Help might be on the way for the Denver Broncos' 30th-ranked pass defense.
NFL Media's Gil Brandt reports the Broncos have expressed some interest in trading for Minnesota Vikings four-time All-Pro pass rusher Jared Allen with an hour remaining before the NFL's trade deadline.
Denver's interest comes just minutes after initial reports of a Seattle Seahawks push for Allen were debunked.
A Seattle source told NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport that any talk of the Seahawks' interest in Allen is "vastly overblown." The Vikings are hoping to be blown away by an offer or they won't trade him, Rapoport adds, via a team source.
We pointed out last week that the nearly $8 million remaining on Allen's contract made a trade unlikely.
Rapoport suggested 10 teams that could take on Allen without the defensive end having to restructure his contract. The Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Green Bay Packers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Tennessee Titans all have enough cap space to take on a contract such as Allen's.
To pull off a trade, the Broncos would have to free up close to $1 million in cap space or get Allen to rework his contract.
USAToday's Tom Pelissero confirms that Allen indeed is willing to restructure his contract "for the right situation." We take that to mean he's interested in an extension as opposed to a paycut. As far as trade talks go, that's more of a Matterhorn than a molehill.
In other words, this is far from a done deal with the sands trickling through the hour glass.
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