The 2022 season was a disaster for the Denver Broncos. They made a huge splash acquiring Russell Wilson from the Seattle Seahawks during the offseason that just didn’t pan out. Things went so poorly that Nathaniel Hackett was fired as head coach after one season on the job.

This offseason, Denver made another splash, acquiring head coach Sean Payton from the New Orleans Saints. There is optimism that Payton can help turn around an offense that was among the worst in the NFL last season despite not lacking talent.

That disastrous season could have been avoided had the trade the Broncos thought they had completed gone through. According to a former NFL executive that spoke to NFL Analysis Network, Denver nearly acquired Aaron Rodgers from the Green Bay Packers last offseason before pivoting to a deal for Wilson.