Broncos Tony Scheffler shipped to the Lions in three team deal

The Denver Broncos continue to purge every single good offensive player from their roster by sending disgruntled tight end Tony Scheffler to the Lions. A 7th round pick was also sent to Detroit with Scheffler. The Broncos received a 5th round pick from the Philadelphia Eagles, while the Eagles got Ernie Sims from the Lions. Sims, you may recall, was the 9th overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft.

Not sure how this pretty substantial trade affects the NFL Draft this week, but it did address some pretty big needs for the Eagles (linebacker) and the Broncos (Josh McDaniels' ego). The Lions got another weapon for Matthew Stafford, but does the Scheffler signing mean that last year's first round pick, tight end Brandon Pettigrew, is already a bust? Pettigrew is known as a pass-catching TE, not a blocker. Scheffler is known as a pass-catching tight end, not a blocker. Oh, and Calvin Johnson is on the team. Maybe the Lions will run some modification of the Colts base two-TE offense. Mocking Dan tries to rationalize:

The immediate thought from me is that this is a bad trade for the Lions. They get a throwaway pick and a backup tight end for a starting-caliber linebacker.

In 2009, Sims started nine of the 11 games he's played in, totaling 49 tackles. He started every game for the Lions between 2006 and 2008.

Scheffler has long been a trade rumor for the Broncos. Last season he had 31 receptions for 416 yards ad two touchdowns. On his career, he as 138 catches for 1,896 yards and 14 touchdowns.

He'll likely backup Brandon Pettigrew, who the Lions selected in the first round last year.

I don't see how Scheffler backs-up Pettigrew. Scheffler is better than him, especially when he played in an offense that actually used the tight end. The trade does indeed seem odd for Detroit.

I know a few people here were speculating the Colts possibly trading for Scheffler. As you can now see, we would have needed to give up too much to get him.