Brand-New Landing Spots for NFL's Top 2024 Trade Targets
With the 2024 NFL season mere weeks from kicking off, teams are running out of both time and ways to improve their rosters.
While the deck will inevitably be shuffled a bit after post-training camp roster cuts put some serviceable talent back in the free-agency pool, trades are the only option to truly make a splash.
Although blockbuster trades are rare at this point in the offseason, there are several high-profile candidates who have a real chance to be dealt before the campaign gets underway. Whether they're mired in fruitless contract negotiations or stuck in a positional logjam, teams could move on from these talents before the final preseason contests take place.
With that in mind, here's a look at some of the top trade targets, where they could land and what they might cost.
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Brandon Aiyuk to Pittsburgh Steelers
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San Francisco 49ers receive: 2025 first-round draft pick, 2025 third-round pick
Pittsburgh Steelers receive: WR Brandon Aiyuk
Brandon Aiyuk has been one of the biggest names in the trade rumor mill this offseason.
While the wideout is entering the final year of his rookie deal, the cash-strapped San Francisco 49ers haven't been able to put a suitable long-term extension on the table and have been fielding offers for the star receiver's services during his training camp hold-in.
There's been no shortage of interest, with the New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns and Pittsburgh Steelers all reportedly making plays for Aiyuk. The 26-year-old is only interested in playing for a legitimate contender, though, and rebuffed relatively generous offers from New England and Cleveland.
ESPN's Tom Pelissero revealed that Aiyuk's only viable options left are to either take a trade to the Steelers or remain with the 49ers. While Pittsburgh isn't willing to pay out as much as the $32 million per year the Patriots tried to lure him with, SI.com's Albert Breer noted the AFC North squad is still offering a respectable $28 million per season for the pass-catcher.
Pittsburgh's offer would tie the four-year veteran with Davante Adams for the sixth-highest average annual contract value at the position and be commensurate with extension that high-end receivers like DeVonta Smith and Amon-Ra St. Brown recently inked.
Although it hasn't been reported what the Steelers would be willing to give up for Aiyuk, NBC Sports' Matt Maiocco found that the Browns had offered second- and fifth-round draft picks plus veteran receiver Amari Cooper.
While the 49ers seem to want a quality receiver back to replace Aiyuk in a trade, the Steelers don't have much depth at the position. George Pickens would be a major score for San Francisco, but it's highly unlikely Pittsburgh would be willing to part with one high-upside, young receiver to get another.
To get this deal done, the Steelers would have to part with some of their top choices in the 2025 draft and pay Aiyuk the market value extension he's coveted.
Although costly, the move would still be worth it. Partnering Aiyuk and Pickens with veteran quarterback Russell Wilson will form the nucleus of a revamped Steelers offense that will have Super Bowl potential.
Taylor Heinicke to New York Giants
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Atlanta Falcons receive: 2025 sixth-round pick
New York Giants receive: QB Taylor Heinicke, 2025 seventh-round pick
The New York Giants have yet another quarterback conundrum on their hands.
While Daniel Jones is in line to return as the team's top option for the season-opener after missing significant time last season with a torn ACL, the team's depth behind the shaky starter is concerning.
Big Blue had hoped to shore up the quarterback room by acquiring Drew Lock, but the team's free-agency addition had a disastrous preseason debut.
The 27-year-old not only had the second-most inefficient performance of all 58 quarterbacks who dropped back at least seven times in the opening week of exhibition play, but he also suffered a hip pointer and strained oblique that will sideline him "a couple of weeks" per ESPN's Jordan Raanan.
With Lock injured, the Giants will have to promote Tommy DeVito—a fan favorite for his heroics last year but still a raw developmental prospect—into the primary backup role behind Jones. It's not an ideal situation for the G-Men, who slid to 6-11 last season largely due to quarterback woes.
If head coach Brian Daboll doesn't believe in DeVito—and it doesn't seem that he even believes in Jones considering the club desperately tried to land a quarterback prospect this offseason—the front office shouldn't shy away from making a deal to bring in a more stable veteran option.
The trade market may be bleak at this juncture, but the Atlanta Falcons do have a serviceable quarterback who might be able to stabilize New York's quarterback situation in Taylor Heinicke.
The 31-year-old started four games for the Falcons—his fourth team since entering the league in 2017—last year but failed to click with then-head coach Arthur Smith's offense. With Atlanta signing Kirk Cousins and using a first-round pick on Michael Penix Jr., Heinicke is now slated to be buried on the depth chart as the No. 3, a status that makes him expendable.
While Heinicke fared poorly for Atlanta in 2023, he racked up 5,278 yards and 32 touchdowns in 25 games with the Washington Commanders' between 2021-22. He posted a winning 12-11-1 record as a starter in that span and showed he can be a decent game manager with a quality roster around him.
Heinicke is not a player Big Blue would want to feature under center for any significant stretch, but for the low cost of a late-round pick swap, the Giants could fix up their depth behind an injury-prone starting quarterback.
Matthew Judon to Detroit Lions
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New England Patriots receive: 2025 fourth-round pick
Detroit Lions receive: Edge Matthew Judon
Matthew Judon, the New England Patriots' sack leader since arriving as a free agent ahead of the 2021 campaign, could soon be on his way out of Foxborough, Massachusetts.
The 31-year-old is reportedly unhappy with his contract for the second consecutive year and is now the subject of inquiries from rival organizations hoping to poach the veteran edge rusher.
Although Judon has been a participant in practice, he wants a bump from the $6.5 million base salary he's due to earn in 2024, the final year of his current deal. The Pats avoided a similar issue last year by raising his guaranteed dollars from $2 million to $14 million and made another offer this summer that he reportedly declined after giving the team a proposal of his own.
You can't fault the rebuilding Pats for not wanting to overpay an aging pass-rusher coming off a major bicep injury that limited him to just four appearances in 2023. Those were the only games he has missed for the club, though, and his 32 sacks since arriving are nearly double the next closest player (Josh Uche with 17.5) in that span.
According to ESPN's Mike Reiss, several front offices have reached out to New England's brass to gauge Judon's availability due to the contract spat.
A sensible landing spot for Judon would be the Detroit Lions. The team is coming off its best season in over three decades and could have made its first Super Bowl appearance if not for a collapse in the NFC Championship Game.
The Lions have only tallied 80 sacks over the last two seasons—ranking No. 21 in the league in that category—and would benefit heavily from pairing Aidan Hutchinson with a savvy, capable veteran who can take some of the offense's attention off the up-and-coming star.
Given Judon's expiring deal and lack of long-term fit on a club that is still several seasons from contending, it shouldn't take much more than a late-Day 2 or early-Day 3 pick to pry him away from New England.
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CeeDee Lamb to Green Bay Packers
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Dallas Cowboys receive: 2025 first-round pick, 2025 second-round pick, WR Christian Watson
Green Bay Packers receive: WR CeeDee Lamb
The Dallas Cowboys have shockingly failed to come to terms on a long-term contract extension with All-Pro wideout CeeDee Lamb. To make matters worse, team owner Jerry Jones put his foot in it by saying there isn't a sense of urgency to get a deal hammered out before the 2024 campaign kicks off.
While there's still a strong chance Lamb and Dallas—the team that drafted him in 2020 and developed him into a superstar who posted an eye-popping 135-catch, 1,749-yard, 12-touchdown campaign last year—mend fences with a long-term extension, trade rumblings will only grow until the 25-year-old finally inks his contract.
The rumor mill began churning intensely after Lamb posted an "lol" on X in response to Jones' comments. ESPN's Courtney Cronin said it wouldn't be surprising if the player comes out with a trade request, potentially forcing Dallas' hand to deal him or risk him walking as a free agent next spring.
If the three-time Pro Bowler does demand a trade, the Green Bay Packers should come calling. Jordan Love has proved his status as a franchise quarterback and the team shouldn't hesitate to go all-in by pairing him with a generational pass-catcher in Lamb.
While the Packers have no shortage of talented wide receivers, a true No. 1 has yet to emerge among a group that includes Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, Jayden Reed and Dontayvion Wicks. Green Bay can offer up at least one of these up-and-comers in a package for Lamb, helping clear a positional logjam in the process.
Watson would make the most sense to move based on his immense upside and redundancy in a Lamb-led receiving corps.
An early second-round pick in 2022, the 25-year-old has flashed a high ceiling when he isn't being sidelined or limited with injuries. While he's missed 11 games, he has amassed 69 catches for 1,033 yards and a notable 12 scores in the 23 contests he has suited up for.
Putting Watson and a pair of premium draft picks on the table could be just enough to land Lamb if he presses for a trade. The Packers would have to do some shrewd financial maneuvering to extend the receiver immediately after the trade goes through, but that effort would be well worth it when this offense reaches new heights with Lamb leading the way.
Haason Reddick to Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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New York Jets receive: 2025 fourth-round draft pick
Tampa Bay Buccaneers receive: Edge Haason Reddick
The New York Jets may have only acquired Haason Reddick back in March, but his time with the team could already be coming to an end.
According to ESPN's Rich Cimini, the Pro Bowl edge-rusher made a public trade request on Monday, one that was almost immediately rejected by Jets general manager Joe Douglas.
Reddick is upset about his contract situation. While he's only due a shade over $14 million in non-guaranteed base pay for 2024, it's a price that he feels he has greatly outperformed and wants to see raised.
The Philadelphia Eagles were unwilling to meet the 29-year-old's demands and subsequently flipped him for a late-Day 2 pick. Since then, he has only been seen at Gang Green's facility once and has yet to practice or even show up to training camp with his new team.
It's becoming an untenable situation, one that is costing Reddick more than the Jets. The defender is subject to non-refundable $50,000-per-day fines and has already lost nearly $2 million from not reporting.
While it seems there's a better chance that Reddick eventually reports even if he doesn't get a new deal, a trade doesn't appear to be completely outside the realm of possibility.
If New York relents on its decision not to move the Temple product, there should be at least a few interested suitors. Any team willing to acquire him should also be willing to dole out a market value extension, which does limit the amount of franchises that would potentially come calling.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are relatively flush with cap space right now and could use a talent of Reddick's caliber on the edge. The team is currently set to rely on Joe Tryon-Shoyinka and Yaya Diaby to man the starting outside linebacker spots, but both are dealing with injuries and neither has recorded more than 7.5 sacks in a single season.
The Bucs might even get a deal on Reddick's services if the Jets are willing to take back less than it gave up for him to put this saga behind them.
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