8 trades we hope will happen by the NFL Trade Deadline

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Aaron Rodgers for Russell Wilson: Who says no?

The NFL trade deadline is upon us, with teams having until 4 p.m. ET to finalize their deals and get them submitted to the league. Like most years it’s looking increasingly like we’re going to have a quiet afternoon following weeks of speculation.

Part of this is due to timing. The Panthers and 49ers completed the biggest potential deal early, sending Christian McCaffrey to San Francisco for a handful of picks so he could boost the 49ers’ offense as quickly as possible. Meanwhile the Eagles bolstered their pass rush by adding Robert Quinn ahead of the deadline too. This has meant it’s increasingly likely we won’t see another huge blockbuster in 2022.

That said, there are some deals we wish would take place. Not just for the teams involved, but the overall excitement of the NFL as he approach the back-half of the season and the race to playoffs. In looking at these deals we can isolate the biggest needs of good teams down the stretch, or just anarchy that would tear the league apart — because chaos is a goal here too.

D.J. Moore to the Baltimore Ravens

At this point it’s fairly safe to say that the Panthers won’t be trading their top receiver, especially following back-to-back breakout weeks that’s seen Moore total 221 yards and two touchdowns. That said, Moore on the Ravens would be fun as hell.

Moore has thrived in chaos at the quarterback position for more or less his entire career. A perennially overlooked receiver, he’s a rare talent that makes his QB look better by catching everything thrown in his zip code, and he’s a YAC machine. If you put his skills on the Ravens’ offense it would be terrifying. The sheer amount of creative plays which could be drawn up for Moore running out in the flat and Lamar Jackson rolling out would give defenses nightmares. If you’re a fan of fun football it’s impossible not to love this idea.

There’s also a hearts and minds element to this too. Moore is one of the greatest receivers in Maryland football history, making it a fairly easy sell to fans to bring a player of his caliber to the Ravens.

— James Dator

Aaron Rodgers to the Broncos for Russell Wilson

This one is not serious… or is it?! No, it’s not really a suggestion for the NFL in 2022 — but think of the anarchy.

At this point it’s clear that Rodgers time in Green Bay has run its course, while there’s definitely some buyer’s remorse setting in out in Denver that this team gave up so much for Russell Wilson, and got back whatever iteration of Russ we’re seeing right now.

Flip these two players and everyone wins. Packers fans still remember Russ when he played for Wisconsin, and it removes the whole Aaron Rodgers headache. Meanwhile Aaron gets not only to reunite with Nathaniel Hackett, who let’s face it, was hired basically to try and get Rodgers in the first place — and Aaron would get to vote on the Colorado ballot initiative next week to legalize ayahuasca.

Sure, a trade would require Denver to eat some of Russ’ contract, but it’s a small price to pay in order to move on and give both players an attempt at greener pastures. Oh God, did I just convince myself this is a good idea?

— James Dator

Brandin Cooks to the Chicago Bears

In the past week we have seen the Bears and general manager Ryan Poles start to remake the team in his mold. They moved pass rusher Robert Quinn to the Philadelphia Eagles for a fourth-round selection, and then traded linebacker Roquan Smith to the Baltimore Ravens for a pair of picks, as well as veteran linebacker A.J. Klein. Given that it seemed unlikely that the Bears were going to reach a new deal with Smith, getting the second- and fifth-round picks, instead of seeing him walk in free agency and receive a third-round compensatory pick in return, seems like smart business.

Chicago is primed to be aggressive this offseason, as they are sitting on over $120 million in available cap space for the 2023 season, tops in the league. They also have a good bit of draft capital, holding four picks in the top 75 at the moment.

It is time to start building around what they have, which is a talented quarterback in Justin Fields who needs help.

Adding Brandin Cooks is not the immediate answer, but it gives Fields another weapon in the passing game. Cooks is the leading receiver for the Houston Texans, with 32 receptions on 53 targets this year for 354 yards and a touchdown, so general manager Nick Caserio might not part with him easily, but adding a receiver — or three — is a must for Chicago this offseason.

Why not start now, so Cooks and Fields can begin building that much-needed chemistry between WR and QB that is necessary to succeed in the NFL?

— Mark Schofield

Chase Claypool to the New York Giants

Another team that needs help at receiver right now? The surprising New York Giants. Under new head coach Brian Daboll the Giants are in the thick of things in the NFC, sitting at 6-2 as they head into their bye week.

But they could use some help at receiver.

Running back Saquon Barkley leads the team in targets with 35. The team traded Kadarius Toney, a first-round selection two drafts ago, to the Kansas City Chiefs. Kenny Golladay, their big free agent signing two springs ago? You have only six fewer targets, dear reader, than he does this year.

That brings us to Chase Claypool. The Pittsburgh Steelers are struggling, and while Claypool is one of their core pieces on offense, the emergence of George Pickens as a weapon in the passing game has seen Claypool become a sought-after commodity as the trade deadline looms. Plus, with Claypool set to hit free agency after 2023, the Steelers could move him now. He is the bigger-bodied type of receiver the Giants thought they were getting in Golladay, now they can add that piece via trade to shore up the offense for a second-half run.

— Mark Schofield

Josh Allen (DE) to the Tennessee Titans

In today’s NFL, you can never have enough pass rushers.

We saw that last week when the Eagles traded for Robert Quinn, a move that showed general manager Howie Roseman was willing to double-down on a strength.

That means players that can get after the quarterback are always going to find a home.

One such player? Josh Allen of the Jacksonville Jaguars. With the Jaguars drafting Travon Walker at the top of the draft last spring, there is a chance that Allen could be moved in the next few hours. Jacksonville has already made one move, trading away running back James Robinson to the New York Jets, and according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, Allen is another player to watch before the deadline.

Allen is in the fourth year of his rookie contract, and with Jacksonville picking up his fifth-year option, he is on the books for next season at $11.5 million, a very team-friendly number for a pass rusher. He has 3 sacks along with 18 quarterback pressures this season.

What team could use his services? How about the Miami Dolphins? The Dolphins are in the playoff mix, sitting at 5-3, but are struggling to pressure the passer. Miami has pressured opposing quarterbacks on just 14.8% of dropbacks this year, fourth-lowest in the NFL. They have just 15 sacks on the year, putting them in the bottom-half of the league.

This is while the Dolphins continue to utilize Cover 0 blitz packages, and other pressure schemes, at a high rate. Miami has faced 13 passing attempts this year while in Cover 0, second-most in the league according to charting data from Sports Info Solutions.

They have given up 10 completions for 194 yards and 2 touchdowns on those plays.

Miami has also blitzed on 90 defensive snaps, eighth-most in the league.

Adding a pass rusher seems like a wise move for Miami.

— Mark Schofield

Nelson Agholor and Bailey Zappe to the Buccaneers for Tom Brady

Having submitted three serious trade ideas, now it is time for, in the words of the wise James Dator, some “anarchy that would tear the league apart.”

We need this for the content.

The Buccaneers get a young quarterback to develop and another offensive weapon, while the Patriots bring Tom Brady back and give Mac Jones the rest of the season to heal. Plus, while Brady certainly enjoyed the start of his trip to Florida, like many vacations, eventually you yearn for the return home.

Will this happen? Absolutely not. Should it? Not even remotely.

But think of the content.

— Mark Schofield

Chase Claypool to the Jacksonville Jaguars

Alright stop me if you’ve heard this before: the Jaguars haven’t had a consistent outside vertical threat at receiver since Allen Robinson. This has constricted the offense to the point where every throw is now a throw over the intermediate area of the field with very little separation from any receiver. Jacksonville needs a receiver who can give the offense a little more juice.

Enter Chase Claypool. Since 2020 Claypool has 24 catches of 20+ air yards and five TDs, and his ability to not only get vertical downfield but be a bigger body to throw the ball downfield to could be a huge benefit to QB Trevor Lawrence. When Lawrence was at Clemson, he had receivers like Tee Higgins and Justyn Ross to throw jump balls to, and they’d come down with it. Claypool can fit that mold.

— J.P. Acosta

Brian Burns to the Kansas City Chiefs

The Rams already offered two late first round picks for Burns and got shut down, but let’s turn up the intensity here. In the AFC arms race, the Chiefs are slowly slipping behind the Bills defensively despite having Patrick Mahomes. Chris Jones is one of the best DTs in the league, and rookie George Karlaftis is coming along nicely, but they need someone who can flatten the corner and give the Chiefs pass rush some juice.

Brian Burns only has five sacks in 2022, but if you pair him with Chris Jones, that means double team rates for both guys go down. He’s not the same caliber player as Von Miller, but it would be similar to how Aaron Donald and Von Miller worked to complement each other during the Rams Super Bowl run.

The Chiefs are legitimate Super Bowl contenders. Their pass rush needs to catch up in order to unseat the Bills as the favorites.

— J.P. Acosta