 report includes Andrews among Denver's possible alternatives and describes a difficult season, including mistakes against Jacksonville on Thursday. His experience finding space underneath could help Nix, but the acquisition has to be judged against recent play.

His contract runs through 2028. OTC lists a $1.3 million 2026 base salary, followed by $9 million in 2027, with $5 million of that future salary guaranteed. That makes him a different proposition from a cheap half-season rental.

Baltimore might consider reallocating future spending if its season deteriorates. But that is our seller-incentive analysis, not evidence the Ravens have put him on the block. Their acquisition of Jacoby Brissett, noted in USA TODAY's deadline survey, also argues against assuming they have surrendered.

Andrews is a fallback conversation, with compensation dependent on how much future salary Denver must take. There is not enough verified reporting to print a responsible pick-price prediction.

Sam LaPorta: the young tight end to monitor, not expect

LaPorta is the most appealing age-and-ability combination here. His OTC page lists 31 catches for 367 yards and three touchdowns through seven games. His ability after the catch would offer Denver more than an emergency outlet.

There is a genuine contract issue: NFL.com reports frustration over the absence of an extension, and confirms he is in his final rookie-contract season. It also documents the back surgery that ended his 2025 season and his positive assessment of his recovery this fall. Denver would still need its own medical review.

The problem is Detroit's incentive. A contender does not improve its championship chances by removing a productive young starter. Contract tension alone is not a trade request or an availability report.

OTC lists a $5.675 million 2026 base salary, but there is no cheap 2027 season attached. If he reaches the offseason unsigned and untagged, he becomes a free-agent target, not someone Denver needs to trade picks for. A 2027 trade would require Detroit first retaining his rights through a signed tag or a new contract. Monitor him; do not build the deadline plan around him.

Pollard is the practical RB; Spears is the younger bet

Tony Pollard: a defined job at a sensible commitment

USA TODAY's November 7 survey describes Pollard as a productive veteran on an expiring contract with a rebuilding Tennessee team. It cites 4.5 yards per carry and 246 rushing yards with five touchdowns across his previous two games.

Pollard could steady the rotation while Coleman develops, without a multiyear promise that the backfield belongs to him.

His contract ends after 2026, with a $6.74 million base salary and per-game bonuses this year. Denver would need room for the unpaid portion, not Tennessee's entire $9.25 million annual cap charge. The Titans' Week 8 injury report listed his missed practice as rest and showed full participation Friday; that is not a guarantee of his condition on trade day.

The Gazette calls him more realistic than Jonathan Taylor. Pollard is an upgrade, not a new offensive identity. Tennessee's incentive is getting draft value before an expiring contract; Denver's restraint should be refusing a price based on his recent touchdown burst.

Tyjae Spears: the younger option has to pass the medical test

Spears is four years younger than Pollard, but age should not substitute for availability. The same official Titans report ruled him out of Week 8 with a knee injury. We have not verified a subsequent clearance, so this cannot be sold as an immediate healthy reinforcement.

His receiving background is the attraction. OTC records 45 catches in 2025, but only 18 carries for 66 yards and 15 catches for 75 yards in its current 2026 line. That supports a complementary-role argument, not a claim that he is already outperforming Denver's backs.

A Payton offense could use him on screens and receiving assignments without requiring Coleman to disappear. Tennessee could turn an expiring depth piece into an asset. Neither point proves a Broncos offer exists.

OTC lists a $3.674 million 2026 base salary and 2027 unrestricted free agency. The acquisition only makes sense at a modest price after medical clearance, with a realistic workload plan. Otherwise, waiting for possible free agency is preferable to spending a pick on rehabilitation time.

Breece Hall is the upside call with the biggest caveats

Hall is 25 and has demonstrated the rushing-and-receiving range Denver would want. The Jets' contract announcement records 1,065 rushing yards and 350 receiving yards in 2025.

But he is not a distressed rookie-contract bargain. His three-year, $43.5 million deal runs through 2028 and includes a fully guaranteed $13.16 million base salary in 2027. This is a substantial spending decision even before compensation.

There is also contrary reporting: Pro Football Rumors' November 5 roundup says Aaron Glenn does not plan to trade him. Braelon Allen's emergence creates a conceivable seller argument, not proof that New York agrees.

The encouraging update is medical. The Jets' November 6 report shows Hall practicing fully Thursday and Friday after his quadriceps injury, with no game designation. Denver should evaluate his return before confusing last season's upside with current certainty. Do not make Hall the assumed solution.

The recommendation: upgrade tight end, protect Coleman's runway

Our order is Goedert first at tight end, Andrews only if the financial terms work, and LaPorta as a watchlist name rather than an expected trade. At running back, Pollard is the practical priority, Spears the medical-dependent younger alternative, and Hall the unlikely upside inquiry.

That leaves out the expensive fantasy-shopping exercise. Our earlier Tyler Warren versus Jonathan Taylor argument examined a hypothetical younger tight end swing; it was not a report that Warren was available. A rebuilding team selling veterans does not automatically mean it will sell its young core.

The next checkpoints are Hall's return, Spears' medical status and the sellers' actual demands before Tuesday's 2 p.m. MST deadline. After that cutoff, new trades must wait for the 2027 trading period. Expiring players such as Goedert, Pollard, Spears and LaPorta may instead become free-agent options; Denver should not pay next spring for rights that no longer exist.

Follow Coleman's development and the rest of Denver's rookie class on the live 2026 NFL redraft board. Improve the team without erasing the inexpensive upside already here.

Reporting and contract pages checked November 7, 2026. Statistics reflect the individual sources' latest available cutoffs, not a uniform live feed. Fit assessments and recommendations are RookieRanks analysis; no trade offers or availability are implied unless explicitly attributed.