Sean Payton’s History Makes Failed Chargers Trade Suspicious

The world of NFL front offices is built on relationships, connections and ultimately trust. George Paton may be the general manager for the Denver Broncos but head coach Sean Payton has a less than stellar history when it comes to trust, trickery and gamesmanship in the NFL.

The Los Angeles Chargers had a trade agreement in place for their homegrown starting linebacker, Daiyan Henley, to send him to the Denver Broncos. The trade that was finalized at the 11th hour before the trade deadline came to pass was for a 2027 fourth-round pick and 2028 fifth-rounder pick.

Late Wednesday night, the Broncos decided to pull the plug on the trade after trying to renegotiate the trade compensation after getting Henley in the building in Colorado. The Broncos cited a failed physical designation for Henley and specifically cited arthritis in his knee which immediately raised eyebrows and suspicions. The Chargers are now left to deal with the fallout.

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk raised concerns with the Broncos' evaluation and mentioned arthritis being a common issue for NFL linebackers.

"The Broncos discovered an issue with Henley’s knee. It has, we’re told, arthritis. (As one source with neither the Chargers nor the Broncos told PFT, most if not all starting linebackers in the NFL have some degree of arthritis in their knees.)"- Mike Florio

The entire situation smells fishy. Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh is asking the NFL to look into how the loophole, which allows trades to be adjusted by compensation past the deadline. Harbaugh pointed out the obvious issue with how this trade fell apart, the Broncos did not fail Daiyan Henley for his physical, they were only going to pass him if the trade compensation was reduced.