Denver Broncos, acquire quarterback, Mark Sanchez
Denver Broncos, acquire quarterback, Mark Sanchez
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| Mark Sanchez |
The Denver Broncos have acquired veteran quarterback Mark Sanchez from the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2017 conditional draft pick
9News was the first to report the trade. The pick will be a sixth or seventh round draft choice in 2017 depending on how much Sanchez plays and/or produces in 2016
With the Broncos expected to get compensatory draft picks after losing Brock Osweiler, Malik Jackson and Danny Trevathan to free agency, Denver essentially got Sanchez for nothing
And so once again, John Elway is engineering a comeback.
Sanchez, who will draw a $4.5 million salary in the final year of his contract this year, is considered a borderline NFL starter/top backup quarterback
He is only step one in the Broncos' quarterback search. There will be a step two
The Broncos could team Sanchez with a more established starter -- San Francisco's Colin Kaepernick is the most frequently mentioned frontline quarterback available in trade and Case Keenum of the Los Angeles Rams figures to draw interest from around the league despite the first-round tender he received as a restricted free agent -- or back him up with a quarterback selection in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft
The scramble for a new starting quarterback began once Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning retired Monday and his expected heir apparent, Osweiler, spurned Denver two days later by signing a four-year, $72 million deal with the Houston Texans
The Broncos have some history with Sanchez. About a week prior to the 2009 NFL Draft, Broncos' freshly hired head coach Josh McDaniels arranged to visit with Sanchez on the USC, sparking speculation he would select the quarterback with his No. 12 overall draft pick
McDaniels wound up falling ill and couldn't attend the visit and instead sent general manager Brian Xanders and offensive coordinator Mike McCoy
McDaniels might have found a way to make it had he actually had intention of taking Sanchez. The visit, as it turned out, was a smokescreen that worked as the New York Jets jumped from No. 17 to No. 5 to take the Trojan quarterback
McDaniels selected running back Knowshon Moreno at No. 12. Then Tampa Bay jumped over the Broncos from No. 19 to No. 17 to take quarterback Josh Freeman
Again, the Broncos weren't taking a quarterback. Content with Kyle Orton, the Broncos took defensive end Robert Ayers at No. 18.
A wiseacre might say that in the end, there were no winners. Such a slight would be unfair to Sanchez, though. Playing the "game manager" role, Sanchez guided the Jets to back-to-back AFC Championship games his first two seasons of 2009-10
