CB Tre’Davious White Traded From Los Angeles Rams to Baltimore Ravens
Atop the AFC North right now is a battle between the Steelers and Ravens, both sitting with six wins. With Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry playing MVP and OPOY worthy football, they’re looking to make a Super Bowl run, but that would be near impossible with their passing defense ranking last in the NFL as they allow 280.9 yards per game. Bringing in Tre’Davious White, a crafty veteran who, may have lost a step, will be an upgrade from Nate Wiggins and Brandon Stephens.
Grade: B-
OLB Josh Uche Traded From New England Patriots to Kansas City Chiefs
Uche’s debut in a Chiefs uniform was less than desirable, but I think that’s what was expected. He’s been a subpar pass rusher in his first four seasons with the Patriots having only one season over 10 sacks. Over those four seasons, Uche tallied a lowly 18.5 sacks and only has 2 this year. Kansas City is tied for fifth in the whole league with the least amount of sacks, and while I understand Uche was cheap, they should’ve looked to acquire either Preston Smith or Za’Darius Smith. Those two are more talented pass rushers and are far more consistent. All-in-all, a lame trade.
Grade: C-
WR Diontae Johnson Traded From Carolina Panthers to Baltimore Ravens
The second of Baltimores moves at the deadline was trading for Panthers WR Diontae Johnson. It’s an okay deal. I say it’s okay because while Johnson does have 30 catches, 357 yards and 3 scores on the season, he was blanked in his Ravens debut. No catches, no yards and no targets to show for. I’ll let it slide as it’s his debut though. Where I’m hung up is that Johnson is a smaller slot and will be their WR2. Zay Flowers, their WR1, is another smaller slot under 6’0 and Rashod Bateman isn’t a deep threat. Johnson doesn’t add any flare or spice to Baltimores offense. My biggest takeaway from this deal is that Baltimore needs to get Lamar Jackson real weapons. They need to get him a top tier wide receiver this upcoming offseason.
Grade: C
OT Cam Robinson Traded From Jacksonville Jaguars to Minnesota Vikings
Minnesota lost star tackle Christian Darrisaw against the Rams due to a torn ACL and MCL, so Kwesi Adofo-Mensah acted fast and brought in a band-aid for a bullet wound, but that band-aid, Cam Robinson, in his debut acted as more of a large bandage. He committed 1 penalty and didn’t allow a sack against the Colts. In addition, he kept Sam Darnold upright which allowed him to throw for 290 yards and 3 touchdowns. Robinson also opened up holes in the run game, allowing the Vikings offense to rush for 133 yards. This is a solid addition to the roster as Minnesota gears up for a playoff run in a daunting NFC North.
Grade: B
OLB Za’Darius Smith Traded From Cleveland Browns to Detroit Lions
One of, if not the best trade made at the deadline was Detroit making a deal for Za’Darius Smith. The Lions may be 7-1, but their defense allows 250.8 points per game, the fourth worst in the NFL, and their defense has only tallied 20 sacks. On top of that, Aidan Hutchinson is out for the year with a broken leg, so Dan Campbell’s squad was sans a top pass rusher. This season, Smith has 5 sacks and 23 tackles and his play style makes him an ideal fit in the Lions 4-3 scheme.
Grade: B+
RB Khalil Herbert Traded From Chicago Bears to Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati’s season on offense has been a tale of two schemes. Through the air, they’re killing it. They’re averaging 236.6 passing yards per game and Burrow is playing MVP caliber football. However, on the ground they’ve struggled. The Bengals have the sixth worst rushing yards per game with 94.2 yards per game. While bringing in Khalil Herbert isn’t a massive fix, it does add a different dynamic to their backfield rather than continuing to just role with Chase Brown. Herbert is a shifty, dynamic back who wasn’t being utilized in Chicago’s offense. He saw little to no touches in multiple games and will now get the opportunity to contribute on a team making a push for the sixth or seventh AFC playoff spot.
Grade: C+
CB Marshon Lattimore Traded From New Orleans Saints to Washington Commanders
If you told a Commanders fan before the season started that they’d be 7-2 at the trade deadline, they’d think you’re crazy. With that being a reality, the Commanders are looking to have the best team possible as they’re gearing up for a playoff run, and that means bringing in Marshon Lattimore. Washington has one of the better defenses in the NFL. They’re allowing only 21.0 points per game and 183.3 yards per game, but they do have a difficult stretch of their schedule to conclude the year with games against the Steelers, Eagles twice, Cowboys twice and Falcons. Lattimore is having a bit of a down year, but he’ll be a solid CB2 opposite Benjamin St-Juste.
Grade: B
WR Mike Williams Traded From New York Jets to Pittsburgh Steelers
The reason that the Jets targeted and brought in Davante Adams was because Mike Williams stunk. You could say that me saying he stunk is subjective, but looking at the numbers, it’s true. He has one game with 4 or more catches and three with zero catches, two of those games he wasn’t even targeted. Pittsburgh is having a good season, but bringing in Williams doesn’t make them better. It doesn’t make them worse, just not better. Pickens is their WR1 who is a true deep threat and Van Jefferson and Calvin Austin are solid underneath options. Williams will be a non-factor in their offense which makes this trade feel useless.
Grade: D
OLB Preston Smith Traded From Green Bay Packers to Pittsburgh Steelers
Bringing in Mike Williams was a useless move by the Steelers, but bringing in Preston Smith was not. The Steelers only have 19 sacks on the season despite having players like T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith and Cameron Hayward. Even though Preston Smith has only 2.5 sacks on the season, he’ll be able to add to the Steelers pass rushing rotation and keep tackles guessing play after player. While it’s not a groundbreaking trade, it’s a positive if you’re a Steelers fan.
Grade: C
