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Denver Broncos tight end Evan Engram.
The Denver Broncos spent big — relative to their budget — when they signed tight end Evan Engram to a 2-year, $23 million free agent contract before the 2025 season.
They got little in return for that spend, watching Engram put up a respectable 50 receptions … to go with 461 yards and just 1 touchdown. He also went missing when the Broncos needed him most, with just 3 receptions for 26 yards in 2 playoff games.
Now, the best move for Denver might be to see if they can find somewhere to offload the rest of Engram’s contract via a trade — hopefully in exchange for a late-round pick.
Spotrac’s Michael Ginnitti put Engram at the top of his list of possible offseason trade candidates for the Broncos.
“With $5M of 2026 salary fully guaranteed, the Broncos probably won’t outright release Engram this offseason, but it stands to reason they’ll try to offload this contract (1 year, $11.5M) in some capacity,” Ginnitti wrote. “The 31-year-old caught 50 passes, including 1 TD, in 2025.”
Broncos Thought Engram Could Fill ‘Joker’ Role
Through the first 2 seasons of Denver quarterback Bo Nix‘s career, he’s yet to play with an elite wide receiver or tight end — thanks in large part to $85 million in dead cap space the franchise has dealt with over the last 2 years thanks to the disastrous Russell Wilson contract.
Freed of those financial burdens, the Broncos might be able to go out and make a big move in free agency and not the bargain bin move they made with Engram, who head coach Sean Payton thought might fill the vaunted “Joker” role in his offense.
The Broncos had hoped the 31-year-old Engram still had a little gas left in the tank and could do something close to being the player he was when he made 2 Pro Bowls with 2 different teams — the New York Giants in 2020 and Jacksonville Jaguars in 2023.
Jags’ Decision Should Have Been Red Flag
We might want to look back now and wonder why the Broncos thought it was a good idea to sign a 30-year-old tight end to such a large contract.
It looks especially bad now that one of the first moves first-year Jaguars head coach Liam Coen made was to cut Engram — why he was available to the Broncos in the first place — and then went on to lead his team to the AFC South Division title.
The Jaguars turned to relatively unknown second round pick Brenton Strange at tight end. Strange outperformed Engram with 46 receptions for 540 yards and 3 touchdowns in just 12 games.
Back in March, ESPN’s Ben Solak called out signing Engram as one of the NFL free agent deals he “didn’t love” and wondered if Engram could really be a viable fix for the Broncos’ tight end woes.
“(Engram) adds the most value when he’s a high-volume underneath receiver,” Solak wrote. “On days in which Courtland Sutton demands high volume, or on which the Broncos want to be a run-heavy team … Engram could be obsolete. He doesn’t create big plays downfield or after the catch, and he isn’t an impactful blocker. It’s not a bad deal since the financial commitment isn’t huge. I’m just less enthusiastic about it than most are.”
Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders, Dallas Cowboys, Baltimore Ravens, Philadelphia Eagles and Denver Broncos. A veteran sports writer and editor since 2004, his work has been featured at Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame
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