Which Top NFL Players Could Be Traded This Offseason?
BRAD GAGNON
JANUARY 9, 2018
NFL trades. So hot right now.
Professional football teams that seemed to be allergic to trading in the past have come out of their shells of late. We saw big deals involving high-profile players like Brandin Cooks, Julius Thomas, Sammy Watkins, Ronald Darby and Sheldon Richardson in the 2017 offseason, and Adrian Peterson was dealt well ahead of the most active trade deadline in league history.
Teams have more money to spend than ever, which has widened the margin of error. They're more likely to swing the bat, and nobody's complaining because trades are damn fun.
With that in mind, here are a dozen high-end NFL veterans who could be dealt this offseason.
Kansas City Chiefs QB Alex Smith
Has veteran quarterback Alex Smith worn out his welcome with the Kansas City Chiefs?
That might sound like a ridiculous notion, considering that Smith was the league's highest-rated passer as part of an explosive, first-place Chiefs team in 2017. But that team has now gone one-and-done in the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. They blew an 18-point lead Saturday at home, they scored just 16 points in a home divisional-round loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers last season and they choked away a 28-point lead in the Wild Card Round in 2013.
So it's fair to question whether he will ever be able to lead this team on a Super Bowl run. And with 2017 No. 10 overall pick Patrick Mahomes II already on the roster, now might be the time to move Smith, who is entering the final year of his contract.
The Chiefs could save $17 million in salary-cap space by trading Smith this offseason, and there are certainly teams willing to fork that over in return for a 33-year-old who on paper is one of the best quarterbacks in football.
Seattle Seahawks CB Richard Sherman
Last offseason, Seattle Seahawks brass didn't hide the fact star cornerback Richard Sherman was available in a potential trade.
"The only reasons we would do it is to create some cap room and trying to become a younger football team," general manager John Schneider told ESPN 710 Seattle at the time, per Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. "But that's just one option."
Well, the Seahawks can create just about as much cap room by trading Sherman this year. The four-time Pro Bowler will be 30 before he plays another game, and he's recovering from a pair of surgeries: one to repair a torn right Achilles tendon, another—according to ESPN.com's Brady Henderson—to clean up bone spurs in his "ankle/heel area").
Sherman's age and health status could make it tough for the Seahawks to trade him prior to the final year of his contract, but it'd be surprising if Schneider didn't try harder than ever to do so.
Denver Broncos CB Aqib Talib
Cornerback Aqib Talib has been named to the Pro Bowl in all four of his seasons with the Denver Broncos, but that could compel general manager John Elway to try to sell high.
The 10-year veteran will be 32 in February, and he's slated to cost the Broncos $12 million against the cap in 2018. Considering that Chris Harris Jr. and Bradley Roby are younger and taking up nearly $18 million in cap space combined, Elway could opt to release Talib in a move similar to cutting veteran safety T.J. Ward in September.
But before doing that, you know the front office will try its best to get a return for the five-time Pro Bowler on the trade market.
"If I wasn't (returning), it wouldn't be the most surprising thing in the world. You have three corners making big money and that's rare to have," Talib said recently on Altitude 950 radio in Denver, per Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post. "I had conversations with our staff during our exit meetings and stuff, so it's kind of up in the air."
Cleveland Browns OT Joe Thomas
In 11 seasons with the Cleveland Browns, potential Hall of Fame left tackle Joe Thomas has been to the playoffs zero times and has experienced just 48 victories (compared to 119 losses).
Because the Browns are often out of contention in October, Thomas is typically the subject of midseason trade rumors. That's unlikely to change when he returns from the triceps injury that cost him the majority of his 11th NFL campaign.
But could Thomas be traded before that?
Considering the Browns are still in the early stages of a rebuild with a new GM in place following an 0-16 season, and how valuable high-quality offensive tackles have become, I wouldn't rule it out.
One month before the team fired general manager Sashi Brown, the front office gave Thomas a $1.5 million raise for the 2018 season. It's possible new GM John Dorsey isn't thrilled with the $14.3 million salary-cap hit, and that he decides to give Thomas a chance to join a contender before the 33-year-old runs out of time.
New Orleans Saints RB Mark Ingram
Google away. You won't find any recent trade rumors regarding New Orleans Saints running back Mark Ingram. I'm not suggesting the Saints have expressed any interest in trading the 28-year-old Pro Bowler, but a deal would make a lot of sense.
Yes, Ingram is coming off the best season of his seven-year career. But that's kind of the point.
Just a year ago, the Saints recognized that they had talent beyond top receiver Brandin Cooks and capitalized on his high value, trading him and a fourth-round draft pick to the New England Patriots in exchange for first- and third-round selections.
Considering rookie back Alvin Kamara actually put up bigger rated-based and scrimmage numbers—and that Ingram will likely start to decline as he approaches 30, the Saints could decide that they're better off bolstering another position by trading him prior to the final season of his four-year, $16 million contract.
New York Giants QB Eli Manning
In order to get a look at other quarterback options late in a condemned season, former New York Giants head coach Ben McAdoo benched Eli Manning in Week 13. At that point, it looked as though Manning had thrown his last pass as a member of the Giants.
Then ownership swooped in, fired McAdoo and longtime GM Jerry Reese and inexplicably reinstalled Manning as the starting quarterback. That, along with the addition of new GM Dave Gettleman (who was part of the front office when Manning was drafted, and for both Manning-led Super Bowls) probably indicates the 37-year-old will be back in 2018.
After rejoining the Giants, Gettleman immediately suggested—per SNY's Ralph Vacchiano—that Manning could return.
That being said, nothing is written in stone. Manning's longtime former head coach, Tom Coughlin, is now calling the shots in Jacksonville, where the Jaguars might be looking to replace quarterback Blake Bortles this offseason. If they or another quarterback-starved team comes calling, the Giants might have a hard time saying no.
Buffalo Bills QB Tyrod Taylor
Like Manning, Buffalo Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor is more likely to be released than traded. But if an interested team would rather give up assets to avoid getting caught up in a free-agent-market fight for Taylor's services, a deal could be made.
Taylor has been good, not great, in Buffalo. But he has a unique skill set, a Pro Bowl on his resume and is in his prime at age 28.
The Bills gave us a clue that they may be ready to move on when, in the heart of a playoff race, they temporarily benched him in favor of Nathan Peterman, an unprepared rookie fifth-round pick. This could lead to his release before a $6 million option has to be picked up or declined on the third day of the 2018 league year.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported in November that the Bills could decide to pick up that option before exploring the trade market.
Of course, considering that he just quarterbacked the team in its first playoff game this century, it's also possible they keep Taylor on the roster for a do-or-die contract year in 2018.
New York Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr.
Now let's introduce you to three wide receivers who could be dealt away this offseason, starting with Manning's top target, Odell Beckham Jr.
The Giants wide receiver is entering a contract year, and if the new regime in East Rutherford decides to tear things down and rebuild from the ground up, paying the incredibly talented playmaker (and occasional headache) might not be wise.
Sure, they could decide that at age 25 Beckham is worth being the centerpiece of the next era of Giants football. But he will undoubtedly command top dollar, and he'd be more likely to get that elsewhere than with the Giants.
Besides, Gettleman wasn't afraid to dump fan favorites during his time with the Carolina Panthers, parting ways with outspoken stars Steve Smith, DeAngelo Williams and Josh Norman in three consecutive offseasons. So if Beckham might be gone in a year anyway, the new GM might just cut bait by trading him away right now.
Arizona Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald
Another team that may be on the brink of a rebuild and might not have much use for a star receiver? The Arizona Cardinals, who are entering a new era with head coach Bruce Arians and franchise quarterback Carson Palmer retiring.
But while the Giants could decide to trade Beckham because he's out of their price range, the Cardinals could opt to deal 11-time Pro Bowler Larry Fitzgerald because it's the right thing to do.
Without Arians and Palmer, and coming off back-to-back non-winning seasons, Arizona will be widely projected to finish in last place in the scary NFC West in 2018. That's not ideal for Fitzgerald, who will be 35 years old when the 2018 regular season gets underway.
This is still a long shot because Fitzgerald signed a one-year, $11 million contract extension during the season. And despite a no-trade clause, Kent Somers of AZCentral Sports notes it "isn't needed because there is no way the Cardinals would trade the most popular player in franchise history."
Still, if the state of the franchise is looking particularly bleak in the months to come, a Fitzgerald trade wouldn't be the most surprising development in the history of sports.
Pittsburgh Steelers WR Martavis Bryant
And then there's Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Martavis Bryant, who probably has a better chance to be traded than Beckham or Fitzgerald because he isn't a centerpiece but still possesses an exceptionally high ceiling.
The Steelers have an embarrassment of riches at the receiver position. First-team All-Pro Antonio Brown continues to be the most productive wideout in the game, and rookie second-round pick JuJu Smith-Schuster was one of only two NFL players (Tyreek Hill) targeted at least 20 times this year to catch more than 70 percent of those passes and average more than 15 yards per reception.
That'll probably leave Bryant fighting for reps as the third receiver next season, which won't likely present him with many opportunities in an offense that also targeted running back Le'Veon Bell more than seven times per game in 2017.
The 26-year-old isn't costing the Steelers much ($705,000), but his rookie contract expires after the 2018 season. Somebody else will be willing to outspend Pittsburgh and give him a much larger role in 2019, so the Steelers would be smart to get something in return for him before that happens.
Los Angeles Chargers CB Jason Verrett
Jason Verrett is the highest-paid cornerback on a Los Angeles Chargers roster containing three other superb cornerbacks in Pro Bowler Casey Hayward, rookie sensation Desmond King and breakout sophomore Trevor Williams.
That obviously makes the 2014 first-round pick expendable—especially when you consider that he's played in just five games since taking part in the Pro Bowl in 2015. A bad left knee has cost him every other game the last two years, which could make it hard for the Chargers to get much for the 26-year-old this offseason.
Still, somebody may want to give a talented young player a one-year rehearsal, and they might be willing to deal some assets to the Bolts in exchange for his services. And even if that doesn't happen, it's possible the Chargers will decide to roll the dice on Verrett and instead trade Hayward, who is entering a $5.1 million contract year after making the Pro Bowl in 2016 and 2017.
Regardless, Los Angeles should be shopping their veteran corners.
