5 Bold Predictions for the 2024 NFL Trade Deadline
It's been a wild and unpredictable NFL season to this point, and things could get even wilder ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline.
In a year of upsets, surprising contenders and stunning finishes, the trade market has fittingly featured several headline-grabbing moves.
We've already seen standout players like Davante Adams, Amari Cooper, Diontae Johnson and Josh Uche change teams. Before the clock strikes midnight on the trade window—more accurately, 4 p.m. ET on November 5—more deals should be in the works.
Here, you'll find bold predictions for five of the biggest moves that could happen in the coming days. These would be huge hypothetical deals with the potential to shake up the 2024 playoff landscape, though we're keeping them within the realm of realism.
Ravens Reunite with Jadeveon Clowney
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The Baltimore Ravens boosted their roster a bit by acquiring Johnson from the struggling Carolina Panthers. While adding another receiver is nice, Baltimore still needs to address a defense that ranks a very un-Raven-like 32nd in passing yards allowed and 26th in points allowed.
Adding a cornerback should be the Ravens' top priority, though finding a high-end starter would be extremely difficult. Baltimore could aid its secondary, however, by adding to its pass rush.
Edge-rushers Kyle Van Noy and Odafe Oweh have combined for 11.5 sacks this season, but safety Kyle Hamilton and defensive tackle Nnamdi Madubuike are next among Ravens with just two sacks each.
Another deal with Carolina could help Baltimore in the pass-rushing department. Jadeveon Clowney, who signed with the Panthers in the offseason, led Ravens edge-rushers with 9.5 sacks a year ago. He's also reportedly interested in leaving the one-win Panthers.
"Clowney is believed to prefer an exit, and given the opportunity to stockpile picks for their talent-depleted roster, the Panthers will probably oblige," The Athletic's Mike Jones wrote.
The line of communication between Baltimore and Carolina is already open. While the Ravens have the tightest cap situation in the NFL, they wouldn't have to clear a ton of cap space to add the 31-year-old. Clowney's two-year contract carries a base salary of only $1.2 million in 2024.
Lions Double Dip into Pass-Rusher Market
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It's not very bold to suggest that the Detroit Lions will trade for a pass-rusher by Tuesday. The Lions are legitimate Super Bowl contenders, and they lost their best defensive player when Aidan Hutchinson suffered a broken leg.
The prediction here is that Detroit doesn't stop at adding one sack artist.
Detroit needed a complementary edge-rusher even when Hutchinson was healthy. It tried putting free-agent addition Marcus Davenport in that role, but he only appeared in two games before suffering a season-ending elbow injury.
The Super Bowl is a realistic goal for the Lions this season, and they happen to have the fifth-most cap space in the NFL ($27.7 million). They have the means to add a pair of potent pass-rushers and practically no reason not to do it.
Identifying trade targets is a bit trickier, though Cleveland Browns edge-rusher Za'Darius Smith is a "hot name" on the market, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler:
New York Giants edge-rusher and impending 2025 free agent Azeez Ojulari is the top player on Bleacher Report's final trade block big board, though prying him away from New York might be costly.
According to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, the Giants would "have to be blown away" by an offer to move Ojulari before Tuesday.
New Orleans Saints edge-rusher Chase Young, who is playing on a one-year contract, should be more readily available than Ojulari.
Another player to monitor is Cincinnati Bengals pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson. The 29-year-old requested a trade during the offseason before ultimately deciding to play in 2024. The Bengals weren't interested in dealing him then, and they may not be ready to punt on the current season either—though a loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday could change a lot.
Hendrickson, if available, would be an ideal target for Detroit. He spent time with both head coach Dan Campbell and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn in New Orleans before joining the Bengals in 2021.
Titans Abandon Will Levis Experiment, Pivot to Former Draft Bust
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Last offseason, the Tennessee Titans took a second-round flier on quarterback Will Levis. To say that Levis hasn't worked out to this point would be an understatement. The Kentucky product has turned the ball over 10 times in five games this season, though he's been sidelined the past two weeks with a shoulder injury.
Tennessee needs to find its quarterback of the future, and Mason Rudolph isn't a long-term answer. Targeting a quarterback in the 2025 draft would be logical, though general manager Ran Carthon may not wait until the spring to add another quarterback to the mix.
A handful of young quarterbacks could be available at the deadline, notably, 2021 first-round picks Trey Lance, Zach Wilson and Mac Jones. All are impending 2025 free agents and could warrant a half-season audition with a team like Tennessee.
Of this group, Wilson should be the most attractive to the Titans. The 2021 second overall pick fell short with the New York Jets, though the Jets' inconsistent offense this season suggests he wasn't solely to blame. Wilson played well during the preseason and would likely be available for a reasonable offer.
"The Broncos need more draft picks and would listen to any and all proposals for help there," ESPN's Jeff Legwold wrote.
Panthers second-year quarterback Bryce Young would be an even more attractive option for Tennessee since he's under contract for another two years. Young was benched two weeks into the season but reentered the starting lineup after Andy Dalton suffered a thumb injury in a car crash.
The price for Young would be higher, and the Panthers are reportedly gauging how high it should go.
"The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported Thursday on her Scoop City podcast (h/t Bleacher Report's Joseph Zucker) that Carolina "is really just trying to figure out his value as I know that there are teams around the league right now interested to see if they can be the team to sort of revamp him and give him some life."
The prediction here is that Tennessee will find a new quarterback to audition over the second half of the season.
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Rams Quickly Go from Potential Sellers to Eager Buyers
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Two weeks ago, the Los Angeles Rams were sitting at 1-4 and reportedly contemplating a trade of receiver Cooper Kupp. According to Dianna Russini, Mike Silver and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic, the Rams were open to moving Kupp and paying some of his salary to facilitate a deal.
After back-to-back wins, however, Los Angeles is 3-4 and has seemingly shut the door on any major deadline sale.
"That's not a move that we want to make," head coach Sean McVay said of trading Kupp, per The Athletic's Jordan Rodrigue.
Los Angeles can get back to .500 with a win over the Seattle Seahawks this weekend. While the Rams have given cornerback Tre'Davious White permission to seek a trade, and the prediction here is that he's moved as part of an effort to add talent at the deadline.
The Rams have just $2.4 million in available cap space. They could save $1.7 million by trading White. While that wouldn't provide an excess of cap flexibility, it could allow L.A. to potentially address its 23rd-ranked run defense.
Targeting a linebacker like impending Saints free agent Willie Gay Jr. or third-year Jacksonville Jaguars run-stopper Devin Lloyd could make a lot of sense for the Rams. So could a play for Dallas Cowboys linebacker Eric Kendricks—who came close to joining the rival 49ers before spurning San Francisco for Dallas in free agency.
All three of these linebackers carry 2024 base salaries that would fit with L.A.'s cap constraints if White is dealt.
General manager Les Snead could potentially free up even more cap space via the contract-restructuring method—something he did with Matthew Stafford in the offseason.
Don't be shocked if the Rams are shopping for talent a little more than two weeks after they were reportedly eager to sell.
Cowboys Abandon All-in Approach, Sell at Deadline
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Cowboys franchise owner Jerry Jones became a bit of a meme when he insisted that Dallas was "all-in" in winning in 2024 before doing next to nothing in free agency. Jones later insisted that he meant the Cowboys were all-in with the players on the roster.
"All-in. All-in. All-in. We're all-in with these young guys. We're all-in with this draft," Jones said via team transcript in April (h/t NFL.com's Grant Gordon).
More recently, executive vice president Stephen Jones suggested Dallas could finally make a marquee addition at the trade deadline.
"If the right deal pops itself up, then we'll certainly look at that," Stephen Jones said, per The Athletic's Jon Machota.
Realistically, though, the Cowboys aren't winning anything of note this season. They're 3-4 and will be 3-5 with a loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday—we're making bold predictions here, remember. That will leave Dallas reeling before a brutal three-game slate against the Philadelphia Eagles, Houston Texans and Washington Commanders.
The prediction here is that the Cowboys realize that they're approaching a rebuild—head coach Mike McCarthy still hasn't received an extension beyond this season—and decide to stockpile draft capital at the deadline.
While Dallas has $25.7 million in projected 2025 cap space, it may have to put a significant chunk of that toward Micah Parson's extension. Reloading the roster with rookie contracts may be necessary.
Expect Dallas to shop impending 2025 free agents like Kendricks, Lance, edge-rusher DeMarcus Lawrence, guard Zack Martin and cornerback Jourdan Lewis in the coming days.
Adding a player or two isn't going to put Dallas in the 2024 Super Bowl conversation. Selling a few veterans could help expedite the Cowboys' rebuild and return to relevance.
*Cap and contract information via Spotrac
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