Broncos' Jaylen Waddle trade could give Jets prime opportunity to add their own WR

The Denver Broncos made a splash Tuesday morning, swinging a trade for Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Denver sent their 2026 first-round pick, third-round pick, and fourth-round pick to Miami, while the Dolphins are giving back their fourth-round pick.

There's good news and bad news for the New York Jets. The bad news, the Dolphins are now squarely in play for a wide receiver with the No. 11 overall pick, a position the Jets are hoping a blue-chip prospect falls to them at No. 16.

The good news, Waddle won't be tormenting the Jets twice a year in the AFC East anymore. In nine career games against New York, the former Alabama prospect hauled in 53 catches for 629 yards and three touchdowns.

Even better, the Broncos may now have a surplus of pass catchers, and the Jets could be the beneficiary of plucking from Denver's wide receiver room.

Could the Jets snag a wide receiver from the Broncos?

Before taking the Jets' general manager job, Darren Mougey served as the assistant general manager to the Broncos, and certainly still has ties with the organization. Could he utilize those ties to pull off another savvy trade?

Courtland Sutton is Denver's best receiver not named Waddle, and is the exact type of big-bodied pass catcher Frank Reich loves to utilize in his offense. He may be a little too pricey for the Jets' tastes right now, though. He still has three years remaining on a four-year, $92 million extension he signed last summer.

Some other fringe options that the Jets could eye up, as Mougey loves to do with his trades, are players like Troy Franklin or Marvin Mims.

Franklin, a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, is another wide receiver who could fit the mold Reich is looking for. In 33 career games, he's caught 93 passes for 972 yards and eight touchdowns. A player of his caliber may only cost a Day 3 pick.

Similarly, Mims, a second-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, hasn't necessarily lived up to his draft stock. Over 48 games, he's hauled in 98 receptions for 1,202 yards and eight touchdowns.

Neither Franklin nor Mims would prevent the Jets from continuing to add to their wide receiver room, but they would certainly provide some valuable depth to a team that desperately needs it.

Either way, New York is still hoping for one of those top prospects to fall to them at No. 16, but Mougey's history of trades shouldn't rule out the possibility of an addition from another team.