5 NFL Draft Trades We Want To See Happen

Jeff Ratcliffe

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The 2021 NFL Draft is rapidly approaching, and we’ve already seen some big trades in the buildup. San Francisco moved from the 12 up to the third pick, presumably to select their quarterback of the future. Their trade partner, Miami, then turned around and sent the 12 to Philadelphia for the sixth overall pick. Given everything we’re hearing, those are not likely to be the only trades we see for Day 1 of the 2021 NFL draft.

Here are five more trades we’d like to see in this year’s draft:

Patriots trade up to 1.04 with Atlanta to select Justin Fields

If Atlanta ultimately decides to stick with Matt Ryan for the next few seasons, a trade back could be in order. While recent trends have Justin Fields falling down the board, we can’t forget that we’re in the season of liars. It isn’t a good idea to believe most of what you hear a week out from the draft. Fields still checks a ton of boxes, from his speed and athleticism to his physical ability on the field. Sure, he’s far from a polished product, but he has reportedly been the apple of the Patriots’ eye.

This would be an uncharacteristic move from Bill Belichick and company, but then again, we really don’t have a strong baseline for what to expect from New England post-Brady. The Pats did re-sign Cam Newton to a one-year deal, so they wouldn’t be forced to start Fields immediately.

Chicago trades up to 1.06 with Miami to select Trey Lance

Oh, hello. While most of the focus has been on New England, Denver and Washington to move up the board, we can’t rule out the Bears from flexing on this draft if Trey Lance is available at pick six. Miami is a strong trade candidate. The Dolphins have already moved twice in the first round and have been rumored to be open to making another deal.

Chicago infamously flopped the last time they traded up for a quarterback, but history isn’t likely to dictate their moves in 2021. It’s more about the present and future. Presently, the Bears anointed Andy Dalton as their “QB1,” but he’s only on a one-year deal and is a longshot to be their future at the position. We also have to consider the fact that Matt Nagy and Ryan Pace are both hanging on to their jobs by a thread. Getting a rookie signal caller could give the duo a longer leash. More importantly, the Bears would be taking their shot at getting the next Josh Allen in Lance.

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New Orleans trades up to 1.12 with Philadelphia to select Jaylen Waddle

With Drew Brees retired, the Saints have a big question mark at quarterback. But Sean Payton did come out and say that he’s comfortable with what he has in-house with Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill. So why not address a position of need and get a premium weapon? As for Philly, the Eagles have already shown that they’re more than willing to move down in order to accumulate more draft capital.

Beyond Michael Thomas, the Saints don’t have much at wideout currently on the roster. Sure, there’s still some hope for Tre’Quan Smith, but Jaylen Waddle would give New Orleans an instant-impact dynamic playmaker who would compliment Thomas’ skillset. His presence could really open things up for this offense. That’s especially true if the starting job goes to Winston, who tends to be a much higher aDOT thrower than Hill.

Atlanta trades up to 1.27 with Baltimore to select Travis Etienne

Sure, in a previous article I said that I’d love to see the Falcons select Javonte Williams with the third pick in the second round, but this could also make some sense. Baltimore has expressed a desire to address wide receiver, and they’ll likely be in a position to still do so in the beginning of the second round.

As for Atlanta, they enter the draft with an extremely thin depth chart at running back. Mike Davis currently sits atop the heap, but he’s really proven to be best suited to complimentary role. In Travis Etienne, the Falcons would nab a homerun hitter who is cut from the same cloth as Jamaal Charles. He’d give Arthur Smith a high-end offensive weapon to go along with what he’s already inherited in Calvin Ridley and Julio Jones.

Chiefs trade up to 1.25 with Jacksonville to select Terrace Marshall

Andy Reid tried his best to woo JuJu Smith-Schuster in free agency, but he was unable to coax the Steelers wideout to jump ship. Given the state of the Kansas City wide receiver corps, we can expect the Chiefs to continue to prioritize the position. With Sammy Watkins out of the mix, Kansas City has very little to go along with Tyreek Hill. To be fair, they do have Travis Kelce, but another weapon for Patrick Mahomes certainly wouldn’t hurt the cause.

Terrace Marshall had a lot of buzz following an impressive pro day performance, but his stock has slipped a bit over the last week following some issues that were raised at the NFL medicals in Indianapolis. It’s still unclear if this medical red flag will cause Marshall to slip to Day 2, but he certainly has first-round talent. Better yet, he offers a very different skillset than Hill’s. His size and speed would add an additional layer to the Chiefs offense that we have yet to see.