Every week, we take questions from our readers for our Friday NFL news mailbag. This week, we’re trying to figure out which teams might bolster their playoff squads with trades, which losing teams can make the playoffs, and which players seem like locks to be traded.
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NFL News Mailbag: Which Contending Teams Will Trade for Players?
“As we approach the midway point of the 2022 NFL season, of the current playoff contenders, which teams have glaring holes that need to be addressed before the trade deadline? And who could be available to address those needs?” – punknshine
I love getting these questions because it lets me steal from my colleague’s work. Two weeks ago, Dallas Robinson at Pro Football Network wrote about contenders and the weaknesses on their roster they need to address. In it, he mentions the Eagles, who recently traded for edge rusher Robert Quinn, as still capable of using some help in the secondary.
There aren’t many cornerbacks on the market, but Sidney Jones — pushed out by a pair of corners in Seattle — could be an option. Former Bengals rising star William Jackson III, now playing for the Washington Commanders, is a possibility as well.
Also looking for upgrades in their secondary are the Kansas City Chiefs, New York Giants, and Minnesota Vikings. The 49ers are essentially out of the trade market after having traded nearly every selection they hold in the 2023 draft to acquire Christian McCaffrey and pay down their trade for Trey Lance in last year’s draft.
MORE: NFL Trade Deadline Deals That Make Sense
Robinson identifies the offensive line as the biggest weakness for the Buccaneers, who need injury depth, and the Dolphins, who will either need someone to fill in for tackle Terron Armstead if he gets reinjured or someone to outright replace Liam Eichenberg at guard.
Teams don’t often trade away offensive linemen mid-season (or, conversely, trade for them), but possible candidates include Josh Jones from Arizona, Jackson Carman from the Bengals, and, possibly, Laremy Tunsil from the Texans. Isaiah Wynn from the Patriots could also be an option. If the Eagles have given up on Andre Dillard, which seems likely, a team looking for a pure pass-protecting tackle might be interested.
The Chargers could use an edge rusher to replace the injured Joey Bosa and pair someone with Khalil Mack. They also could use a receiver and an offensive lineman. And it wouldn’t hurt to get an interior defensive lineman or a linebacker. The Chargers are hurt.
The Titans, Packers, and Ravens could all use a receiver, too. In addition to potentially signing Odell Beckham Jr. partway through the season, they all have the option of trading for Chase Claypool, Brandin Cooks, Cedrick Wilson Jr., Denzel Mims, or Scotty Miller.
Should the Panthers Compete This Year?
“With the NFC South very much in play, can & should the Panthers consider “adding” before the deadline?” – CameronPanthers
I avoided the Panthers here as buyers and sellers both because of this question but also because that’s very much the case — the NFC South can’t create a divisional leader, and PJ Walker just put on a light show. There may be opportunity despite firing their head coach midway through the season and trading their best offensive weapon and another skill player on top of that.
Still, it’s difficult to make that determination. The Panthers are truly ambiguous in a way that other teams aren’t because of those changing circumstances. Rationally, it probably makes the most sense to assume that Walker’s 21-point performance against the Buccaneers is unsustainable.
But Steve Wilks knows that interim coaches don’t have guaranteed jobs when the season is over, and his best chance for an audition is to win. General manager Scott Fitterer is probably safe, but if he can score a deal and make the playoffs in a “tanking season” that would be an enormous feather in his cap.
The Panthers might want to explore the receiver, cornerback, and guard markets mentioned above, especially now that they have a rich assortment of draft picks from trading away McCaffrey and Robbie Anderson.
That’s what they could do. I don’t think they should, but I’m watching out for Carolina the franchise, not Wilks to coach, or Walker the player. They have to make a choice uncomfortably close to the trade deadline about whether or not to trust Walker’s ability to see them through the season and hope that the defense can play up to its potential with a new defensive coordinator.
That doesn’t seem wise to me. I’d rather keep all those picks, invest in a quarterback to compete with Walker and Matt Corral, and draft receivers, offensive linemen, and more to round out the team for a shot at the NFC South title in 2023.
NFL News Mailbag: Which Losing Teams Will Make the Playoffs?
“Which team with a losing record right now is most likely to make a postseason appearance?” – Jacob M
I really like this question. It acknowledges that teams are not really their record and that we still have the majority of the season left to play. FiveThirtyEight projects the 49ers to have the best odds among the losing teams, in big part because the NFC West is wide open. Similarly, the Buccaneers at 3-5 have decent odds of making the playoffs in the NFC South — the top odds among any team in the division, one full of teams with losing records.
Much of this has to do with the fact that FiveThirtyEight weighs quarterbacks pretty heavily, and Tom Brady is still a good QB in their system. So too with Jimmy Garoppolo.
MORE: 2023 NFL Super Bowl Odds
For an analysis that only relies more on current in-season performance rather than historical performance, Football Outsiders still likes the Buccaneers’ odds, though they didn’t incorporate Thursday’s night game in their analysis. For FO, the Buccaneers entered the week as the only team with better than 50% odds to make the playoffs — again, a product of a weak division with losing teams.
Even after the Bucs’ loss to the Ravens, I still like their odds, though the Saints might be the best team in the division, especially after they recover their health. If I were to exclude the 49ers and Buccaneers and throw a dart at the team I felt could best accomplish that goal, it would probably be that Saints team. They can field a formidable defense with Marshon Lattimore healthy, and the receiving corps can be overwhelming.
Which Players Will Get Traded?
“Are there any players you would be surprised if they didn’t get traded before the deadline?” – Jacob M
I don’t know if there are any specific players that I think have better than even odds of being traded, but I do know that one franchise I’m keeping an eye on is the Denver Broncos. They made a big bet on Russell Wilson, and it looks like it was a bad bet. Now, without Noah Fant, a first or second-round pick, they’re sorely lacking in ways to supplement their roster with cheap and developmental players.
That could mean a stud like Bradley Chubb, who could allow them to recoup those missing picks in one fell swoop, or players like Jerry Jeudy or KJ Hamler. The Broncos have receivers galore, and there’s some contract pressure with those players. Trading them away for picks to get the ammunition they need to acquire a quarterback that they’d want to keep for the next several years.
I am also keeping an eye on Chase Claypool from the Steelers and Brandin Cooks from the Texans. Cooks has seemingly been trade bait his entire career, but he’s fundamentally a good player. Circumstances have just conspired to move him around from team to team for various reasons. Receivers always seem like solid trade candidates because it takes them less time to get up to speed with their offense than it does for someone like an offensive lineman or safety.
