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UPDATE (9/4/15, 1:30 PM MT)
Regarding Montee Ball, of course #Broncos will explore trade avenues as part of due dilligence. Told nothing is going on with #Cowboys
— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) September 4, 2015
Must Reads
Not to doubt the Denver Post's Troy Renck's source(s), but there was a denial in the last month to Renck that a trade for Evan Mathis was in the works as well. Elway seemed to obliterate that denial on air in his in-booth interview on Denver's local KUSA broadcast last week when he stated that the Broncos made an offer for Mathis about a month ago to throw their hat into the ring.
A reporter can only report what they are told, researched and have witnessed.
And one more denial this time from KUSA's Mike Klis:
I was told Broncos have no trade talks going on with Montee Ball #9news #9sports
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) September 4, 2015
UPDATE (9/4/15, 1:10 PM MT)
More than just the Cowboys are in on the action. The Houston Texans and other teams are also in the mix for the services of Montee Ball which will only drive the asking price higher:
Multiple teams in the M Ball discussions, including Houston.
— Vic Lombardi (@VicLombardi) September 4, 2015
Denver's KCNC-TV's Vic Lombadi is first to report that the Denver Broncos and Dallas Cowboys are in trade talks that involve at least current Broncos running back, Montee Ball.
Broncos and Cowboys discussing a deal for Montee Ball.
— Vic Lombardi (@VicLombardi) September 4, 2015
Dallas had Ball ranked 41st on their draft board. The Cowboys had Ball listed as their third highest running back (a third round grade), just behind Giovani Bernard (second round grade) who would go on to be drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals and Eddie Lacy (second round grade) who was famously drafted after Ball by the Green Bay Packers. Ball was a third round grade on the Dallas draft board and rated just ahead of Le'Veon Bell (third round grade) who went on to be drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers and Joseph Randle (third round grade) who is currently the starter for the Cowboys.
Those are all very recognizable names to even a casual NFL fan.
Our friends over at Predominantly Orange also pointed this out:
If Montee Ball gets traded to the Cowboys, he’ll have a friend in former Wisconsin center Travis Frederick, one of the best in the NFL.
— Predominantly Orange (@PredomOrange) September 4, 2015
The connections are plenty and would make sense as Ball would likely be an upgrade over former Oakland Raiders running back Darren McFadden who is also in the mix for Dallas at the position, but often injured.
The question of value comes into play, Ball may have just flat-out been cut in favor of either the Broncos only carrying three running backs or making second-year running back Kapri Bibbs the fourth member of Denver's stable.
What is Ball worth? I would guess no more than a 6th round pick at best. However, John Elway doesn't play like that. I'd expect a conditional pick that would go as high as a 4th round possibly.
Ball was a second-round pick for Denver out of Wisconsin and started at running back for the team in the first part of 2014. He was eventually surpassed by both Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson due to injuries and some effectiveness concerns.
Dallas, retained the offensive line that paved the way for DeMarco Murray last season on his way to rushing for 1,845 yards.