Report: Broncos Trade FB Andy Janovich to Browns

The Broncos dealt Andy Janovich to the Browns in the wake of Pat Shurmur joining the coaching staff as offensive coordinator.

On Tuesday, day two of the NFL's legal tampering window, the Denver Broncos swung and missed on free-agent DT D.J. Reader, who took his talents to Cincinnati. With an eye on the great state of Ohio, the Broncos made another move with the Cleveland Browns, trading away fullback Andy Janovich. 

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Even though the Broncos signed Janovich to a multi-year extension last fall, the arrival of new offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur cast a pall on the fullback's future in Denver. Shurmur simply doesn't use the fullback position in his offense, and when he needs that extra blocker on short-yardage situations, he sends in a tight end or H-back to get it done. 

Janovich figured to provide additional value to the Broncos as a special-teamer but that was stretching it considering his three-year, $5.7 million extension. The Broncos send Janovich to Cleveland where he'll offer a utility to that new Kevin Stefanski offense inspired by the Gary Kubiak schemes of yore. 

Per Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic, the Janovich trade frees up $570,000 in cap space, while netting the Broncos another seventh-round draft pick. Happy trails to Janovich, who was Denver's sixth-round pick back in 2016. 

The trade portends well for Andrew Beck, who shined last year in Janovich's role after the starting fullback went down with a season-ending elbow injury. Beck is a tight end first, but he can play a little fullback. He figures to have a role behind No. 1 tight end Noah Fant in Shurmur's scheme. 

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