The 2022 NFL trade deadline has come and gone, and it was among the most unpredictable in recent years.
While there weren’t any deals to the level of Juan Soto being shipped off to the San Diego Padres this past summer or Ben Simmons swapping places with James Harden last February, the NFL popped off with an exciting day that saw many of its contenders fill major voids, while some made the curious decision to stay put and forego making a move.
Here is a full breakdown of the winners and losers of the NFL trade deadline.
Winners
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins are still reaping the benefits from their 2021 trade with the San Francisco 49ers, putting a cap on what looks like an absolute fleecing so far.
Miami acquired three first-round picks from San Francisco for the No. 3 pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. With that selection, the 49ers selected quarterback Trey Lance, who has played in a total of eight games over two seasons. With the picks acquired from San Fran, the Dolphins added three Pro-Bowl level players and completely revamped a roster now loaded with talent — drafting Jaylen Waddle with the 2021 pick, trading the 2022 pick for Tyreek Hill and capping things off by trading the 2023 pick for Bradley Chubb on Tuesday.
Miami wasn’t done there, however, trading for running back Jeff Wilson as the final piece to what they hope will be a championship-worthy puzzle.
Chicago Bears
You don’t have to acquire a bunch of big-name players to be a winner at the deadline. Sometimes you just need to prove that you have a plan. It seems as though that’s the route the Bears took in 2022.
Chicago is clearly not a team that is going to be vying for a Super Bowl this season, so even after a big win over the Patriots in Week 7, the Bears decided to ship off pieces and keep their eyes on the future. Roquan Smith is a member of the Baltimore Ravens, Robert Quinn is a member of the Philadelphia Eagles and Justin Fields now has a new weapon to play with after general manager Ryan Poles swung a trade for Chase Claypool.
All in all, Chicago added Claypool, linebacker A.J. Klein and second-, fourth- and fifth-round picks for Smith, Quinn and a second. They’ll have an opportunity to see what they have in Fields for the rest of the season before ultimately making bigger decisions this offseason. That’s a win.
Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions
This is going to come off as blasphemous, but the Vikings and Lions both won their trade Tuesday. Minnesota acquired tight end T.J. Hockenson on the same day it sent tight end Irv Smith Jr. to injured reserve, while Detroit added a second-round pick as they continue to rebuild. The two teams also swapped some mid-round picks. Who could be mad at two division rivals playing nice with each other?
Buffalo Bills
If you asked any football fan in the world what the Bills’ biggest weakness was they would say running back. They addressed that need Tuesday by acquiring Nyheim Hines from the Indianapolis Colts for struggling running back Zach Moss and a conditional sixth-round pick. They also activated Tre’Davious White, their top cornerback, from the physically unable to perform list. Solid day.
Losers
Denver Broncos
The Broncos traded away their best player Tuesday after entering the season as a presumed contender in the AFC. Just about everything has gone wrong for them this season, and the trade deadline was a great representation of how far the expectations have fallen in Denver.
Atlanta Falcons
Why did the Falcons trade away Calvin Ridley?
Atlanta’s offense ranks 29th in passing offense through eight weeks and has struggled to incorporate Kyle Pitts and Drake London into its game plan this season. Ridley, before his suspension for gambling on Falcons games, was the team’s No. 1 receiver. Now, he’s headed off to Jacksonville for an insanely-complicated conditional pick.
New England Patriots
The Patriots really didn’t have a ton of options to choose from Tuesday. Either they’d stand pat and keep the likes of Kendrick Bourne, Nelson Agholor and Isaiah Wynn for depth on offense, or they’d take a swing by trading any combination of them to open up cap space for a subsequent move. Either way, it’s hard to have a strong opinion after they chose to do nothing — until you see what the rest of the AFC East did.
Miami and Buffalo made it clear they’re looking to contend this season by beefing up their rosters. No matter what the Patriots did, they’d fall under the loser category just based off the fact they saw those two opponents, in which they are scheduled to play three more times, get better.
Green Bay Packers
The Packers didn’t do anything. Aaron Rodgers is going to be pissed.
