Vikings Submitted Daniel Jones Better Offer Than Colts
Completing one of the more stunning first halves in recent NFL history, the Colts enter Week 9 an NFL-best 7-1. Their offense has rolled to a historic modern-era point, scoring more points through eight games than any post-merger team in franchise history. At the center of this surprising charge: Daniel Jones, who needed to beat out Anthony Richardson for the starting job.
Richardson is now on IR, and Jones’ performance through eight games both showed no indication the QB competition would be revisited and has rocketed the Colts’ enduring core back to relevance. Jones chose the Colts over the Vikings in free agency, and Minnesota has seen its QB quality drop significantly after also letting Sam Darnold walk. While the Vikes did not aggressively pursue a second Darnold contract, The Athletic’s Michael Silver notes they did expect to re-sign Jones as J.J. McCarthy insurance.
At the time the Colts signed Jones to a one-year, $14MM contract, it was known the Vikings made an offer to keep the QB — one they mostly employed as a practice squad stash late last season (Jones was not even the backup in the Vikings’ playoff game). However, Silver reports the Vikings made a bigger offer — one that topped the $13.15MM guarantee in the Colts’ proposal.
Shortly before the legal tampering period, we heard the Colts were preparing to enter the Jones market. Jones faceplanting on his four-year, $160MM Giants deal naturally did not lead to a multiyear guarantee. But the market for his “prove it” deal did escalate. Jones, 28, determined his best chance to see immediate action came in Indianapolis. Being in the building as the Vikings were grooming McCarthy, Jones correctly surmised he had a better chance to unseat Richardson than delay McCarthy’s ascent.
Jones went so far as to communicate to the Vikings, per Silver, Kevin O’Connell‘s presence creating a QB-friendly infrastructure would lead to McCarthy succeeding — and thus little chance for the veteran free agent to block his path. The Vikings continued down this road with Aaron Rodgers, who almost definitely would have blocked McCarthy’s route to the lineup.
Rodgers expressed interest in joining O’Connell in Minnesota, pegging the Vikings as his preferred destination. But he ended up in Pittsburgh, forming a partnership in which neither side received its desired outcome (the Steelers had wanted to either re-sign Justin Fields or trade for Matthew Stafford over signing Rodgers).
With Jones committed to Indianapolis, Minnesota traded for Sam Howell during the draft and signed Max Brosmer as a UDFA. Howell’s struggles in camp led to the Vikings trading him to the Eagles and then signing Carson Wentz. The Wentz experiment is over, as the QB nomad is out for the season with a shoulder injury, while Brosmer is still being prioritized as Minnesota’s QB2.
Entering the season as the Vikings’ third-stringer, Brosmer (per Silver) drew some internal Brock Purdy comps. It is obviously too early there, but Purdy did impress as a 49ers third-stringer behind Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo in 2022 — before injuries opened the door to the starting job. Brosmer is now one injury away, and while McCarthy is returning in Week 9, the former top-10 pick has already suffered two notable maladies since entering the NFL.
Prior to the 2024 draft, Vikings ownership was believed to be pushing for a young quarterback who could keep the role long term. This offseason, Silver adds the Mark and Zygi Wilf remain committed to seeing if McCarthy can be that long-term answer.
The Vikings did roster Kirk Cousins for six years but had not had much luck through the draft since 1999 first-rounder Daunte Culpepper. The former standout’s severe knee injury — sustained shortly after the Wilfs bought the team — in 2005 wrecked his Twin Cities stay, leading to a slew of veterans. Teddy Bridgewater‘s injury-marred stay interrupted this, and McCarthy’s meniscus tear last year reminded of some unfortunate knee-related setbacks for Minnesota QBs. The Vikings will now hope McCarthy can prove O’Connell and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah right for passing on franchise-tagging Darnold or signing Rodgers.
The Jones offer does show some degree of hesitancy with McCarthy this year, as the Vikings offered more than they paid Darnold in 2024 (one year, $10MM). Jones is flourishing in Indy, sitting third in QBR during a bounce-back season. The Colts, whose QB carousel has spun much faster than the Vikings’ in recent years, are interested in extending him. The Vikings reside as an interesting “what if?” for the former first-round quarterback.
Bills S Taylor Rapp Likely Out For Season
The Bills placed Taylor Rapp on IR before their Week 8 game. While that move only mandates a four-game absence, the veteran safety appears unlikely to factor into Buffalo’s plans for the rest of the season.
Sean McDermott confirmed (via The Athletic’s Joe Buscaglia) Rapp underwent knee surgery this week; that procedure is likely to shelve him for the rest of the season. While the ninth-year HC did not confirm Rapp is done, it does not sound like he will factor into the Bills’ IR-return calculus this season.
[RELATED: Bills Eyeing Field-Stretching WR At Deadline]
Rapp had not played well before being moved to IR; Pro Football Focus rated him 84th out of 88 qualified safeties. The Bills had re-signed Rapp in 2024, giving him a low-cost deal (three years, $10.63MM) to stick around and replace Jordan Poyer at the position. After Poyer’s Dolphins one-off, he is back receiving regular reps. The Bills have signed Poyer from the practice squad ahead of their pivotal Week 9 Chiefs matchup.
While Micah Hyde‘s second stint did not involve any game action (before the standout’s offseason retirement), Poyer has taken over as Buffalo’s primary option alongside Cole Bishop. The Bills also have Damar Hamlin on IR, thinning their safety corps to the point Poyer (34) is suddenly being counted on — while tied to vet-minimum money — after the team released him in March 2024.
Hamlin and Rapp’s exits have Cam Lewis, Sam Franklin and fifth-round rookie Jordan Hancock as Buffalo’s backups at safety. Rapp is on Buffalo’s books for 2026, but his base salary ($2.58MM) is nonguaranteed.
Additionally, McDermott said (via Buscaglia) the team hopes second-round defensive tackle T.J. Sanders — on IR after knee surgery — will be able to return in a few weeks. The Bills are in decent shape for injury activations, having only used two thus far. The Bills are in trouble at defensive tackle, however, with Ed Oliver‘s best-case scenario of returning from a biceps tear being late in a potential playoff run. Also ruling out DaQuan Jones for the annual Kansas City regular-season matchup, team has fourth-round rookie Deone Walker and Larry Ogunjobi in place at the position. Buffalo mainstay Jordan Phillips is also back on the team’s 53-man roster as a rotational option.
Jayden Daniels To Return In Week 9; Terry McLaurin Ruled Out
OCTOBER 31: The Commanders confirmed Daniels will return for Week 9. This will cap his hamstring-driven absence count at one game, though the dynamic quarterback has missed three in total this season.
OCTOBER 29: Marcus Mariota has been needed during multiple points over the first half of this season, as Jayden Daniels has run into two injuries significant enough to sideline him. The second instance required a Mariota start against the Chiefs on Monday, but it appears the veteran’s second starter stint will be capped at one game. 
Daniels is set to practice in full this week, via ESPN.com’s John Keim, moving him into position to miss just one full game with a hamstring injury. However, Daniels will once again not have his top wide receiver available.
The Commanders have already ruled out Terry McLaurin, who reinjured his quad during the Chiefs matchup. Daniels and McLaurin, as The Athletic’s Nicki Jhabvala points out, have only played two games together this season. Daniels’ arrival proved vital for McLaurin last season, ending a QB carousel that had begun to spin following Kirk Cousins‘ 2018 exit. McLaurin’s 13-touchdown season, followed by key playoff production, placed him on track to secure a three-year, $87MM extension. That deal has preceded this rare bout of McLaurin injury absences.
Washington sits at just 3-5 on the campaign, meaning the team has already lost as many games in 2025 as it did last year. A rebound in short order will be needed to reach the playoffs and leave the door open to a replication of 2024′ surprise run to the NFC title game. Having a healthy Daniels the rest of the way would be crucial, although the Commanders’ passing attack will still be notably shorthanded as long as McLaurin is absent. A long-term absence in his case is not anticipated by the team, head coach Dan Quinn said (via Keim).
Offseason trade acquisition Deebo Samuel arrived in the nation’s capital with more in the way of concerns regarding his durability compared to McLaurin. To date, though, the former 49ers All-Pro has managed to make seven appearances. In that time, Samuel has racked up 372 scrimmage yards and scored four touchdowns. An uptick in production could be in store provided Daniels returns, and in the event McLaurin missed notable time Samuel would remain a focal point on offense.
Daniels’ recovery will be handled with caution given his immense importance to the Commanders and the presence of a veteran QB2 in Mariota. Still, barring any setbacks over the coming days he will be in line to reprise his starting role against the Seahawks. Meanwhile, it will be interesting to monitor McLaurin’s recovery timeline as Washington seeks to bounce back from a poor start to the campaign and a return on the team’s latest investment in him.
Adam La Rose contributed to this post.
Jets Setting High Asking Price On Breece Hall; Team More Open To Re-Signing RB?
Five days remain until this year’s trade deadline. Even after sending Michael Carter II to the Eagles, the Jets remain a team to watch regarding more seller’s moves.
Teams are monitoring a few Jets, defenders Jermaine Johnson, Quincy Williams and Quinnen Williams among them. While Allen Lazard is known to be available, Breece Hall remains the top skill-position trade chip. As it stands, Gang Green continues to set a high price, according to Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano and Eric Williams. The team is rebuffing inquiries as it stands, and it is possible its stance has changed in recent weeks.
[RELATED: Hall Wants To Remain With Jets Past Deadline]
Although Aaron Glenn said earlier this month he did not want to see his starting running back traded, ESPN.com’s Dan Graziano notes his previous expectation was for Hall to be dealt at the deadline. Now, though, some in the Jets’ building are leery about moving on from the team’s four-year starting RB.
The situation now looks to feature stronger Jets consideration of re-signing Hall as a free agent, which will obviously produce a higher asking price to part with him now in a trade. No extension talks are known to have taken place, and preseason word pointed to the former second-round pick playing out his rookie contract. Trade buzz has persisted in the weeks since.
Thus far, Hall has delivered a bounce-back season. He was instrumental in the Jets picking up their first Glenn-era win, rushing for two touchdowns and adding a TD toss to Mason Taylor. Hall has three 100-yard games this season and is naturally generating interest from RB-needy teams.
Going through a bye week, the Jets also would need to make a significant pivot if they moved Hall. The team’s top Hall complementary piece entering the season, Braelon Allen, is recovering from knee surgery, via ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini. Allen was not certain to undergo a procedure, with rehab a route believed to be available as well. While the second-year back did go under the knife, Cimini adds this does not change his two- to three-month recovery timetable.
A Hall trade would bump 2024 fifth-round pick Isaiah Davis to the top of the Jets’ depth chart. Davis has provided a spark as a backup with Allen sidelined, but a Hall trade would also force the Jets to consider how an Allen-Davis tandem would look anchoring the team’s backfield come 2026.
Hall could net the Jets a 2027 compensatory pick as a departing free agent, depending on the RB’s market and how the team approaches free agency in 2026. A move now would likely hand the Jets a pick or two in 2026, as Glenn and GM Darren Mougey look to continue adding their own talent to mix in with Joe Douglas‘ pieces.
After averaging 4.2 yards per carry in 2022, Hall is at 5.0 (581 in total) through eight games. Like Javonte Williams in Dallas, Hall appears to have completed a belated return to form after a 2022 ACL tear. The Jets would have competition for his services in free agency, but the team has until the mid-March legal tampering period to negotiate exclusively with the RB — that is, if it does not move on before the Nov. 4 deadline.
J.K. Dobbins Eyeing Broncos Extension
J.K. Dobbins‘ extensive injury history has crushed his free agency value in two offseasons. The former Ravens starter has signed two one-year deals since his rookie contract expired; each has been worth less than $2.1MM.
But the injury-prone running back has boosted two AFC West teams’ offensive performances over the past two seasons, posting a career-high 905 rushing yards last season. The then-Chargers starter did so despite missing four games with an MCL sprain. Another knee injury undoubtedly affected his 2025 market, which produced a low-end Chargers offer and eventual Broncos contract worth $2.07MM.
After the Chargers opted to replace Dobbins with Najee Harris and Omarion Hampton, the former second-round pick has impressed on that Denver deal. Through eight games, Dobbins sits behind only Jonathan Taylor and James Cook in rushing. Dobbins has posted 634 yards to start his Broncos run, helping maximize an offensive line that led the league in run block win rate last season — only to see scant rushing success accompany it.
Dobbins has teamed with second-round pick RJ Harvey but has been the season-long starter, residing as such despite not landing in Denver until June. Dobbins’ two 100-yard rushing performances are the Broncos’ only such efforts in the Sean Payton era. Set to turn 27 in December, the Ohio State product can use this season as a springboard to better terms.
Dobbins hopes those next set of terms will come in Denver, and while he said he has not thought about extension value, the sixth-year back confirmed interest (via the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson) in a second Broncos contract. Should Dobbins stay on his current course, he will be in line to up his rate for 2026. But having missed 47 games due to injury as a pro — largely because of a 2021 ACL tear and 2023 Achilles tear — will still stand to limit his earning potential. This Broncos season could still prove pivotal for what could be a last chance of sorts for the RB to score a notable veteran contract.
Denver has not been shy about doing extensions in-season under GM George Paton. The team reupped both Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick during the 2021 season and paid Jonathon Cooper and Garett Bolles during the 2024 campaign. Dobbins joins linebacker Alex Singleton, center Luke Wattenberg and defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers as regulars unsigned beyond 2025. Considering the Broncos already authorized big-ticket summer deals for Sutton, Nik Bonitto and Zach Allen, this glut of contract-year starters could need to find money elsewhere come 2026. Dobbins could be a special case, though, considering his position and midlevel (at best) value.
The Broncos have not authorized a notable second contract for a running back in a while, having made Javonte Williams and Phillip Lindsay one-contract players. The team did match a C.J. Anderson RFA offer sheet in 2016, though that was under previous ownership and GM John Elway. With Dobbins upping his price this season but carrying substantial injury baggage, it will be interesting to see if the Broncos enter extension talks with their starter soon.
Seahawks Searching For O-Line Help
For the second time in four years, the Seahawks moved off a successful starting quarterback and did not retool via the draft. Like Geno Smith in 2022, Sam Darnold has worked out early in his Seattle starter debut.
The Seahawks have done a decent job protecting their free agency addition, marking an improvement from Smith’s third and final season at the helm. But the team is believed to be on the lookout for O-line help ahead of the trade deadline, veteran insider Jordan Schultz notes.
Seattle has turned to the trade market to help fortify its front in previous years of John Schneider‘s GM regime, having traded for Duane Brown (2017) and Gabe Jackson (2021). Seattle’s current front five is entirely homegrown, with four draft choices and UDFA Jalen Sundell in place as starters. Sundell won the team’s center competition this offseason, and right guard Anthony Bradford won the battle to retain that gig.
This retooled (via Sundell and ex-North Dakota State teammate Grey Zabel) O-line has drawn mixed reviews. ESPN’s pass and run block win rate metrics respectively rank Seattle’s front 11th and 10th, while Pro Football Focus slots it 19th overall. Bradford has emerged as a potential trouble spot, with PFF slotting the Seahawks’ RG 74th among guard regulars (out of 82 qualified options). He has also surrendered the third-highest pressure rate among guards with at least 200 snaps, per The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar. The former fourth-round pick has made 28 career starts, being Seattle’s primary RG for three seasons.
The Seahawks have versatile backup Josh Jones as a swing option, while reserve center Olu Oluwatimi resides as an interior option. (Ex-third-round pick Christian Haynes is in the IR-return window.) When Sundell won the center job out of training camp, Oluwatimi — Seattle’s initial Connor Williams replacement last season — was announced as the center option in the event Bradford went down. In that scenario, Sundell would have slid to right guard. The Seahawks have kept Sundell at center during the season’s first half. PFF has graded Sundell 27th among center regulars thus far.
Mike Macdonald said the Seahawks did not consider O-line changes during the bye week, but a trade would stand to demote either Bradford or Sundell. For guard options, Dugar lists veterans Kevin Zeitler, Wyatt Teller and Joel Bitonio. Both 30-somethings are in contract years. The Browns and Titans blockers are currently protecting rookie QBs, which could make their teams hesitant to deal. It would surprise if Cleveland entertained trading both its guards, but with Bitonio in perhaps his final season, it could make sense for the team to see if the career-long northeast Ohio resident would want to be dealt to a contender. Teller, three years younger than Bitonio, also came up as an extension candidate earlier this year.
Jets LG John Simpson is also in a contract year and is playing for a regime that did not acquire him. Evan Neal is believed to be available, but at this point, the disappointing top-10 Giants pick — who has not played in a game this season — would profile more as a backup than a player who would usurp a starting guard. Dugar points to a low-profile trade being the buyer’s move the Seahawks could make, as the roster is in fairly good shape. A final decision will be due at 3pm CT November 4.
Kyler Murray Expected Back In Week 9
After two games with Jacoby Brissett under center, the Cardinals are moving toward Kyler Murray‘s return. Mentioned before their bye Murray was likely to return in Week 9, Jonathan Gannon confirmed this is the plan.
The third-year Cardinals HC said (via ESPN.com’s Josh Weinfuss) the team is preparing for Murray to return to the lineup Monday night against the Cowboys. Murray has been battling a foot injury that, somewhat concerningly, was connected to a Lisfranc issue.
Being back after sitting two games represents a win for Murray given the Lisfranc mention; those injuries are certainly known to linger. The two-time Pro Bowler also has run into injuries regularly throughout his pro career. While Murray did miss three games in 2021 and was down for a bit during the 2022 season in which he suffered an ACL tear, this year marked the starter’s first set of absences since his mid-2023 return from that knee injury.
Brissett did well to keep the Cards in games against upper-crust opponents. Although the Cardinals lost to the Colts and Packers, both were narrow defeats. That may not be much consolation to Cardinals fans, as the team is riding a five-game run of one-score defeats. Brissett, however, accounted himself well in backup duty once again. The 10th-year veteran has also now made starts for seven NFL franchises, with his Arizona work following first-string summons in New England, Indianapolis, Miami, Cleveland, Washington and New England.
Working with Drew Petzing for the second time (after the current Cards OC was the Browns’ QBs coach in 2022), Brissett completed just more than 64% of his passes at 7.4 yards per throw. Murray carries a 68% completion rate but is only at 6.0 Y/A through six games. The dual-threat talent has not showcased the form he did during his Pro Bowl years (2020, 2021) since being placed in Petzing’s offense, and the Cardinals are 13-17 with Murray starting under Gannon.
Murray’s 2022 extension has already triggered a sizable 2026 guarantee; by remaining on Arizona’s roster this past March, Murray secured $32.84MM guaranteed of his $42.84MM 2026 compensation. If the Cardinals were to arrange a trade, Murray would count less than $18MM on their 2026 cap sheet. For now, Petzing and Co. will work on getting Murray on the same page with Trey McBride and Marvin Harrison Jr. The Cardinals will also be eligible to activate running back Trey Benson from IR beginning in Week 10, but Monday looms as a crucial contest considering the stretch of close losses defining Gannon’s third season.
Prior to Gannon announcing Murray is due back in Week 9, the Cardinals worked out three QBs — Kyle Trask, Logan Woodside and Jeff Driskel, per Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio. Arizona has Kedon Slovis stationed as its QB3 on the active roster; no passer resides on the team’s practice squad.
A former second-round pick, Trask played two seasons as a Buccaneers third-stringer behind Tom Brady and Blaine Gabbert; he then lost a competition with Baker Mayfield in 2023. The Bucs re-signed Trask to a one-year, $2.79MM deal this offseason but released him in August. Trask has not landed anywhere since. Driskel’s career included an Arizona stopover, with the journeyman spending most of the 2023 season with the team.
Dolphins Reinstall Zach Wilson As QB2
Tua Tagovailoa‘s performance has been a bigger issue than usual health concerns this season, as the Dolphins are 2-6 and headed toward the trade deadline as a potential seller. The team’s standing has naturally invited speculation about Mike McDaniel and Chris Grier‘s Miami futures.
Fortunately for the team, Tagovailoa has stayed healthy this season. Concussion concerns engulfed the quarterback (and the Dolphins as a whole) in 2022 and ’24, and another hip injury cropped up at the end of last season. Tua’s health history made the Dolphins’ QB2 role rather important, highlighting a curious choice Grier and McDaniel made in the offseason.
[RELATED: McDaniel-Grier Not Seen As Package Deal]
On Day 1 of the legal tampering period, Miami signed Zach Wilson to a fully guaranteed one-year, $6MM deal. This came after the Broncos buried the former No. 2 overall pick as their third-stringer throughout the 2024 season. Wilson faceplanted as the Jets’ starter, being benched three times from 2022-23. Wilson also lost his Dolphins backup job to rookie Quinn Ewers last week.
Heading into tonight’s game, however, NFL.com’s Cameron Wolfe notes Wilson will be the Dolphins’ top backup once again. An ongoing practice competition led McDaniel to demote Wilson previously for Ewers, but the team has flipflopped on that change ahead of Week 9. Though, Wolfe does not make it sound like Ewers will not have another chance to climb the depth chart this season.
Wilson has yoyoed around depth charts since a November 2022 Jets benching. He has started, dropped to third string, climbed back to the QB2 level, started for the Jets again and spent a full season back at QB3 in Denver. The Broncos viewed Jarrett Stidham as a better backup for Bo Nix last season, after Wilson had participated in a three-man starter competition. Denver re-signed Stidham (two years, $12MM) shortly before free agency, leading Wilson elsewhere. Wilson has completed 6 of 9 passes in reserve duty this season.
Considering the consequences the Jets faced for not backstopping Aaron Rodgers with a more reliable option in 2023, the Dolphins showing faith in Wilson behind one of the league’s most injury-prone QBs injected considerable risk into the equation. But the Wilson signing — for more guaranteed money than fellow 2021 first-rounders Mac Jones or Trey Lance received in free agency — showed the former top prospect still has believers around the league. That makes Ewers’ short-lived ascent more interesting, even though McDaniel said part of the reason the rookie usurped Wilson was opponent-driven. Wilson losing his job for any reason is obviously notable given his career trajectory.
Arch Manning‘s Texas predecessor was viewed as a candidate to go as high as Day 2, but he tumbled to Round 7. The three-year Longhorns starter who twice quarterbacked his team into the CFP semifinals, Ewers received his first NFL game work in Week 7. He went 5-for-8 in the Dolphins’ loss to the Browns. With Ewers profiling as a potential long-term Tagovailoa backup, it proved notable he was given an early chance to overtake Wilson — rather than learn in a true redshirt year. It will be interesting to see if the Dolphins make another switch, which would drop Wilson’s stock further ahead of another free agency try for the BYU product.
Lessons From Recent NFL Trade Deadlines
While free agency has only existed in its current form since 1993, the trade deadline has been in place for ages. Blockbuster deals involving Herschel Walker and Eric Dickerson saw draft war chests opened, while the California arrivals of Hall of Fame-bound defenders Mike Haynes and Fred Dean swung Super Bowl races in the 1980s.
Deadline day in 1974, one of the more underdiscussed transaction frenzies, relocated Hall of Fame-bound D-lineman Curley Culp and two experienced starting quarterbacks (Craig Morton, John Hadl). Nearly two decades earlier, the Bobby Layne trade triggered generations of curse-based discussion. The first 15 years of this century included the Carson Palmer trade/unretirement and Marshawn Lynch going to Seattle for fourth- and fifth-round picks.
Trade deadlines have become more impactful in recent years. The NFL has seen many of its younger GMs become more receptive to dealing, and the league moved the deadline back a week in 2024. The cap spikes to occur since 2022 have also helped embolden contenders to acquire talent -- after the 2010s did not involve comparable year-to-year booms. A sizable contingent of would-be sellers is in place this year, with a clear bottom tier forming early. A handful of trades have already occurred. By next week, we should see several more players -- many from basement-dwelling clubs -- relocate to contenders.
It is then relevant to look at some of the key developments and long-term ramifications from recent trade deadlines. Since 2015, we have seen a number of second-round picks change hands. Fewer firsts have been swapped in-season, but impact players have changed addresses in deals involving Round 1 choices. As we head toward another trade window closing, here are some lessons and consequences from the past decade of deadline-driven deals.
Jets To Deal CB Michael Carter II To Eagles
One of the Jets’ long-rumored trade candidates, Michael Carter II is indeed on the move. The team is sending the veteran slot cornerback to the Eagles, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini reports.
Carter and a 2027 seventh-round pick are going to the Eagles in exchange for a 2027 sixth and wide receiver John Metchie, per Russini. Philadelphia had acquired Metchie in a summer trade with Houston.
[RELATED: DT Quinnen Williams Drawing Trade Interest]
This move will reunite Carter with the GM who extended him last summer. Since-fired Jets front office boss Joe Douglas is back with the Eagles, having been hired this offseason. Douglas hammered out a three-year, $30.75MM extension for Carter just before last season. (At the time, those terms made Carter the NFL’s highest-paid pure slot.)
The Jets came into Wednesday with three eight-figure-per-year CB contracts. That number drops to two (Sauce Gardner, Brandon Stephens) after this deal, and it gives Carter a second chance after he had fallen out of favor under Aaron Glenn.
Seeking a change of scenery after his Jets standing changed, Carter agreed to rework his contract to facilitate a trade to Philly. He agreed to remove a $5MM injury guarantee for 2026, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport adds. Carter is now due a largely nonguaranteed $9.7MM in 2026, as $1.38MM of that total is fully guaranteed. The contract runs through 2027.
This will give the Eagles more flexibility, as they are acquiring a slot corner despite rostering Cooper DeJean. Issues finding a boundary complement to Quinyon Mitchell, however, have DeJean playing outside far more often this season. That looks set to continue, with the Eagles likely eyeing a Mitchell-DeJean-Carter trio after their Week 9 bye.
Vic Fangio said recently (via ESPN’s Adam Schefter) the team has discussed moving DeJean outside. Neither Adoree’ Jackson nor Kelee Ringo has proven a reliable option opposite Mitchell, and the 2024 rookie CB duo may be how the defending Super Bowl champs resolve this matter for the time being. In Carter, the Eagles will be acquiring a proven slot presence — at least, that was the case during most of Douglas’ GM tenure. The Jets, signing Stephens and extending Gardner at a record rate, had been dangling Carter in deals before the November 4 deadline.
Douglas drafted two Michael Carters in 2021. While the Jets moved on from the running back (now a Cardinal) earlier, they extended the corner — a fifth-round pick — in a deal that pointed D.J. Reed out of New York. But injuries limited Carter in 2024; the 2025 Jets regime change affected his long-term standing with the franchise. The Jets’ September Jarvis Brownlee trade impacted this equation as well.
A herniated disk in Carter’s back accompanied an ankle injury last year, and his snap share declined to a career-low 32% during Jeff Ulbrich‘s interim HC stretch. Carter had logged between 64 and 74% of New York’s defensive snaps from 2021-23, solidifying himself as an extension candidate. Missing three games this season, he played 45% of the Jets’ defensive snaps. That stint under Glenn and Steve Wilks did not go well; Pro Football Focus ranks Carter as the NFL’s third-worst CB regular this season. Per Pro-Football-Reference, he has been charged with a whopping 19.5 yards per completion and a 109.7 passer rating as the closest defender.
PFF graded Carter as a top-20 option in 2022 and ’23, as he excelled alongside Gardner in Robert Saleh‘s scheme. The Eagles will bet on this buy-low move boosting their defense and restoring the 26-year-old corner closer to that early-2020s form. PFF has Jackson slotted barely above Carter this season, ranking him among the 10 worst CB regulars, while placing Ringo outside the top 60 at the position. While DeJean may project as a slot player long term, the Eagles will try to get by with the standout cover man outside this year.
DeJean logged only seven boundary CB snaps in 2024; the Iowa alum is already at 103 this season. Fangio had a complex plan for DeJean this offseason, lining him up at safety and outside corner. For now, DeJean will be likely to give it a go at a position he was not drafted to play. It will be interesting to see what the Eagles’ DeJean plan is coming out of this season, as the Super Bowl hero enjoyed a strong rookie year as a slot stopper.
Despite being extended last year, Carter is on a manageable $1.7MM base salary this season. The Eagles will be responsible for barely half that, though the Jets could only secure a 2027 sixth and a now-twice-trade receiver in this deal. Metchie will join a team with a much worse receiving situation.
The Jets have played without Garrett Wilson due to injury recently and placed Josh Reynolds on IR before Week 8. Being traded from Houston to Philly before the season, Metchie has caught just four passes for 18 yards. The former second-round pick, who missed his rookie season due to a leukemia battle, should have a chance to play more with the Jets.
Metchie caught 24 passes for 254 yards as a Texans backup in 2024 and is in a contract year. The Jets have Allen Lazard stationed as a trade candidate, as the 1-7 team will need to consider other moves to recoup draft capital before the deadline. Excluding pick-for-pick deals, this is the Eagles’ 10th trade in 2025. More moves could be coming for the NFC power, as six days remain until this year’s trade endpoint.