Subscribe
Follow Us
The 2023 NFL trade deadline has finally hit, and some big trades for contenders around the league may have shifted the balance of power in both conferences. Let's take a look at the best deals made by the buyers at the NFL trade deadline for the 2023 season.
Full breakdowns of the eight trades that became official before today’s deadline: pic.twitter.com/0fJgnS0OrP
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) October 31, 2023
5. Bears get Montez Sweat
The Chicago Bears acquiring Montez Sweat from the Washington Commanders for a 2nd-round pick is a tricky one to analyze. Is Sweat worth a 2nd in a vacuum? Yes. He's a high-floor pass rusher who has been consistently excellent against the run and fits what Chicago wants to do defensively.
The issue is less about Sweat as a player, and more about whether or not Chicago will be able to retain him long-term, and whether or not it was worth it to cough up what could be a pick within the top 40 selections for the right to pay market value on a free agent the Bears could have potentially landed without sacrificing any draft capital.
Would the Bears have been better off hunting a free-agent defensive end and keeping the draft pick? That's certainly possible, but it's hard to blame Chicago for securing Sweat for at least next year (the Bears can use the franchise tag if the two sides can't agree to an extension) given how dreadful Chicago's pass rush has been. Chicago’s edge defenders have a 14.3% pass-rush win rate in 2023 that ranks 31st in the NFL. The Bears are dead last in the league in sacks this year. Sweat will help immediately in both of those areas, and the rights to exclusively negotiate with him and avoid a potential bidding war or free agent strikeout may have been worth the cost for GM Ryan Poles.
The Bears have a lot more holes than just this one, but this defense was going nowhere without a legitimate pass rusher, and now Chicago can build around Sweat moving forward.
4. Lions get Donovan Peoples-Jones
This is an underrated trade acquisition for an already explosive offense, as the Lions needed another downfield threat after the departure of DJ Chark this offseason and the retirement of Marvin Jones.
Peoples-Jones is a solid deep ball threat who can win contested catches, which is something that Jameson Williams has failed to consistently provide in his return from suspension. With the Browns likely wanting to see what they have with Cedric Tillman, the cost of a sixth-round pick is pretty cheap for a player coming off an 839-yard season with just three drops on 95 targets last year.
Peoples-Jones isn't the flashy name many were looking for to join Detroit, but he fits the player type needed without having to sacrifice any serious draft capital. NFL teams tend to value field stretchers much more than their statistics would lead you to believe, and that's the likely case here. The impact of Peoples-Jones won't always show up in the box score, but it's a critical component of the Lions offense and gives Jared Goff another trustworthy target, especially if Williams can't cut out some of the mistakes he's been making.
3. Bills get Rasul Douglas
For the cost of moving back from a 3rd round pick to a 5th-round selection, the Bills get some sorely needed help in the secondary after losing Tre'Davious White to a torn Achilles earlier this season. Douglas has been very solid for the Packers this year, recording an interception and six pass breakups and the ability to play in multiple spots on the field.
Douglas should fit in well to Buffalo's zone-heavy defensive scheme, and the Bills know the kind of offenses they have to face en route to a potential Super Bowl appearance. You can't have major weaknesses in the secondary against the likes of Patrick Mahomes and Tua Tagovailoa, so shoring up this spot addressed a massive need that could pay major dividends in the postseason.
Douglas has a Super Bowl ring from his time with Philadelphia and has experience playing in big games, which is something the Bills should value. He's been graded as Pro Football Focus's 18th-best corner out of 116 eligible players this season, so the price of moving back what will likely equate to 40 or so picks in the middle of the draft seems plenty worth it for a solid coverage corner.
2. Seahawks get Leonard Williams
The Seattle Seahawks set the market for star defensive ends getting dealt by acquiring Leonard Williams from the Giants a day before the deadline hit. Williams should fit perfectly in Seattle's 3-4 scheme, and while the 2nd and 5th-round picks are a steep price, the Seahawks don't have a lot of holes to fill and could really push to contend this season with a veteran quarterback in Geno Smith and an offense that has plenty of weapons.
The addition of Williams should make Seattle's defense even scarier, as the only thing really lacking from that talented group has been a strong interior rusher. Williams is exactly that, and Seattle did well to buy from a clear seller in New York ahead of the deadline. While the Seahawks will need Williams to stick around long-term to make this deal worthwhile, similar to Chicago's move for Montez Sweat, this was a wise “all-in” type push for a defense that now has the talent to really slow down some of the NFL's best offenses in the postseason.
It's not easy to find interior rushers with a consistent track record of getting to the quarterback, but the Seahawks did just that with this big move.
1. 49ers get Chase Young
Not to be outdone by their NFC West rival, the 49ers made a huge splash trade with the addition of Chase Young, who may have the most raw talent out of any player moved at the deadline. Putting Young on the other side of Nick Bosa, along with Arik Armstead in the middle, seems like a Pro Bowl roster more than one team's defensive line. The 49ers have quietly struggled to create edge pressure aside from Bosa this season — Young can easily fix that.
The 49ers have a nice history of swindling the Commanders in trades, as they acquired arguably the league's best left tackle in Trent Williams at the deadline back in 2020 for a fifth-round pick. The cost of this deal for the 49ers seems absurdly low, as San Francisco will only have to send a late third-round pick back to Washington for the former No. 2 overall pick.
Chase Young has struggled with health issues throughout his career, and he hasn't always been a consistent performer. He's a special talent, however, and teams now have to pick their poison with who they want to chip and send extra help to in either Bosa or Young. This could be a special combo that will help San Francisco's secondary hold up and create sacks and turnovers with ease.
Super Bowl contenders can never have enough pass rushers. Young is a potential game-wrecker on a cheap deal, and it's possible that the 49ers will be able to hang on to him free agency, thanks in large part to the value rookie deal Brock Purdy will still be playing on. This was the right time to buy, and if you're going to take a swing in free agency, you might as well swing for the fences. Chase Young could very well be yet another home run trade deadline acquisition for John Lynch and the 49ers.
