John Elway's quarterback carousel continues in Denver. One year after the Broncos signed Case Keenum to a two-year, $36 million deal, the AFC West team has turned to Joe Flacco.
The Broncos traded for the veteran quarterback from the Ravens on Wednesday, according to multiple reports. ESPN was first to report the news.
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SIGN UP HERE Broncos head coach Vic Fangio is familiar with Flacco, spending 2008 and 2009 in Baltimore with Flacco under center. Fangio then had to go up against him as the 49ers' defensive coordinator when they lost to the Ravens in Super Bowl XLVII.
While the move affects the Raiders directly in having to face Flacco twice this season, it could have a bigger impact on the 2019 NFL Draft. In nearly every mock draft, Denver was slated to draft a quarterback at No. 10 overall or trade up for one. That no longer appears to be the case.
The Broncos were prime candidates to be calling both the Raiders for the No. 4 overall pick or the 49ers at No. 2 overall. You can now cross them off the list.
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With the Broncos trading for Flacco, there are now five teams selecting after the Raiders within the top 15 that could realistically draft a quarterback: Giants, Jaguars, Bengals, Dolphins, and Washington. Any one of those teams could be calling the Bay Area on draft night.
Who would be more willing to listen on a call though, the 49ers or Raiders? Right now, Oakland is in a much more ideal spot in the draft than San Francisco. The Raiders own 11 picks this year, including the three in the first round. The 49ers, on the other hand, only have five total.
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If teams call 49ers general manager John Lynch, he needs to at least listen closely. But in a weak quarterback draft class behind Kyler Murray and Dwayne Haskins, the number of teams that will want to move up are sure to be fewer than in years past.
What we do know now though, is there's one less team looking for their future signal caller -- at least in 2019.