Aqib Talib’s interesting contract makes him great trade piece

Denver Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib has an interesting contract that makes him a very attractive trade piece this offseason…

The Denver Broncos will likely be in hot pursuit of a quarterback this offseason, specifically the likes of Kirk Cousins and possibly Case Keenum or Tyrod Taylor should he become available.

With that being the case, John Elway and the rest of the Denver Broncos front office will be looking to shed some salary to make room for someone like Cousins or whomever else they decide to bring in.

One player that could be expendable this offseason is Pro Bowl cornerback Aqib Talib, who at the age of 31 is still playing some of the best football of his career.

Talib’s contract was constructed in such a way that the Broncos could really get out of it with minimal dead money hits after the first three seasons. The dead money hit for the Broncos in 2018 with a release or trade of Talib would be around $1 million, and despite the fact that he’s taking up a smaller percentage of their cap in 2018 than he was in 2017, the Broncos could free up a very necessary $11 million by unloading Talib’s contract.

The $12 million cap number seems like a pretty large undertaking for any team looking to acquire Talib, but after swallowing that tough pill, the reward of trading Talib comes in 2019, when his cap figure drops to $8 million.

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Even though Talib will be 33 in 2019, his $8 million cap number is far below market value for cornerbacks of his caliber, and paying any corner like Talib an average of $10 million per season over the course of the next two seasons seems like a bargain no matter how you slice it.

For a team that has a need at cornerback and a good amount of cap space this year, trading for Talib seems to be a really wise decision, because the Broncos could be motivated to get a deal done and the price to acquire him may be significantly less than it should be for how good Talib is.

Remember, the Broncos flat out cut T.J. Ward to shed salary. Talib is such a good player, I don’t know how they could justify just cutting him outright, but it may come to that.

This is a player that is obviously worth looking into if your team has a need at the cornerback position. I would think any pick between the 3rd and 5th round could get it done, depending on how many suitors there are for his services. You won’t get a player in those rounds of the draft that can make the type of impact on your team Talib can.

This looks like a no-brainer situation to me.