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Winners, Losers From Saints-Broncos Surprise Trade

Originally posted on New Orleans Saints on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Aug 21, 2025 8:22 AM ET

The New Orleans Saints have a new wide receiver in town.

There has been rumbling about the Saints needing more depth in the receiver room behind Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed, and Brandin Cooks. The Saints paid a pretty penny on Wednesday night and acquired receiver Devaughn Vele from the Denver Broncos in exchange for a fourth-round and seventh-round pick, according to ESPN's Adam Scheft er.

"And another trade! The Denver Broncos are sending WR Devaughn Vele to the New Orleans Saints for a 2026 4th-round pick and a 2027 7th-round pick, per sources," Schefter said.

It was a surprising deal that came out of nowhere. There weren't rumors or anything of the nature building up to the trade and then all of a sudden it hit social media and the price tag certainly turned some heads.

So, who won and lost the trade?

Did the Saints get it right with their trade with the Broncos?

Winners:

Denver Broncos
It's hard not to view the Broncos as the winner here right now. Vele was a seventh-round rookie last year and had a solid year with 41 catches, 475 yards, and three touchdowns. The Broncos turned that into two draft picks. Denver's receiver room already is deep as well, this doesn't necessarily hurt their offense and they got two picks back. It's certainly a great deal from their perspective.

Devaughn Vele
Denver's receiver room is deep so he likely wouldn't have gotten as many opportunities over there if he wasn't moved. The Saints have been needing some more receiver help so this at least should be a better overall opportunity for him.

Loser:

New Orleans Saints
How can the Saints be a loser if they got a piece that can help them right away? Well, the price tag was high and at this moment, Vele isn't a guaranteed thing for the Saints' offense. The Saints have questions all over the place. It's a whole new era with Kellen Moore now leading the team. It's unclear what the team will look like in general in the regular season. Trading future pieces away is somewhat surprising too.

More NFL: Saints May Have Just Tipped Their Hand At Starting QB

This article first appeared on New Orleans Saints on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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