2025 NFL Trade Grades

I’ll be keeping track of the various NFL trades that occur throughout 2025 on this page (most recent first). For every trade, I will list the assets each team received, analyze the trade, and provide trade grades for each team. Unless a specific trade is really notable, I’ll only be grading trades involving players, not just draft picks. For free agent signings and extensions, see this page.

March 13, 2025

Vikings Trade G Ed Ingram to Texans for 2026 6th-Round Pick:
These Texas teams really love trading. This time, Houston is ADDING a guard, though he’s as much of a bust as Kenyon Green was. Ingram, a former second-rounder, got benched by Minnesota last year and has since been replaced by numerous offensive line signings. Unlike Green though, at least Ingram has shown potential at some point during his NFL career. As a rookie, he was actually pretty solid, but he hasn’t looked quite as good in the two years since. This is a low-cost trade for a potential option at guard who’s entering the final year of his rookie contract. It’s reasonable but not particularly exciting. The Vikings had a surplus at guard after signing Will Fries in free agency. Ingram was unlikely to make the roster, so a 6th-rounder is a pretty good get for someone they were going to cut. Personally, I like having depth on the line, but if they’ve soured on Ingram, moving on is correct.
Grades: Vikings: B+; Texans: B-

March 12, 2025

Titans Trade LB Kenneth Murray, 2025 7th-Round Pick to Cowboys for 2025 6th-Round Pick:
No wonder Dallas still hasn’t signed many free agents. They’re acquiring all their players via trade! In another reclamation project involving a former first-round pick, the Cowboys want to salvage the career of Murray, who was already on his second team after the Chargers let him walk following the conclusion of his rookie deal. Murray produced good stats last year, including 95 tackles and 3.5 sacks. However, his tape shows an LB who is poor in coverage but too small to hold up in run support. If he can’t make it with a talent-poor squad like Tennessee, what hope does he have in Dallas? This is an even smaller swap for the Cowboys than their move for Elam, but it also comes with a smaller reward. As a 5-year vet, Murray is a known quantity, and he’s due $5.99M in 2025. The Titans seem to have tricked Dallas into taking on that contract and swapping picks in the process.
Grades: Titans: A; Cowboys: C-

Bills Trade CB Kaiir Elam and 2025 6th-Round Pick to Cowboys for 2025 5th-Round Pick and 2026 7th-Round Pick:
Buffalo has finally thrown in the towel on Elam. The former Gator was a first-round pick who struggled mightily at the start of his career. He was so bad that the Bills banished him to the bench, only for him to return for some games this year because of injuries to other players. Predictably, he was torched by opposing QBs. Likely to cut Elam, Buffalo opted to trade him for a pick swap this year and a 7th-rounder next year. Dallas, as they once did with Noah Igbinoghene, are taking on a reclamation project who has first-round pedigree. They think this is a low enough cost to try and salvage something, but I fear there might not be much there. Sean McDermott and his staff in Buffalo are defensive-minded coaches. I trust them to get the most out of a player like this, and they couldn’t. I suspect that the Cowboys won’t fare any better. While this deal is cheap, it’s probably still a waste of draft capital. As usual, I look highly upon a team acquiring assets for a player they wanted to dump.
Grades: Bills: A; Cowboys: C+

March 11, 2025

Texans Trade G Kenyon Green and 2026 5th-Round Pick to Eagles for S CJ Gardner-Johnson and 2026 6th-Round Pick:
After a disastrous trade yesterday, Houston made a much better one today. Kenyon Green is a former 1st-round pick, and though I said I didn’t want the Texans shipping out good linemen, that doesn’t apply here. Green has been among the worst guards in the league, looking like a complete bust. I’d have been surprised to see Houston get a 7th-rounder for him, much less a really good safety. The 1-round pick swap on day 3 of next year’s draft is mostly insignificant, so let’s focus on the two players. Philadelphia is doing this because they’re likely to lose Mekhi Becton in free agency. Two years ago, the Eagles let Gardner-Johnson walk and suffered greatly the following year. They’re better-equipped to handle his departure this time due to the emergence of several young players, but they’re still giving up 6 INTs, 12 PBUs, and 59 tackles from a season ago. Gardner-Johnson is one of the league’s best ball hawks, and he’ll fit fantastically in Houston. Green is likely not an adequate replacement for Becton, a former bust himself, but if anyone can make him work out, it’s the Eagles. Regardless, this is a clear win for Houston.
Grades: Texans: A+; Eagles: D-

March 10, 2025

Eagles Trade QB Kenny Pickett to Browns for QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson and 2025 5th-Round Pick:
With all the QB moves we were expecting, I didn’t see this one coming. Cleveland needed to obtain a QB but had limited cap space to do it. Meanwhile, Tanner McKee has arguably been the better backup for Philadelphia, making Pickett expendable. Hence, we found a match. This compensation is more or less what the Eagles gave up for Pickett last year, and if they like McKee better, this was a sensible move to make. The DTR component is meaningless as he is not a functional NFL QB, backup or otherwise. I find this weirder for Cleveland. They saw Pickett twice a year while he was a Steeler and couldn’t have been too impressed. He’s cheap, and he’s now the only healthy QB on the roster, so I suppose he’ll have a chance to start depending on what they do with the #2 overall draft pick. I don’t know why they gave up a pick instead of reuniting with Joe Flacco or signing another younger but more promising option such as Daniel Jones. Actually I do know why: they’re the Browns. At least the consequences of this move are minimal.
Grades: Eagles: B+; Browns: C-

Texans Trade LT Laremy Tunsil, 2025 4th-Round Pick to Commanders for 2025 3rd- and 7th-Round Picks and 2026 2nd- and 4th-Round Picks:
What? That was my initial reaction to this deal. Apparently, the Texans saw how bad QB CJ Stroud’s protection was and traded AWAY their best lineman by far. Conversely, Washington opted to protect their young QB by bringing Tunsil aboard. Beyond the fact that Houston should’ve kept Tunsil, they didn’t even get a good return for him. There are 4 picks going to the Texans, but the only premium one comes next year. Tunsil, a franchise LT, should’ve fetched a first-round pick and more. I can’t even say that this return sums to the equivalent of a first-rounder. The Texans created another hole on their already porous line, and they’re earning our first special grade of 2025. Washington played Houston for a fool, which is a funny change given the franchise’s history.
Grades: Texans: JAMARCUS RUSSELL; Commanders: A

Patriots Trade DT Davon Godchaux to Saints for 2026 7th-Round Pick:
I can’t believe the Patriots got out of Godchaux’s $16.5M in guaranteed money. That contract looked poor from the moment it was signed, and the team is finally moving on. In truth, New England let him seek a trade a month ago, and their patience paid off. New Orleans, who is always in cap trouble, somehow found room to fit Godchaux. He is an average run defender who does not push the pocket. I don’t understand why you’d devote financial or draft resources to such a player. The pick is sort of irrelevant here, though I always like when a team gets something for a player they wanted to dump. My main takeaway is that Godchaux does very little for the Saints except make their cap situation worse, and NE flat-out fleeced them.
Grades: Patriots: A+; Saints: F

March 9, 2025

Seahawks Trade WR DK Metcalf, 2025 7th-Round Pick to Steelers for 2025 2nd- and 6th-Round Picks:
I guess Metcalf’s wish for warmer weather didn’t matter to the Seahawks. They’ve traded him to a cold-weather city in Pittsburgh and a division with 4 northern teams that possess outdoor stadiums. The Steelers tried to trade for Brandon Aiyuk last year but struck out. This time, their pursuit of an NFC West wideout demanding a new contract came to fruition. Metcalf is signing a 4-year, $132M extension as part of the trade, and I’ll grade that separately on my free agent signing page once the guaranteed money is reported. Seattle acquiesced to Metcalf’s trade request rather quickly, moving the athletic freak to Pittsburgh in less than a week. The Steelers are getting an extremely talented player who is just 27, though he’s a bit mercurial. With Metcalf and George Pickens joining forces, the Steelers now possess two WRs who could throw a temper tantrum at any moment. However, Metcalf is a more consistent player than Pickens, earning 900+ yards in every year of his career. You can’t call the Steelers’ receiving corps weak anymore, though they still need someone to throw them the ball. For Seattle, I don’t know how this trade helps them. A second-rounder was likely the best anyone would offer given that they had to pay Metcalf as well, but who is Geno Smith’s replacement supposed to throw to now? It’s basically Jaxon Smith-Njigba and nothing else. Given that they’re re-signing veteran defenders as we speak, I don’t know what they’re trying to do. They seem like a franchise without a direction, and that’s not where you want to be.
Grades: Seahawks: C-; Steelers: B+

March 7, 2025

Seahawks Trade QB Geno Smith to Raiders for 2025 3rd-Round Pick:
With all the talk about the Raiders drafting a QB or signing someone like Sam Darnold, the team opted for…none of those options. Instead, they’re reuniting new coach Pete Carroll with Geno Smith in exchange for a 3rd-round pick. The idea of Smith being worth this sort of pick would’ve been laughable 5 years ago, but he reinvented himself in Seattle and made 2 Pro Bowls. My only issue for the Raiders is that at 34, Smith may be on Carroll’s timeline but nobody else’s. LV isn’t ready to compete in a tough division, and given that Smith wants an extension (the Raiders are taking on his $31M salary this year) in the $40-45M/year range, I’d have just signed the much younger Darnold. Perhaps they didn’t think they had a chance at Darnold; in that case, this deal makes more sense, as I don’t think they were in range for a QB with the 6th pick in the draft. Meanwhile, the Seahawks are tearing their team apart. They cut WR Tyler Lockett, they’re obliging fellow receiver DK Metcalf’s trade request (I expect to grade a Metcalf trade in the near future), and now they’ve dumped their QB. Picking 18th, I’m not sure the rookie route is really in play for them to replace Smith unless they’re quietly stoked about an unheralded prospect. It’s hard to really grade this from Seattle’s side without knowing their plan. Are they entering a complete rebuild? That might actually be advisable given that the team may have peaked. The middling grade here reflects my uncertainty about where they’re headed while also trusting in GM John Schneider.
Grades: Seahawks: C+; Raiders: B-

March 6, 2025

Jaguars Trade WR Christian Kirk to Texans for 2026 7th-Round Pick:
How do we know that the Jaguars hated Kirk’s contract? They traded him within the division. His deal, which pays him $18M per season, was an egregious overpay at the time. It looked better once the receiver market exploded, but injuries in 2023 and 2024 reverted his contract to an albatross. Houston badly needed a WR. Stefon Diggs is a free agent, while Tank Dell’s knee might keep him out for most of the 2025 season. Kirk’s 2022 season, with 84 catches for 1108 yards and 8 TDs, showed his potential. However, he was miscast as a #1 WR and received too many targets (133) that year. He’ll be more efficient as the 2nd option for CJ Stroud, so it makes sense for the Texans to take this type of shot on him. For Jacksonville, this is just fine; they received draft capital for a player they were about to release and saddled a rival with a bad contract. I’m honestly surprised they found a taker.
Grades: Jaguars: B+; Texans: B-

March 5, 2025

Chiefs Trade LG Joe Thuney to Bears for 2026 4th-Round Pick:
Now THIS is a great guard acquisition by Chicago. I have zero clue what the Chiefs are doing. Thuney is an All-Pro guard who even filled in pretty well at left tackle when nobody else could handle it. We’re talking about a top-3 guard in football, and at 32, he has more good years in him. What appears to have happened is that KC prioritized the younger Trey Smith, but as good as Smith is, he still isn’t close to Thuney. While Chicago made a suspect move yesterday, they nailed this one. Thuney instantly becomes their best lineman, and he alone could result in 10 less sacks for QB Caleb Williams. For a 4th-rounder next year, this is dirt cheap. Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes can’t be happy. He ran for his life during the Super Bowl and that was WITH Thuney. No guard they draft will be as good as he is. Perhaps KC will repeat at not being Super Bowl champions in 2025 as a result.
Grades: Chiefs: F; Bears: A+

March 4, 2025

Rams Trade G Jonah Jackson to Bears for 2025 6th-Round Pick:
The Rams signed Jackson just last year to a 3-year, $51M contract, and I wasn’t very fond of the move then. Since that time, Jackson played in just 4 games for the Rams, as injuries derailed his season. I won’t say that Jackson isn’t a good player. He was a well-above-average guard for the Lions prior to signing with LA. They simply misread the market and overpaid for a lineman who struggles to stay healthy. For Chicago, that’s not really part of the equation. They have one of the league’s worst offensive lines, and they had to upgrade QB Caleb Williams’ protection no matter what. The upside with Jackson is really good, so a 6th-round pick is a fine value. One thing really swings this the Rams’ way though: Chicago reportedly agreed to take on Jackson’s entire contract. LA escaping from that whole deal is a minor miracle, and yet they still got a draft asset. This is an easy win for them. I’m not as high on the value for Chicago now that we know the salary details, but I think they still had to make the move for Williams.
Grades: Rams: A+; Bears: B-

March 1, 2025

49ers Trade WR Deebo Samuel to Commanders for 2025 5th-Round Pick:
Our first trade of 2025 could have monster ramifications. Washington, one of the teams with the most cap space right now, had a need for a WR to complement Terry McLaurin. Conversely, San Francisco is facing a cap crunch due to their need to extend QB Brock Purdy. WR Brandon Aiyuk could be available as well, but today, it’s Samuel on the move. Samuel had a down year, mostly due to injuries. However, he is only 28 and had 1000 scrimmage yards in 2023. I think the main reasons for this move are Samuel’s own trade request and his $21.7M salary next year. The Commanders can absorb the contract, and GM Adam Peters knows Samuel well since he came from SF. This is an excellent buy-low opportunity that should make the NFC runners-up more potent. For the Niners, was this really the best deal available? Trading Samuel makes the team worse, and a 5th-round pick isn’t likely to move the needle back in the other direction. I get that the team needed financial flexibility, but trading Samuel within the NFC, at a discount no less, is not a particularly wise decision.
Grades: 49ers: D+; Commanders: A+