And just like that, trade season in the NFL is officially closed.
This year’s trade deadline didn’t meet the excitement of the 2022 bonanza, but we at least saw a couple of major names get dealt – thanks for that, Washington Commanders!
So with the trade deadline in the books, let’s hand out our grades for the 10 biggest trades.
49ers Acquire Chase Young From Commanders
The San Francisco 49ers snagged 2020 second overall pick Chase Young from the Washington Commanders in exchange for a 2024 third-round draft pick. Leading up to the deadline, Young and Montez Sweat — more on him later — were widely mentioned as hot trade candidates.
Few thought that Lynch had a big trade deadline move up his sleeve, but it was the reigning NFC runner-ups who won the Young sweepstakes in a big-time stunner. And so, Young, who’s in the final year of his rookie contract, gets the opportunity to “chase” a championship — see what we did there.
49ers Grade: A+
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We simply can’t think of a reason for any 49ers fan to hate this move. They already bolster a top-three defense anchored by defensive end Nick Bosa and linebacker Fred Warner.
After two injury-riddled years, Young has bounced back nicely here in 2023 — racking up five sacks and 18 QB pressures in seven games. Now he gets to join forces with Bosa and Warner, who can both single-handedly take over games on their own.
Commanders Grade: C
We still don’t understand why the Commanders decline the fifth-year option on Young’s rookie contract. They set themselves up for a lose-lose situation. And sure enough, the front office gave Young away at a below-market price to a Super Bowl front-runner.
Extra draft picks are nice and all, but a 2024-third rounder for a player you used a No. 2 pick on three years ago isn’t ideal. Don’t forget that Young was hyped as a generational prospect, and the Commanders are suddenly giving up on him just as he was putting together a career year.
Bears “Sweat” It Out For Montez
In another surprise move, the Chicago Bears wound up winning the Montez Sweat trade sweepstakes — acquiring Washington’s other star defensive end in exchange for a 2024 second-round pick.
Sweat, like Young, is a pending free agent. He posted 6.5 sacks in eight games with the Commanders before getting traded to Chicago.
Sweat tallied at least seven sacks in three of his first four seasons and is on pace to set a career-high in that category.
Bears Grade: C-
Sweat’s a great player, but this is a lot for GM Ryan Poles to give up for a pending free agent.
Last year, Chicago gave up a second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for wideout Chase Claypool, who didn’t even last a year in Windy City. Naturally, you gotta be worried about this move for Sweat backfiring as well.
If Chicago ends up extending Sweat, then the trade should pay off in the end. Chicago doesn’t have any game-changing edge rushers, so maybe Sweat can finally fill the void. This is our grade for now, but it’s truly a TBD. Could easily be an A+ or a big, giant “F” in the coming months.
Commanders Grade: A
We love this move for the Commanders. You were never gonna get a first-round pick for a pending free agent, but this was still a very savvy move by GM Martin Mayhew.
Sweat and Young are great players, but two guys don’t make up an 11-man defense. Washington’s defense is among the NFL’s worst in most major categories — even with Sweat and Young playing their best football yet.
So yeah, it was wise to restart here and accumulate extra draft capital. Who knows how handy the additional picks will be on draft day — especially if the Commanders wanna trade up for a QB.
Kevin Byard Joins Eagles’ Flock
With injuries piling up in the secondary, the Eagles acquired two-time All-Pro safety Kevin Byard from the Tennessee Titans for fellow safety Terrell Edmunds and 2024 fifth and sixth-round draft picks.
Tennessee was 2-and-4 at the time of the trade and resembled nothing of a playoff team. Surprisingly, GM Ran Carthon also held on to pending free agents Derrick Henry and Ryan Tannehill — so he didn’t end up selling as much as expected.
‘Least he made one big move for a Titans team that appears to be in a transitioning period.
Eagles Grade: A+
Any time you can get a top-tier safety without giving up an early-round pick, it’s a win. Yet somehow, GM Howie Roseman got Byard for two late-round picks and a rotational safety that never fit into the club’s long-term plans anyway.
Byard had 27 interceptions and 63 pass defenses in his eight seasons as a Titan. He joins a secondary led by two stalwart cornerbacks in Darius Slay and James Bradberry. That’s now three shutdown slash certified ball-hawkers patrolling the secondary together.
How can you not love this if you’re an Eagles fan?
Titans Grade: D-
It’s just weird to us that the Titans would sell low on Byard but keep their other valuable trade assets. Are they rebuilding or not? The Byard trade doesn’t answer that question at all.
If you’re keeping Henry, Tannehill and DeAndre Hopkins et al, you may as well keep Byard and make a run at the postseason. Or, you know, trade your best defensive back for a very minimal return. That’s a rookie mistake by a rookie GM in Mr. Carthon, alright.
A New “Street” Lands In Atlanta
The Atlanta Falcons lost star defensive lineman Grady Jarrett for the year with a torn ACL, and GM Terry Fontenot didn’t waste time trying to find a replacement.
The Eagles were happy to help, trading veteran defensive end Kentavius Street and a 2025 seventh-round pick to Atlanta in exchange for a 2024 sixth-round pick.
Falcons Grade: C+
Street has been a rotational player throughout his career, but he did have 3.5 sacks for the New Orleans Saints in 2022. With an increased role, the veteran defensive lineman could see a jump in his stats.
Eagles Grade: C+
Street was never gonna get much playing team on football’s best front seven. The fact that Roseman got an extra late-round pick is just a neat and tidy piece of work all around. Shall we mention that Eagles’ star Jason Kelce is a former sixth-round pick?
Lions Land Donovan Peoples-Jones From Browns
Following a career year, Donovan Peoples-Jones saw his usage shrink considerably in Cleveland.
But the Detroit native gets the chance to rediscover his game with his hometown team, no less, after the Browns sent him to the Lions for a 2025 sixth-round pick.
DPJ had 61 catches for 839 yards and three TDs last year. In seven games with the Browns, he had just eight catches for 97 yards and no scores.
Lions Grade: C+
This is a low-risk, potentially high-reward move for the Lions. Peoples-Jones almost had 900 yards last year with Jacoby Brissett as his main QB.
Now he joins an offense led by Jared Goff, Amon-Ra St. Brown, Josh Reynolds, Sam LaPorta and the potent RB duo of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.
We’re not sure how big Peoples-Jones’ role will be in Detroit, but the 6-foot-2, 204-pound wideout should be a nice red zone weapon for Goff and company. As their No. 2 or 3 receiver, he stands to draw plenty of favorable matchups that he wasn’t getting in Cleveland.
Browns Grade: C-
Not gonna hate on Cleveland for making this move. Four Browns players had more receiving yards than Peoples-Jones at the time of the trade — including running back Jerome Ford.
With Ford, Amari Cooper, David Njoku and Elijah Moore in the fold, the Browns have more than enough weapons to get by on offense. May as well get something for a pending free agent, and hey, some gems come out of the sixth-round. Ever hear of Tom Brady, Ken Riley or Terrell Davis? Just saying!
Vikings Find Kirk Cousins’ Replacement, Snag Josh Dobbs From Cardinals
The veteran journeyman opened 2023 as the Arizona Cardinals’ starting QB with Kyler Murray recovering from a torn ACL he suffered last December.
But with Murray on the verge of returning, Arizona dealt Dobbs and a 2024 conditional seventh-round pick to a QB-needy team, the Minnesota Vikings, for a 2024 sixth-round pick.
So it looks like Dobbs, rookie Jaren Hall and journeyman Nick Mullens will fight for the starting job with Kirk Cousins out for the season with a torn Achilles. Game on.
Vikings Grade: B
The Vikings were never going to pay a king’s ransom for a big-named QB at the deadline, so getting a cheap option like Dobbs for pennies was a good move by GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
With little talent on a hapless Arizona team, Dobbs completed 62.8 percent of pass attempts for eight touchdowns and five picks. An offensive-minded genius like Kevin O’Connell can hopefully get something more out of Dobbs, who has three big-time playmakers in Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and TJ Hockenson as his weapons.
Cardinals Grade: B
Dobbs was never gonna start for Arizona again, so good on GM Monti Ossenfort for getting SOMETHING in return.
Arizona moves up one round in the draft for a backup QB. It’s better than nothing!
Ezra Cleveland Heads To Duval County
With starting guard Walker Little battling a knee injury, the Jacksonville Jaguars decided to bolster their offensive line depth. Surprisingly, the red-hot Vikings were willing to lend a helping hand there.
Jacksonville landed veteran guard Ezra Cleveland from Atlanta for the low price of a 2024 sixth-round pick. The 2020 second-round pick started six games for Minnesota this season prior to the trade.
Jaguars Grade: A
This is a big-time win for a team that is on cruise control for its second straight AFC South division title. As a Viking, Cleveland garnered a 2023 Pro Football Focus grade of 73.8 — allowing just one sack in 372 offensive snaps.
Cleveland has graded 68.6 or better each year since 2021. He’s a serviceable enough starter, or at the very worst a rotational piece. A cheap short-term fill-in for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.
Vikings Grade: D
Hard to comprehend this one for Minnesota. They traded for Josh Dobbs with the idea of competing for a playoff spot without Kirk Cousins — but then they also traded one of their starting offensive linemen? It’s not making sense to us.
Chiefs Reunite With Mecole Hardman
After winning two Super Bowls with the Chiefs, Hardman signed a one-year deal with Aaron Rodgers’ New York Jets.
But Hardman was seldom-used in the Jets’ offense, so he was traded back to where it all began — along with a 2025 seventh-round pick — for a 2025 sixth-rounder.
Chiefs Grade: B+
KC hasn’t gotten enough production out of its wide receivers this year. Hardman was a fine No. 3 pass-catching option for KC, recording over 500 receiving yards in each of his first three years.
The veteran speedster has good chemistry with Patrick Mahomes and a championship pedigree with two rings. Welcome back home, Mecole.
Jets Grade: C+
Again, it’s a minor win in itself that the Jets got something for a player that wasn’t part of their long-term plans. Hardman wasn’t a fit in Gotham, and that’s okay. Good on GM Joe Douglas to quickly admit the mistake and pick up
Rasul Douglas Joins The Bills Herd
For the first time in ages, the Green Bay Packers were sellers at the trade deadline. So they gave up standout cornerback Rasul Douglas and a 2024 fifth-round draft choice to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for a 2024 third-rounder.
The Bills needed defensive back help after losing Pro Bowl corner Tre’Davious White for the year with a torn ACL. He leaves a disappointing Green Bay team and now gets to chase a second Super Bowl ring with the Bills.
Bills Grade: B
PFF has graded Douglas in the 70s every year since he joined the Pack in 2021. He was graded at 75.2 this season before going to Buffalo.
Douglas had one pick and six pass defenses on a mediocre Green Bay D. Now he gets to work with Jordan Poyer, Micah Hyde, Von Miller, Ed Oliver et al. This was low-key a brilliant move by GM Brandon Beane, even if it cost a high pick.
Packers Grade: A
Green Bay clears cap space and adds an extra much-needed draft pick to a tremendously flawed roster. The Packers have a wealthy history of finding gems with day two picks, so this trade could end up being a giant long-term win for them.
Seahawks Take A Swing For Leonard Williams
With the New York Giants out of the playoff race, GM Joe Schoen (SHANE) decided to prioritize the future. So he traded standout defensive lineman Leonard Williams to the Seattle Seahawks for 2024 second and 2025 fifth-round draft picks.
In five seasons with the Giants, Williams had 22.5 sacks and helped them to a surprise playoff appearance a year ago. Now he gets to chase a ring in the Pacific Northwest.
Seahawks Grade: C
A second-round pick for a non-Pro Bowl guy on an expiring contract is…a lot.
Seattle doesn’t need Williams. They already have enough pass-rushing depth with Boye Mafe, Jarran Reed, Jordyn Brooks, Bobby Wagner, Darrell Taylor AND Dre’Mont Jones.
Williams is a fine pass-rusher, not a great one. Where is he going to fit on this d-line? And how will Seattle justify giving up a second-round pick for him?
Giants Grade: A+
Williams wasn’t coming back next year, yet the retooling Giants just got two picks — including a second-rounder — for a guy having a not-so-great season? This has been a miserable year for the Giants, but Schoen hit this trade out of the ballpark.
