With cutdown day fast approaching, NFL rosters will soon be in full churn. And I'm not just talking about possible player cuts this time of year.
There has been an uptick in trade talk compared to a typical August. Brandon Aiyuk's situation has been twisting in the wind since April, and that remains unresolved. We also have no clarity yet on what will happen with Haason Reddick, who has asked for a trade from the New York Jets only months after they acquired him.
Could we see a big deal go down close to the deadline? Already during camp, Matthew Judon has been dealt to Atlanta, the Vikings and Cowboys made a CB swap, Nick Harris returned to Cleveland and the Commanders traded for a kicker. It feels like more deals could be coming.
There should be plenty of big-name players and former early-round picks who end up elsewhere by week's end, as NFL franchises must reduce rosters to 53 players prior to 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Aug. 27.
Sidestepping the obvious Aiyuk and Reddick possibilities, here are 15 players who could be on the move -- by cut or by trade -- in the coming days.
TRADE CANDIDATES
There are multiple teams with QB2 questions, and even a few that might not be in love with their starters, which makes me think there could be a QB trade or two this preseason.
The 31-year-old Heinicke makes sense as a potential candidate to be moved. He has been an effective spot starter the past several years, even nearly out-dueling Tom Brady in a playoff game in what was only his second career start. Heinicke didn’t have much of a chance to succeed last season in Atlanta, thrust into and out of the starting lineup, but he proved himself pretty capable of stepping in when needed previously in Washington.
The Falcons are set with Kirk Cousins and Michael Penix Jr., and Heinicke has taken a lot of preseason snaps -- perhaps showcasing him to other teams. Among the clubs that might be looking for upgrades at the backup position include the Chargers, Rams, Buccaneers, Dolphins and possibly the Packers.
Could one of those teams ship a late-rounder to Atlanta for Heinicke? It certainly seems possible, especially for teams very much in contention.
There might be other, more established quarterbacks who are trade candidates. But there’s still some potential upside and intrigue to Willis’ game.
The Titans drafted Will Levis last year and signed Mason Rudolph this offseason to back Levis up, leaving Willis in the lurch. GM Ran Carthon and head coach Brian Callahan will have to decide between keeping two or three QBs, but three might be a stretch for a team that has added layers of depth this offseason and could be contenders in the muddled AFC South.
The former third-round pick of the previous Titans regime has played a decent amount this preseason, throwing for 154 yards and completing 74% of his passes. On the downside, Willis threw an interception, has taken three sacks and is averaging 6.7 yards per attempt. But his running ability and draft pedigree could convince another team to take a shot at investing in Willis if the Titans are prepared to move on from him soon.
It was clear early last season that Pierce wasn’t a fit in the Texans’ zone-blocking system, making Year 2 a frustrating one for the power back. He was approaching 1,000 yards rushing as a rookie before his season-ending injury in 2022.
Things haven’t changed this preseason. Pierce won’t start now that Joe Mixon is back at practice, and Cam Akers has impressed in recent action in his bid to make the roster. Dare Ogunbowale feels like a lock for his special-teams and third-down value, and Houston might still want to develop rookie Jawhar Jordan (or sleeper British Brooks, although he’s more of a practice-squad candidate, I suspect) rather than risk him to the waiver wire.
I doubt the Texans would release Pierce. He still could be a solid reserve. But if an RB-needy team such as the Cowboys offered a late-round pick for him, I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Texans pull the trigger.
This one is just a gut feeling.
Atwell finally started showing some of his potential as a former second-round pick last season, starting 14 games and looking to be a dangerous weapon at times. But his effectiveness tapered off after a hot start, and he started settling into more of a situation-specific role down the stretch before missing time while in concussion protocol.
The Rams are pretty loaded at receiver, with Cooper Kupp, Puka Nacua and Demarcus Robinson often lining up as the wideouts when they use 11 personnel. The emergence of second-year WR Xavier Smith and rookie Jordan Whittington, along with a good camp from journeyman Tyler Johnson, gives the Rams the kind of depth where they could consider floating Atwell’s name in talks.
Sean McVay recently said Atwell’s role this season was “to be determined” before showering the fourth-year receiver with praise. It’s been reported the Rams are not looking to deal Atwell, but I suspect they might be open to a respectable offer.
When third-round OT Kiran Amegadjie was recently activated from the non-football injury list, it sort of started the clock on Borom. It was natural to presume back in the spring that Amegadjie would compete for the swing OT job, backing up starters Braxton Jones and Darnell Wright. But is there enough time now to ramp up Amegadjie before the season starts?
Moving on from Borom carries some risk, but with a $3.1 million salary, he’d be a semi-pricy insurance plan. Borom is appealing to teams because he has experience at four of the five OL spots (everywhere but center), starting six games at left tackle a year ago.
But if the Bears feel comfortable enough with the health of Nate Davis at guard and are confident that players such as Matt Pryor can back up multiple positions while Amegadjie gets up to speed, they might feel comfortable enough to move Borom for a draft pick.
There are a lot of teams looking for NFL-caliber tackles this time of year (and most times of the year), so Mitchell is worth keeping an eye on.
A fourth-rounder in 2022, Mitchell has had a couple tough seasons -- mostly at right tackle -- in the NFL. This offseason, he watched the Jets add three big-name tackles in vets Tyron Smith and Morgan Moses and first-rounder Olu Fashanu. And that was after the Jets used a fourth-rounder on Carter Warren in 2023.
When the Jets have been at full strength, Warren and Mitchell have rotated as the second-team right tackle. Warren appeared to be leading that race, and he started last Saturday’s game against the Panthers, playing most of the first half, while Mitchell closed it out with the third-stringers.
Mitchell played well against Carolina and had some fans in the scouting community a few years ago when he was taken 111th overall. He still could make the roster, and it’s possible no one is willing to give up much in a trade. But at such a high-priority position, with more than a few teams dealing with injuries there now, we could see some action.
The former first-round pick suffered a career-altering injury early in the 2022 season and then played a special-teams role on the rare occasions when he was active in 2023.
Now Cine’s career feels like it’s at a flashpoint. The Vikings are pretty loaded at safety, with Harrison Smith, Cam Bynum, Josh Metellus and Theo Jackson near certainties to make the opening roster, plus Jay Ward and Bobby McCain behind them.
The good news for Cine is that he’s healthy and coming off perhaps his finest outing as a Viking last week, with 10 tackles, an interception and a sack in a win over the Browns. It also was notable that his teammates on the sideline appeared so excited for Cine’s success.
It would be foolish for a team to give up anything close to the first-round pick the Vikings spent on a player who has a mere 10 defensive snaps in two NFL seasons. But for a later Day 3 pick, Cine might be available. It might be the best thing for both sides to start fresh.
CUT CANDIDATES
It was always going to be an uphill climb for Zappe in New England, even with his brief moments of glory in replacing Mac Jones in recent years. Now it’s become nigh impossible for him to crack the depth chart in New England with the new regime that drafted Drake Maye third overall and intriguing Joe Milton III in Round 6.
It’s possible the Patriots could net a late-round pick for Zappe considering the importance of the QB position, plus the fact that he’s started NFL games and remains young at age 25. Zappe had a decent stretch from Weeks 14 to 16 last year, even if things were ugly at times before and after that.
In the end, though, his chances of being cut appear higher than being traded. Zappe might even have to start out on the practice squad, where he spent time a year ago before the Patriots re-added him to the roster.
In being part of two penalties on his first preseason snap last week, totaling negative receiving yards for the game, Toney perfectly encapsulated his Chiefs experience to this point -- and the reality that’s staring him and the team in the face.
The Chiefs might no longer have room for the player they once traded multiple draft picks for and who once helped them win a Super Bowl. Toney had a disastrous Week 1 last year, couldn’t hold onto his WR or punt-return roles and was inactive for the Super Bowl in February. Injuries have been a consistent issue for him, but the bottom line is that Toney clearly hasn’t proven his worth this preseason, even after Andy Reid tried to turn up the pressure a bit through the media.
Even with Marquise Brown’s injury, it’s hard to see a path where Toney is in the Chiefs’ plans this season.
The former second-rounder is entering Year 4 with a mere 25 offensive touches in 24 career games and appears to be running out of options in Seattle. Injuries and off-field issues have slowed his development, but the Seahawks’ patience has to be wearing thin.
The top four WR spots are locked up with DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Jake Bobo. Plus, Laviska Shenault Jr. and Dareke Young have outplayed Eskridge to this point. There was some thought Eskridge could be a factor with the league’s new kickoff rules, as he did average 28 yards on eight returns last season, but that hasn’t played out to this point.
If he’s going to kick-start his career, Eskridge might need a new address to do so.
It’s hard to see where Perine fits into the Broncos’ RB rotation, even after averaging 4.5 yards per carry and catching a career-high 50 passes a year ago. He developed a surprising fumble problem last year (three coughed up on 103 touches) and was far less reliable in pass protection than he had been in the past.
Sitting behind Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin and Audric Estimé, with Tyler Badie making a late push for the roster, the Broncos can easily afford to move on from Perine.
The Bengals, who lost Chris Evans to injury recently, might be interested in a reunion if they’re not fully comfortable with Chase Brown and Zack Moss atop the depth chart.
The former top-50 pick and playoff starter has fallen hard and fast in Cincinnati. Carman has stuck with the team since 2021 but might be on his last legs there and in need of a new scenario, having struggled in the preseason and fallen behind several other players on the depth chart. He has experience at left tackle, including three years in college and sparingly the past few years for the Bengals. Carman also has NFL experience at guard. So, a trade is possible for the once highly rated player heading into the final year of his deal, making less than $1.7 million, but getting anything of note for a player who’s barely seen the field the past two seasons would be a mini-coup.
Taylor has 21.5 sacks over his first three NFL seasons, with 9.5 of them and four forced fumbles in a promising 2022 season. But he’s never been able to prove he can consistently stop the run and be more than a pass-rush specialist.
Dre’Mont Jones’ injury situation is worth monitoring, but Uchenna Nwosu returning healthy has been a big development, and second-year edge rusher Derick Hall has started to open eyes when he’s had chances. Mike Morris also can play inside and outside. So, it has created a bit of a crowded situation for Mike Macdonald on the edges.
Taylor is 27 and in a contract year, due to make $3 million this season, the majority of which the Seahawks would save if they moved on from him. The Seahawks also appear to have enough DT depth with Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy II and Johnathan Hankins, plus Morris. So, they also could dangle Jarran Reed. Cutting or trading Reed would save more money than Taylor would, and Reed turns 32 in December.
I’m not sure they’ll cut both players, but it wouldn’t stun me if either Okudah or Henderson don’t make the opening roster.
Okudah is dealing with a hip injury that’s kept him from making an impact in Houston so far. Henderson missed time early in camp and only has had five defensive snaps this preseason, all in the second game.
Derek Stingley Jr. and second-rounder Kamari Lassiter appear in line to start, and Desmond King figures to man the nickel spot. The question is whether there is enough depth behind them to afford cutting either Okudah or Henderson. Both might be a stretch, even if neither has done much of note this preseason.
The Texans were aggressive in targeting edge rusher Danielle Hunter and WR Stefon Diggs this offseason but might regret not adding another higher-rated veteran corner.
