2022 NFL Trade Deadline Winners and Losers
Well, the 2022 Trade has come and gone, and once again it was a crazy one. We saw high-end talent shipped all over the place, and it’s bound to shake up the rest of this season. With that in mind, let’s look at some of these trades and figure out which teams or players won and lost at the deadline.
Winners
Dolphins
The Dolphins very well might have secured the best available player at the deadline in Bradley Chubb. They paid a rather fair price for it, sending over a 2023 1st round pick a 2024 4th-rounder, and Chase Edmonds. This Dolphins defense was far from horrible but still needed another pass rusher or 2. And in making this move, the Dolphins bring in one of the brightest young stars at the position. The Dolphins will almost certainly extend him and make a cornerstone of this defense for years to come. The Dolphins were also able to neutralize the loss of Chase Edmonds by bringing in Rb Jeff Wilson in exchange for a 5th-round pick in 2023. Overall the Dolphins have gotten a lot better this deadline and looked more than ready to end that 6-year playoff drought.
Vikings
Sitting at 6-1, the Vikings didn’t really need to do all that much. But one of the positions they were lacking at was Tight end. And so to fix this they went out and traded for T.J. Hockenson without having to break the bank either. They gave up a future 2nd and 3rd-round pick and even received a future 4th as well. In an offense that is already exploding with talent with the likes of Justin Jefferson and Dalvin Cook. Hockenson should be able to serve as a more stable option for Cousins and take this offense to a whole other level.
Ravens
The Raven’s defense has been far off the elite unit were accustomed to seeing it be. They’ve blown 2 17-point leads and have struggled mightily at rushing the passer. And to combat this, the Ravens brought in LB Roquan Smith in exchange for a 2nd and 4th-round pick along with LB A.J. Klein. The best part is that the Ravens only have to pay 575,000$ of his 5.408 Million dollar contract. Smith should have an immediate impact for this defense with his elite tackling ability and above-average blitzing skills. And in an AFC North, that’s in a vulnerable state. This move could be the one that helps the Ravens secure the division.
Justin Fields
While the losses of Roquan Smith and Robert Quinn make it difficult for the Bears as a whole to make this part of the list. Justin Fields as a player is certainly a little bit better off post-deadline. The Bears sent a second-round pick to the Steelers in exchange for Wr Chase Claypool. Claypool who has been having a down year dealing with Trubisky and Pickett as his Qbs provides a much-needed weapon on the outside for Fields and should greatly aid in his progression. The Darnell Mooney experiment clearly isn’t working and so the Addition of Claypool should give Fields that intermediate to Deep ball threat he’s ohhh so needed.
49ers
Some people believe that the 49ers gave up to much to get McCaffery. They sent over this year’s 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round picks along with a 5th rounder next year. And while that may be a hefty price, the fact the 49ers didn’t have to send a 1st makes it a win for me. They may not have a pick until round 5 this year but this is a team who knows that its Superbowl window is closing and the addition of McCaffery should give this 49ers offense a much-needed boost. McCaffery will work perfectly in Shanahan’s offense and should this already dynamic offense to a whole new level as they attempt to secure an NFC West that is up for grabs.
Losers
Packers
Perhaps the biggest loser at the trade deadline was the Packers. But not because they gave anyone away for no return but simply because they did nothing. Everyone was speculating that the Packers would go out and make a move for a desperately needed receiver. But instead, they saw the Bears practically steal Chase Claypool for them and then were unable to get a deal done to bring in Brandon Cooks. The Packers who sit at 3-5 needed to do something by this deadline to improve the team. Their offense looks stagnant most times and the addition of one of those 2 receivers could have been what was needed to unlock this offense and avoid missing the playoffs as I predicted back in week 1.
Rams
The Rams are notorious for making big deals at the trade deadline. We’ve seen them bring in the likes of Jalen Ramsey and Von Miller in the pursuit of winning a Super Bowl. And we’ve even seen it pay off with them winning a Super Bowl just last season. And with them sitting at 3-4 this year in a weakened NFC West, everyone assumed they were gonna be buyers and bring somebody in to get this team on the right track. They lost out on the McCaffery bidding war, tried to put together a package for Brian Burns, and weren’t even able to ship out Cam Akers who looks like he won’t take another snap for them this season. In the end, it was a very lackluster trade deadline for the Rams who needed to make a move and jump-start this season.
Broncos
Frankly, I don’t really know what the Broncos are doing. They find themselves at 3-5 and while the odds of them making the playoffs aren’t great, the trade of Bradley Chubb to me at least signifies the Broncos view this season as a lost one. This is a defense that is top 10 in both points and yards allowed but instead of trying to improve on areas of weakness, like finding a solid backup QB or help on the offensive line. The Broncos instead decided to make the one unit of their team that was actually good a lot worse. Aside from that is the fact that they made no real moves to bring in any talent. They didn’t ship off Jerry Jeudy or KJ Hamler like they were rumored to and even held onto Melvin Gordon instead of getting anything of value for him. The Broncos seem to be undecided on if they wanna invest in the future or win now and this trade deadline showed that.
Bengals
The Bengals are another one of those teams who were too quiet at the Trade Deadline. Even though they secured a trip to the Superbowl last year there were still a lot of holes in this roster. Holes that have been getting exposed more than ever this season. The offensive line is still abysmal and the loss of Chidobe Awuzie led many to believe the Bengals would make a move for a CB. And with Ja’Marr Chase being out for the foreseeable future, a move for another playmaker on offense at the WR or TE position could have been beneficial. Non the less the Bengals were completely silent and failed to make any real moves to improve the roster. And as it stands right now, the Bengals are far from the form that earned them an Afc championship.
Kareem Hunt
Our last inclusion on this list will be a player rather than a team. Kareem Hunt has been in trade talks practically every season since assuming a backup role to Nick Chubb. And Hunt himself has made it pretty clear in years past that he wants out of Cleveland and I can’t say I really blame him. Hunt has proven that he can still be an elite pass catcher out of the backfield and a valuable piece for a lot of different teams. And with his ability as a pure runner, Hunt has shown he can be a complete back for a contending team. And it’s for all these reasons I assume that the Browns decided not to ship him off. This is clearly not what Hunt wanted as he will once again be forced to assume a backup role to Chubb for the remainder of the season.
And with that, we have our list of the biggest winners and losers for the 2022 Trade Deadline. Obviously, it’ll take more than a week to truly see how these trades will truly play out but these are just my initial impressions on some of the trades. I’d love to hear your thought down below though. Is there a team on one of these lists that should be? Maybe you don’t agree with the selection I made. Whatever it may be I’d love to hear it. And may we all enjoy the chaos that is always the second half of the NFL season.
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