The NFL trade deadline is fast approaching. Historically, the NFL has not seen many big deals happen midseason. Recently we have seen some big names on the move. Most notably, last season saw Christian McCaffrey switch teams midseason and it worked great for the 49ers. This year, Kevin Byard was a big name that moved before the deadline. While all of us love talking trades, an anonymous NFL executive is not so high on the trade deadline.
NFL Trade Deadline Overrated
The Athletic’s Mike Sando took a survey of executives and one had some harsh words for any deadline move. “I think the trade deadline is the most overrated thing in the NFL. The media spends a lot of time blowing hot air about this event that ultimately makes no impact whatsoever on any given season.” The executive added that, “What you’ll find if you go through all these midseason trades is that very few make any kind of impact on their teams, and even fewer make an impact on the league.” This is just one person’s opinion but the deadline does often come and go with little fanfare.
Not Many Big Trades
Last season, there were three big ones. The aforementioned McCaffrey trade, the Roquan Smith trade to the Ravens, and the TJ Hockenson trade that sent him to Minnesota. These felt impactful and have continued to be impactful beyond last season. Outside of those and a Von Miller trade the previous year, there are not many trades that happen. While we spend weeks begging the Jets to go and trade for a quarterback, they quietly coach up Zach Wilson to lead the team to victories. An NFL playbook is hard to learn so getting a player up to speed midseason is often difficult.
Should more teams be aggressive at the NFL trade deadline? While one executive thinks it is a non-event, it might be worth taking a flyer on some players especially if the price is right. We have about 24 hours until the end of the NFL trade deadline. Will we see any deals?