5 Bold Predictions for the 2023 NFL Trade Deadline
Halloween will be even scarier than normal for some football fans and teams this year as the NFL trade deadline is steadily approaching on Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
While a few teams around the league have already been wheeling and dealing, there will likely be a last-minute push after Sunday as general managers get one more look at their current squad. Scrambling to put a deal together also means we could be in for a few surprises ahead of the deadline.
Here, we'll take a stab at trying to predict a few of those potentially shocking moves by making some bold predictions. The following transactions are meant to push the limits but still have some merit to them given each team's situation.
Broncos Trade Patrick Surtain II
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While the 2-5 Denver Broncos are widely considered to be sellers at the deadline, the majority of trade rumors surrounding the team over the last several weeks have been centered around offensive tackle Garett Bolles and wide receivers Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton.
But the chatter surrounding cornerback Patrick Surtain II has been much quieter, and a report from ESPN's Jeremy Fowler last week said sources within the league haven't heard the corner's name pop up in trade discussions. However, things change quickly in the NFL.
This past Wednesday, Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer claimed that Surtain II is available on the trade market.
"I do think Denver will undergo a more thorough retooling, with [Sean] Payton captaining all of it, which is why the Broncos are going to listen to trade inquiries on Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, Garett Bolles, Josey Jewell, Justin Simmons, and even Patrick Surtain II over the next six days. The Broncos aren't close, they need picks, and it makes sense to explore getting more."
Breer's point about the draft picks holds a ton of weight. The Broncos are staring at a full-blown rebuild in the offseason and have only one Day 2 pick after sending their second-rounder to New Orleans for Payton.
While trading any of the other players mentioned above will bring more selections to Denver, nothing will compare to the haul that they'd get for a 23-year-old cornerback who is on a rookie contract through 2024 and is already one of the best players at the position. Also, the acquiring team can pick up his fifth-year option, further increasing his trade value.
The organization could at least get one first-round pick and another premium selection in return for Surtain II, which would be big assets for the rebuild.
49ers Swing Big for Offensive Lineman
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Two weeks ago, the San Francisco 49ers were reveling after a 32-point beatdown of the Dallas Cowboys on prime time and looked like an unstoppable force with just one one-possession game in five wins. Then, the team's offense got bitten by the injury bug and the seemingly unbeatable team suffered back-to-back losses.
Not having Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffery not being 100 percent hurts, but San Francisco's offense is missing Trent Williams more as the rest of the offensive line is subpar. While Williams should be back soon, these last two weeks have exposed how he was able to help hide the four other linemen's deficiencies.
The 49ers offense has gone from routinely putting up 30 points and rushing the ball for 4.5 yards per carry to scoring 17 points per game and getting 3.7 yards per rush over the last two weeks. It's no coincidence that in those two games, Williams who hobbled and a shell of himself in one and he was on the sidelines for the other.
Matt Barrows of The Athletic recently wrote that offensive linemen Ezra Cleveland (Minnesota Vikings) and Cody Whitehair (Chicago Bears) are "realistic" trade targets for San Francisco. Also, we learned last year that John Lynch isn't afraid to swing for the fences at the trade deadline.
If the 49ers want to get past the Philadelphia Eagles and the Eagles' extremely talented and deep defensive line, then they should look to strike a home run deal for one of the best offensive linemen available.
Kyler Murray Heads to Atlanta
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Kyler Murray recently began practicing for the Arizona Cardinals after tearing an ACL at the end of last season and missing every game to date in the current campaign. However, the team doesn't appear to be in any hurry to get its starting quarterback on the field.
Murray was removed from this week's injury report, but when asked if he'll be playing on Sunday, head coach Jonathan Gannon replied, "We'll see." And the Cardinals haven't made any moves to suggest they're trying to be competitive this season.
Arizona has already held a fire sale in 2023, unloading players on expiring contracts at the end of training camp like offensive tackle Josh Jones and linebacker Isaiah Simmons. Granted, the Cardinals did acquire one player, career-long backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs, who wasn't going to make the Cleveland Browns' roster after losing a position battle for the second-string job to rookie fifth-round pick Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
Dobbs has been the Cardinals' starter every game this season as the organization is pretty clearly trying to tank. And they're doing a good job of that at 1-6. But what would throw a wrench into the plans? Getting their actual starting quarterback back.
Instead of winning a few meaningless games that would take the team out of range for drafting a new signal-caller, don't be surprised if Arizona looks to add more draft picks to help with the rebuild and trades Murray to a quarterback-needy team.
The Atlanta Falcons have a good roster that's filled with offensive playmakers and quality defenders. However, Desmond Ridder has been inconsistent at best this season, and that's a big reason they haven't been able to pull away in the NFC South standings.
So it would make sense for the Falcons to upgrade at quarterback with Murray and continue their playoff push.
Finances will be a big hurdle in making this deal come to fruition, but, as Underdog Fantasy's Hayden Winks points out, the Cardinals can make it work.
Spotrac currently estimates that Arizona will have over $64 million in cap space in 2024, and that's with Murray accounting for nearly $52 million. In other words, the math could work out, and the haul of draft picks might be worth the sunk cost. Meanwhile, Atlanta would fix its biggest issue.
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Cowboys Trade Michael Gallup
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While the Dallas Cowboys are expected to be buyers instead of sellers at the deadline and have been loosely linked to Derrick Henry recently, I wouldn't rule out them using Michael Gallup as a trade pawn.
Wide receiver is probably the deepest position on the Cowboys' roster. CeeDee Lamb serves as their top target, speedster Brandin Cooks can be a deep threat, KaVontae Turpin is a good gadget player and Jalen Tolbert is waiting in the fold after receiving rave reviews in training camp. Then there's Gallup, who has been steadily declining.
He's struggled to stay healthy after an impressive two-year run in 2019 and 2020 when he logged 1,950 yards and 11 touchdowns, missing 11 games since then. Even when on the field, the wideout has been disappointing with just 37 yards per outing over the last three years.
This season, quarterbacks have a 62.4 passer rating when targeting him, he has two drops, and he has a subpar grade from Pro Football Focus. Meanwhile, Tolbert—the organization's 2022 third-round pick—hasn't been able to get much playing time and his potential is being wasted on the bench.
Per Over The Cap, the Cowboys could save $9.5 million of 2024 cap space and $11.5 million in each of the following two seasons by trading Gallup. That, in addition to whatever draft pick(s) they receive in compensation, could be enticing enough for the organization to move on from him.
Plus, that would create more opportunities for Tolbert, and the team would still have two proven/veteran receivers in Lamb and Cooks.
It wouldn't be surprising if the Tennessee Titans would be interested in a 26-year-old wideout who has been productive in the past and is under contract through 2026. So Dallas could use Gallup as a bargaining chip to get someone like Henry and reduce how much draft capital it would have to give up.
Lions Trade Within the NFC North Again
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Intra-division trades are rare in professional sports, let alone in the NFL where swapping players and/or draft picks is much less common than in the NBA and MLB.
However, the Detroit Lions did send T.J. Hockenson to their NFC North rival, the Minnesota Vikings, last year at the deadline. And don't be surprised if a similar transaction happens again.
The Athletic's Colton Pouncy weighed in on the Lions' positions of need and potential trade targets ahead of Halloween. Pouncy noted that the defense's pass rush has been good but not great and said that the Lions could be looking for another edge-rusher to play on the opposite side of Aidan Hutchinson.
One of the players Pouncy suggested is none other than Minnesota's Danielle Hunter, who currently leads the league in sacks with nine. Granted, the Vikings' recent run could dissuade them from moving Hunter, especially if they beat the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, as the team is now back in the playoff hunt.
However, the Lions could still strike an intra-division deal for a veteran pass-rusher.
Several outlets have reported that edge defender Preston Smith could be on the trade block for the Packers. Much like Hunter, Smith and his 60 career sacks would fill a need in Detroit, giving the organization another potential trade partner in the NFC North.
Also, the Chicago Bears could offer someone who their Lake Michigan neighbors might be interested in.
Circling back to Pouncy's article, cornerback was cited as another potential need for Detroit now that free-agent signing Emmanuel Moseley is done for the year. Jaylon Johnson has been the subject of some trade rumors for Chicago as Johnson is in a contract year. He's also a good corner who could aid the Lions' Super Bowl run.
So, every other team in the division has a player who Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell might be interested in. Now, the question turns to if they're willing to work with one of their rivals for the second year in a row.
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