Not long after the Denver Broncos traded for head coach Sean Payton in January 2023, Payton made a trade of his own that raised some eyebrows.
That came when Payton cut a deal to bring one of his former players on the New Orleans Saints to Denver, sending a 2023 sixth round pick to New Orleans in exchange for tight end Adam Trautman and a 2023 seventh round pick.
“The Denver Broncos with a bit of a stunner of a trade here on Day 3 of the NFL Draft: Sean Payton adds one of his former 3rd-round picks Adam Trautman, TE from the Saints,” Predominantly Orange’s Sayre Bedinger wrote on X in 2023.
Trautman has been one of the steady pieces in Denver’s offense the last 3 seasons — not a standout by any means — but his value in 2025 seems to be showing in other ways. These ways seem to indicate he’s outperforming even prized free agent tight end Evan Engram, who signed a 2-year, $23 million free agent contract in March.
Take, for example, a brilliant stat compiled by The Denver Post’s Luca Evans pulled from Denver’s 34-26 win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 15.
It was the 11th consecutive win for the Broncos as they improved to 12-2 ahead of a Week 16 home game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Trautman is in the final season of the 2-year, $7.5 million contract he signed before the 2024 season.
“Going through some personnel-group stuff from Broncos-Packers,” Evans wrote on X on December 17≥ “One thing that jumps out: when TE Adam Trautman was on the field, Bo Nix was 14-of-19 for 196 yards and 3 TDs. 146.1 QB rating.”
One Epic Quote Defending QB Bo Nix
Trautman showed he was the ultimate locker room guy when he came to the defense of second year quarterback Bo Nix in truly epic fashion in November as Nix found himself the subject of widespread criticism over his inconsistent play.
“If you’re talking (expletive) about Bo online, you’re a coward,” Trautman said. “Absolute coward … He blanks it out … We don’t care what other people think. We know what we have in the building, and we know what he’s made of, and we don’t really care what people have to say, so, Dragonslayer69 with his 7-11 Slurpee in his mom’s basement, I don’t give a (expletive) what he has to say, right? And Bo doesn’t, either.”
Trautman Effective When He Gets Ball
Aside from giving one of the more incredible quotes of the last few years, Trautman, 6-foot-5 and 253 pounds, has been more than effective as a blocker and pass catcher on the few opportunities he has to get the ball.
In 3 seasons with the Broncos, Trautman has yet to miss a regular season game, with 37 starts in 48 games to go with 51 receptions for 549 yards and 6 touchdowns on 75 targets.
Engram has been somewhat of a disappointment with 41 receptions for 349 yards and 1 touchdown on 64 targets.
“Specifically (Payton), there’s a type of swag that he brings,’’ Trautman told Denver 9News’ Mike Klis on December 6. “And I felt that when I was drafted by New Orleans. He has this type of swag and confidence that … every single game since I’ve been here, even the first year, we went into every single game expecting, ‘Hey, we’re going to win.’
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Broncos TE Adam Trautman Outperforming $23 Million Free Agent appeared first on Heavy Sports.