Broncos Trade WR Lelie to Falcons in Three-Way Trade
| 8
|
by user Drpatriot
According to ESPN.com and Profootballtalk.com, discontented Denver Broncos WR Ashley Lelie has been traded to the Atlanta Falcons in a three way trade. The Falcons then send RB T.J. Duckett to the Washington Redskins, who in turn send a 2007 draft pick to the Broncos.
So who got the best out of this trade? My answer is the Broncos. Ashley Lelie is unnecessary weight at WR because they have Javon Walker and Rod Smith. In turn, they get a draft pick, and based on Washington's recent rading habits with draft picks, likely a better draft pick than Lelie was worth.
The Falcons got a reasonably good deal. They finally got another WR to play in the slot with a lot of upside and little downside (his contract runs out at the end of the year). However, they lose a valuable piece of their running game in T.J. Duckett. The only way I can see this being beneficial for the Falcons is if rookie RB Jerious Norwood can perform as well in the regular season as he has so far this preseason.
I think that the Redskins got the raw end of this deal. They exchanged a draft choice for a RB who really isn't necessary with Ladell Betts and Rock Cartwright on the roster. The plus side: Duckett adds another dimension to the running game as a change-of-pace back. The minus side: the Redskins already have two change-of-pace backs. This only makes sense for Washington if Clinton Portis, who is down with a shoulder injury, is doing worse than the Redskins are letting on.
Date
Tue 08/22/06, 10:02 pm EST
As for Lelie, he gets his wish of being a #1 WR. But with his low catch rate, on top of the fact that now he has to catch for Vick, who might be the toughest QB to catch passes from in the league. Lelie is destined to disappoint.