The NFL‘s Nov. 5 trade deadline is just around the corner, and we’ve already seen plenty of player movement. There have been rumors around some of the best defensive players, the Browns’ Myles Garrett and Raiders’ Maxx Crosby, but those players appear to be staying.
Although the NFL may never achieve the trade deadline frenzy that occurs in the NBA or MLB, there has been a consistent uptick in swaps over the past decade-plus. Whether it’s due to younger general managers who are more comfortable with trades or because teams are more willing to take on salary (or dead money in the case of clubs trading players away), midseason deals are on the rise.
Let’s take a look at six defensive players who could find new landing spots by next Tuesday.
49ers Bolster Pass-Rushing Plan
- 49ers acquire: EDGE Jadeveon Clowney
- Panthers acquire: 2025 fifth-round pick
Jadeveon Clowney seems to be getting better with age. He picked up new moves with Baltimore Ravens pass-rushing coach Chuck Smith in 2023 and has maintained a 13+% pressure rate with the Panthers this season.
Did we mention Clowney also ranks No. 1 among edge defenders in run-stop win rate?
Let’s send Clowney to the 49ers, where defensive line coach Kris Kocurek will determine how to keep getting the most out of the mercenary pass rusher. Nick Bosa ranks 10th among EDGEs with a 19.2% pass-rush win rate, but he needs help. No other 49ers defensive end ranks among the NFL’s top 60 in PRWR.
Cap space isn’t an issue for San Francisco, but Clowney is only earning a league-minimum base salary. General manager John Lynch would also have Clowney under contract in 2025 for $11.8 million, $2 million of which is fully guaranteed.
Za’Darius Smith Joins an NFC Contender
- Falcons acquire: EDGE Za’Darius Smith
- Browns acquire: 2025 seventh-round pick, 2026 seventh-round pick
The Atlanta Falcons are in first place in the NFC South after taking down the Buccaneers in Week 8. Moreover, injuries to Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans could make the Falcons even more likely to buy at this year’s trade deadline. With a clear path toward the NFC South title, general manager Terry Fontenot might try to add additional talent over the next two weeks.
Atlanta already bolstered its EDGE group when it acquired Matthew Judon from the New England Patriots in September. However, the Falcons rank dead last in the NFL with just six — yes, six! — sacks through eight games. The underlying metrics aren’t much better. When not blitzing, Atlanta ranks 28th in pressure rate (25.6%).
NFL Network recently reported that several teams have called on Cleveland pass rusher Za’Darius Smith, while ESPN’s Adam Schefter said he expects the 32-year-old to be traded before next week’s deadline.
"In my mind Diontae Johnson and Za'Darius Smith are gonna be traded before the deadline..
The Rams are only a game out in the NFC West and I don't expect them to move Cooper Kupp"@AdamSchefter #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/PhIPBmYAu2
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 28, 2024
While Smith’s sack totals have fluctuated over the past few seasons, his pressure rate has mostly remained steady, sticking between 14% and 17% each season since 2022. He’d give Atlanta more juice off the edge instantaneously.
Smith is also under contract for just $4 million in 2025, so he could help the Falcons get after passers even after Judon hits free agency next offseason.
- Lions acquire: EDGE Arden Key
- Titans acquire: 2025 seventh-round pick
The Detroit Lions have one of the NFL’s best rosters, so much so that their only genuine need heading into the 2024 trade deadline was created by an unprecedented string of injuries.
Aidan Hutchinson, the league’s leading contender for Defensive Player of the Year honors, fractured his tibia and fibula in Detroit’s Week 6 win against the Cowboys.
Hutchinson was hurt while reaching 7.5 sacks, the most in the NFL at the time. Entering Week 6, he ranked first among edge defenders in pass-rush win rate (34%). Hutchinson had generated pressure on a league-leading 23.6% of his pass rushes, nearly five percentage points better than second-place Micah Parsons and more than double the league-average rate.
Hutchinson isn’t the only Detroit edge rusher who’s suffered a severe injury this season. Marcus Davenport, whom the Lions inked to a one-year deal worth $6.5 million in March, went down with a season-ending triceps injury in Week 3.
No single player can replace Detroit’s lost EDGE production, but the Tennessee Titans’ Arden Key might be able to help. The 28-year-old has always been a valuable rotational rusher, posting at least 4.5 sacks each season from 2021 to 2023 while playing for three different teams. Key is a little light (240 pounds) for the Lions’ system, but he plays with a tenacity that Dan Campbell will enjoy.
Detroit would owe Key a little less than $1 million for the rest of the 2024 campaign. The Lions would also have him under contract in 2025 via a de facto $7 million option.
Texans Fortify Defensive Line Instead of WR
- Texans acquire: DT Calais Campbell, 2026 seventh-round pick
- Dolphins acquire: 2026 sixth-round pick
The Houston Texans might be interested in acquiring a wide receiver after losing Stefon Diggs to a season-ending ACL tear in Week 8. But with Nico Collins returning from injured reserve shortly, and options like Tank Dell, Robert Woods, and John Metchie III already on the roster, Houston could target other positions at the deadline.
That might include defensive tackle, where the Texans could afford to add one more body to a group that includes Folorunso Fatukasi, Denico Autry, Tim Settle, and Mario Edwards Jr.; Settle injured his calf in Week 8, while Edwards is suspended until Week 11.
The 2-5 Miami Dolphins have no reason to hang onto 38-year-old Calais Campbell for the rest of this year, while Campbell would likely welcome a move to a contender.
He wouldn’t come to Houston simply to offer experience — Campbell is still good! He led the Falcons with 6.5 sacks in 2023 and is getting after quarterbacks at the same rate as Clowney this year. Campbell ranks 12th among DTs with 14 stops — tackles that result in negative EPA — in the run game.
Packers Bring in Veteran CB for Playoff Run
- Packers acquire: CB Jonathan Jones
- Patriots acquire: CB Eric Stokes, 2026 sixth-round pick
The Green Bay Packers remain a draft-and-develop organization, but they can afford to make at least one move before next week’s deadline.
General manager Brian Gutekunst’s most logical area for improvement is at corner, where the Packers have benched former first-round pick Eric Stokes and shifted ex-slot CB Keisean Nixon to the boundary.
Nixon is best inside, so a perimeter cornerback could make sense for Green Bay. The Patriots have already traded pass rusher Josh Uche to the Kansas City Chiefs and are reportedly willing to deal away more veterans. Could Jonathan Jones be an option for the Packers?
Jones is due nearly $5 million for the rest of the year, but Green Bay could partially defeat that cost by sending Stokes and his remaining $1.25 million salary to New England.
Ravens Make Another Deal After Grabbing Diontae Johnson
- Ravens acquire: S Jevon Holland
- Dolphins acquire: 2025 sixth-round pick
The Ravens struck a deal on Oct. 29 to acquire Diontae Johnson from the Panthers, but they might not be done adding before next week’s deadline. As The Athletic’s Jeff Zrebiec noted, Baltimore still has 11 selections in next year’s draft, assuming they receive four projected compensatory picks.
Let’s give John Harbaugh’s club some help on the defensive side of the ball, where the Ravens rank 27th in yards per pass (7.0) and 29th in EPA per dropback (0.13). Baltimore finally saw enough of safety Marcus Williams heading into Week 8, benching the veteran after he’d allowed a career-high 147.3 passer rating in coverage this season.
PFN’s Adam Beasley argued that Miami should blow up its roster if their record falls to 2-6, which would involve trading pending free agent safety Jevon Holland. He went out with a knee injury in Week 8, but if he’s healthy, Holland could take over as Baltimore’s new deep safety. While the Ravens still have offseason addition Eddie Jackson on the roster, Holland would represent a significant upgrade.