The NFL trade deadline has been reached and for the first time since 2002, all 32 teams have their projected first-round picks by this stage of the season. But do not let that fool you into thinking that this was a quiet period on the NFL calendar.

During the in-season trade window, a total of 19 players were moved, with a flurry of action occurring in the final couple of days. Teams that are contenders strengthened, those in need of a rebuild sold, and some deluded teams bought at a time when they should not have. The NFL trade deadline in summary.

Major Moves

Marshon Lattimore to the Washington Commanders

The electric play of rookie Quarterback Jayden Daniels has elevated the Commanders into immediate contenders for the NFC East and potentially further. They look to capitalize on this by bringing in Marshon Lattimore to improve their secondary.

In recent years Lattimore has struggled with staying on the field, but when he does he is as capable as ever. With Lattimore being 28 and the New Orlean Saints facing a rebuild the move made sense. However, it was not a cheap move as the Commanders had to part ways with their 2025 third, fourth, and sixth-round picks in exchange for Lattimore and a fifth.

Za’darius Smith to the Detroit Lions

Acquiring a pass rusher went from a need to a necessity following the season-ending injury to Aidan Hutchinson as the Lions were left scrambling to replace their star defender. For weeks Za’darius Smith seemed like an obvious choice with the Cleveland Browns going nowhere, but it took until the final day of the trade deadline to reach an agreement.

In the end, all it took was a fifth round pick to acquire the veteran pass rusher, who will now be playing for his third NFC North team. Even without Hutchinson, the Lions have been impressive, but come the playoffs their lack of a pass rush may have spelled their doom. At the end of the season, they may regret adding only Smith, but with how Brad Holmes has built this team so far, not many can doubt him.

Cam Robinson (LT) to the Minnesota Vikings

Like the Lions, the Minnesota Vikings were in danger of a promising season being ruined by an injury to their best player. In the Vikings case, it was their left tackle, Christian Darrisaw, who suffered a season-ending injury in the Vikings defeat to the Los Angeles Rams.

The Vikings moved quickly however to acquire Cam Robinson, a stalwart for the Jacksonville Jaguars since the 2017 draft. While Robinson will not be the eraser that Darrisaw was, he is a veteran presence who has already performed well in his Vikings debut against the Colts. To acquire him the Vikings had to give up a conditional 2026 fifth-round pick.

Strange Moves

Jonathan Mingo (WR) to the Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys, as you might have expected, are one of those deluded teams that believe they should remain competitive. Dallas currently sits at 3-5 and has just lost Dak Prescott to a serious hamstring injury.

On top of that, their biggest star Cee Dee Lamb has a shoulder injury and is a doubt for their upcoming fixture against the Philadelphia Eagles. Their answer to these problems is Jonathan Mingo.

Any team with a good level of foresight would understand that this is the beginning of a rebuild. However, the Dallas Cowboys are in the unfortunate situation of having a head coach who knows he will be fired if they go ahead with that. On top of that they have an owner in Jerry Jones who now infamously stated that they were ‘all in’ for the 2024 season.

Improving at wide receiver was a necessity for the Dallas Cowboys, but they gave up a fourth-round pick to acquire Jonathan Mingo. That is more than what they received for Amari Cooper when they traded him to the Cleveland Browns. 

Since being picked highly in the second round of the 2023 draft, Mingo has been disappointing. He accumulated less than 500 yards last season and failed to reach the endzone. His 2024 season has not been much better.

However, he is coming off his best game of the year, where he put up 40 yards against the Saints. Being tied down to the Carolina Panthers and Bryce Young has surely not helped, but going to Cooper Rush for the foreseeable future will not be much better.

Mike Williams (WR) to the Pittsburgh Steelers

Do not get me wrong, this is a good move on behalf of the Steelers. They gave up a 2025 5th-round pick for a WR2 that can hopefully alleviate some of the strain from George Pickens. Mike Williams has also been one of the league’s best deep threats for years and should pair well with Russell Wilson.

But for the New York Jets, this does not make much sense. Like the Cowboys, the Jets are definitely all-in this year, and they will need all the help they can get. Even if Williams is a third or fourth-choice receiver, he is still more valuable to this team than a fifth-round pick.

This is another example of the Jets allowing Aaron Rodgers to get his way and play the shadow general manager role that he has had this season.

Simply Moves

Khalil Herbert (RB) to the Cincinnati Bengals

The Cincinnati Bengals find cover for Zack Moss following his neck injury. Khalil Herbert has fallen to the Bears’ third-choice running back. However, he has proven that he is a capable running back during his time in the NFL.

Baron Browning (OLB) to the Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals have acquired former third-round pick Baron Browning from the Denver Broncos. Browning will add pass rush help to a Cardinals team that is surpassing their expectations going into the season.

Preston Smith (DE) to the Pittsburgh Steelers

The other ‘Smith Brother’ was traded on deadline day for a seventh-round pick. Preston Smith has fallen down the Green Bay Packers depth chart in recent years but is still a capable player.

He will likely be nothing more than a rotational piece for the Pittsburgh Steelers.