The NFL trade deadline didn’t disappoint with more than a few notable player moves this past week.
Several teams with Super Bowl aspirations acquired what could turn out to be vital cogs for a championship push. Or maybe not?
I take a look at the biggest winners and losers of the NFL trade deadline as we head into the second half of the 2025 season.
Sauce Gardner to Indianapolis Colts: Winner (for now)
I’ll grade this a winner for this season, but the Indianapolis Colts gave up two first round picks for Sauce Gardner which hurts their future rosters. The front office is going all in on 2025.
The Colts needed help in the secondary after losing CB Charvarius Ward to a freak injury in warmups. He’s on the IR with a concussion that could keep him out until at least Thanksgiving.
Gardner hasn’t been able to replicate the shutdown success of his rookie season but does find a better team around him in Indianapolis. The Colts will need him at his best with the upcoming schedule featuring some high-flying attacks.
After Week 10’s game against Atlanta in Germany and a Week 11 bye, Indy takes on the likes of Kansas City, Jacksonville (twice), Seattle, and San Francisco – along with two games versus Houston.
Rashid Shaheed to Seattle Seahawks: Draw
Every team with a postseason pulse was sniffing around the New Orleans Saints heading into the deadline. The Seattle Seahawks sent fifth and sixth round 2026 selections to New Orleans for the deep-strike receiver.
Rashid Shaheed adds depth to this stripped-down Seahawks receiving corps, which parted ways with D.K. Metcalf and Tyler Lockett this offseason. Seattle currently has three WRs listed as questionable for Week 10.
Shaheed’s ability to stretch the defense with his speed and “home run” threat will make life easier on WR1 Jaxon Smith-Njigba and take stress off aging slot Cooper Kupp. As for his actual output, that could be tempered by the upcoming opposition.
Shaheed is very effective versus man-to-man coverage, but the Seahawks’ next month is loaded with zone-heavy defenses. His numbers take a nosedive against zone schemes as do quarterback Sam Darnold’s stats. He could end up playing the role of decoy rather than drawing targets.
Jakobi Meyers to Jacksonville Jaguars: Winner
With Travis Hunter on the IR and Brian Thomas either injured or underperforming, Jakobi Meyers was a necessary add to the Jacksonville Jaguars offense at the deadline.
Jacksonville is chasing a postseason spot and needs to be able to put up points against the better teams in the league. The Jaguars have bullied bad defenses then see the door slammed in their face from stronger stop units.
Trevor Lawrence gets a big surehanded target in the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Meyers, helping wrangle some of the QB’s wayward passes. Meyers is coming off his best season in 2024, in which he caught 87 passes for over 1,000 yards with the likes of Gardner Minshew and Aiden O’Connell throwing him the ball.
Considering the health status of the Jags’ WR room right now, Meyers will get plenty of action in Duval County and he’s more than happy to be out of Vegas.
Quinnen Williams and Logan Wilson to Dallas Cowboys: Loser
Even after watching Jacoby Brissett pick apart the Dallas Cowboys secondary Monday night, Jerry Jones still ignored the problem with the pass defense and gave away some quality draft stock.
Dallas got DL Quinnen Williams from the Jets and LB Logan Wilson from the Bengals at the deadline, padding a solid front seven but hardly fixing the biggest issue with this stop unit.
Sure, the Cowboys are much stiffer versus the run but why would opponents handoff when they can get plenty of yards from the passing game, facing a secondary ranked Bottom 5 in just about every major measurement.
Jaelan Phillips, Jaire Alexander, and Michael Carter to Philadelphia Eagles: Winner
Adding defensive depth is never a bad thing. The Philadelphia Eagles have a meat grinder of a schedule coming up, with four games in 18 days followed by four games in 20 days – and five of those eight outings on the road.
Michael Carter and Jaire Alexander add depth, dimension, and experience to the secondary while Jaelan Phillips has a high ceiling when healthy. He should benefit playing around so many skilled linemen and give Philly that edge rusher it’s missed in 2025.
