The COVID-19 pandemic has taken its toll on the NFL. We saw it over the summer with the complete cancellation of the preseason and it's carried over into the regular season with the postponement of several games.
As such, we shouldn't be at all surprised this season's trade deadline was significantly impacted by coronavirus-related restrictions and lingering effects.
There was virtually no activity across the league Tuesday. No Super Bowl contenders added major pieces, and franchises ticketed for rebuilds didn't have selling sprees. The New England Patriots were one of the few teams to swing a deal by the deadline, but it was a move that didn't come close to moving the needle.
The Patriots were a team to keep an eye on leading up to the deadline, specifically in the case of Stephon Gilmore. Many thought New England could look to capitalize on the reigning Defensive Player of the Year's trade value. In a conventional season, the Patriots might have been able to cash in.
But as Jay Glazer explained Tuesday on "The Herd," teams weren't in position to make blockbusters.
" ...This is such a different year," Glazer said on FS1. "There's no instant gratification this year because if you trade for a player, he can't play for you that first game because of COVID rules. He has to test for six days before he can even join you. Even if you get him in there on time after you trade today, he's not going to play this weekend, probably limited the week after that. So, you don't have that instant gratification.
"Plus, we also know the cap goes down this year considerably because of COVID. So, as a result of this, teams are not calling around trying to wheel and deal. They're trying to dump out some high-priced players, but nobody is taking those high-priced players, those big contracts because of what the cap is going to be next year. That's why this whole trade deadline this year has been pretty uneventful for the most part."
There's a chance Gilmore is lamenting the league's forced collective approach to the deadline. As ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano explained, changing teams might have been in the best interest of the 30-year-old.
Gilmore now will play out the remainder of the campaign with the Patriots. But with a mid-level base salary slated for the final year of his current contract, Gilmore's future in New England beyond 2020 remains uncertain.
