The Denver Broncos have made many difficult decisions since the 2023 season concluded. Among those were releasing Russell Wilson and eating an NFL record amount of dead money, releasing beloved veteran Justin Simmons and trading wide receiver Jerry Jeudy.
It's that last move, concerning Jeudy, that Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report suggests that the Broncos will live to regret.
The Broncos traded Jeudy to the Cleveland Browns back in March in return for fifth and sixth-round picks in the draft. The Browns then signed Jeudy to a new contract extension for three years with $41 million in guarantees.
That is a great deal for Jeudy who was once a first-round pick of the Broncos. In exchange, the Broncos received two Day 3 picks which both ended up being traded in packages to help acquire quarterback Zach Wilson and wide receiver Troy Franklin.
Knox lays out good reasons why the Broncos could regret the decision, mostly that the team should have gotten more in return, but let's take a deeper look.
Why Denver Broncos won't regret trading Jerry Jeudy
Though he was selected in the first round in 2020, Jeudy never came close to playing like a No. 1 wide receiver. While he had his supporters within the fanbase who often made excuses for him such as poor quarterback play and the fact that he was "always open" the quarterback just never saw him, there were several factors that made this a good move for the team.
Jeudy might find a way to get open, but it was rarely at the right time. Perhaps he and the quarterbacks he played with just weren't on the same page, but there was a lack of confidence in looking his way. A true No. 1 wide receiver is going to get the ball thrown to him, sometimes even if he's not open. For example, Russell Wilson had no problem giving Courtland Sutton chances.
When Jeudy was on the field, it never one time felt like the team had a difference-maker at wide receiver. That is why former star receiver Steve Smith called him a "JAG" (just another guy) last season. Jeudy took offense to that, but that's exactly what he was.
Jerry Jeudy had some choice words for Steve Smith during pregame and then Steve Smith just went OFF on Jeudy on NFL Network 😳 pic.twitter.com/SF0pW2YCKe
— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) October 12, 2023
Finally, Jeudy's behavior on social media was deplorable at worst and shockingly embarrassing at best. You can chalk it up to him being "young and dumb" if you want to, but his constant attacks of those with an opinion, particularly of former teammates like Phillip Lindsay and Broncos legends such as Rod Smith and Mark Schlereth were just ridiculous.
There was no place for him on the roster going forward.
Only if your opinion mattered Hating ass dude #Bagseason 💰💰💰yall go give this lame ass dude some attention. https://t.co/xHmUVPJaPS
— Jerry Jeudy⁴ (@jerryjeudy) March 21, 2024
It's best for business to get as much as you can for a player, particularly a former first-round pick who still has potential upside. But the Broncos likely could not have gotten much more than they did.
At least the current front office got some sort of return for him. Had I been in that same role, you could have had him for nothing.
