Broncos Trade 2027 Fourth-Round Pick and 2028 Fifth to Chargers for LB Daiyan Henley

The Broncos are acquiring linebacker Daiyan Henley from the Chargers for a 2027 fourth-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick.

The deal adds a starting linebacker to a 7-2 Denver roster that sits first in the AFC West and is on its bye this week. Henley, 26, has started all eight games for Los Angeles this season, recording 51 tackles, half a sack, one interception, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. A 2023 third-round pick out of Washington State, he became a full-time starter in 2024, when he posted 147 tackles, and has 317 tackles, five sacks and four interceptions in 56 career games. He is in the final year of his rookie contract and is scheduled to hit unrestricted free agency in March. If the paperwork is processed in time, his first game with the Broncos would come Nov. 22 at home against the Raiders.

Denver already starts Alex Singleton and Justin Strnad inside, and linebacker Levelle Bailey is on season-ending injured reserve with a broken leg. Adding a 26-year-old starter on an expiring deal gives the Broncos a younger option in the middle of a playoff push, plus a chance to extend him before he reaches the market. The clubs already met in Week 5, when Denver won 23-17 at SoFi Stadium, and they are scheduled to play again in Week 18.

The Chargers are 0-8, a slide that includes a 22-6 loss to the Chiefs that dropped them to 0-6, and they have softened their stance on moving players as Tuesday's deadline approaches. Trading Henley returns a 2027 fourth and a 2028 fifth as Los Angeles starts collecting draft capital on a defensive starter who had not been extended. The Chargers have also placed star safety Derwin James Jr. on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. Their next game is Monday night at Baltimore.