Burn it all down? As tempting as an angry response might be to a football team going nowhere, a fire sale is no way to rebuild the Broncos.
So don’t bring me some harebrained idea about trading cornerback Pat Surtain II for a bounty of future draft picks. I will gladly tell you, however, that it’s time for receiver Jerry Jeudy and the Broncos to go their separate ways.
Lose at home on Sunday to the New York Jets, the only NFL team with a longer playoff drought than the Broncos, and the fingerprints of our old friend Nathaniel Hackett could be on more pink slips handed out in Denver.
Drop to rock-bottom of the AFC standings with a 1-4 record, and there would be no need for the Broncos to tank for a shot at the No. 1 pick in the next year’s draft, when they could sell off veteran talent at the Oct. 31 trade deadline and watch a diminished roster get bullied for the remainder of this lost season.
There would be no shortage of potential trade targets in a frustrated and anxious Denver locker room, including everyone and anyone from offensive tackle Garett Bolles to safety Justin Simmons and receiver Courtland Sutton. General manager George Paton needs to be busy on the phone, measuring the trade market for those veterans.
There’s only one untouchable on Denver’s roster. That’s Surtain.
Yes, I remember how the Los Angeles Rams overpaid for a Pro Bowl cornerback in 2019, sending two future first-round picks and a fourth-rounder to Jacksonville in return for Jalen Ramsey, who helped the Rams win Super Bowl LVI.
I’m not interested in trading a future Hall of Famer, and if a Denver team short on both talent and leadership even thinks about unloading Surtain, then Sean Payton isn’t anywhere near as smart of a coach thinks he is.
But don’t take my word for it. How good is Surtain?
“He can have a Hall of Fame career, and he’s well on his way,” said Hall of Fame cornerback Champ Bailey, the most talented defensive player to ever wear a Broncos uniform.
“I’m not going to shy away from putting those lofty goals in front of him. … When you see it, you see it. God willing, he stays healthy and continues to get better, the kid can play. He’s going to be one of the all-time greats.”
When I asked what makes Surtain so special, Bailey insisted the 23-year-old cornerback is more advanced than one of the greatest defensive backs in NFL history was at the same point in his brilliant career.
“Every time you watch Surtain, it’s the same technique and greatness, game after game. And he never gets rattled,” Bailey told me. “He does it down after down. It’s all mental. To have what Surtain has down pat during his first two or three years in the league? I didn’t get that way until my fifth or sixth season, during the prime of my career.”
The indescribable wow to Surtain’s game is a stubborn focus that almost never allows his mind to surrender to stray thoughts of self-doubt. When he got beat on a touchdown pass late in the 70-20 loss to the Dolphins, it was a rare moment of weakness that reminded us Surtain can be human.
We all have our flaws. Although Jeudy is capable of carving a pass route sharper than a stiletto, he’s so flawed as a competitor, distracted by perceived insults on the internet and brought down by his own insecurities, that the Broncos would be wise to move on from him, regardless of the outcome against the Jets.
There’s no denying Jeudy’s talent. With 47 receiving yards on Sunday, he would join Demaryius Thomas, Brandon Marshall and Courtland Sutton as the only receivers in team history to reach the 2,500-yard milestone in 45 games.
Unlike Thomas, who had a heart of gold, Jeudy is more like Marshall, whose tormented soul stopped him from being a player teammates could trust when adversity struck.
Rookie Marvin Mims Jr., poised, mature and freaky fast, is the receiver the Broncos hoped Jeudy would be when Denver selected him with the 15th overall pick in the first round of the 2020 draft.
Jeudy has never seemed at home in Denver, and it would be hard for anyone to feel comfortable, given the near-constant state of turmoil that has plagued the franchise. If the Broncos can get a second-round pick for Jeudy, let him find happiness elsewhere.
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