10 Teams That Should Trade For Joe Burrow

Start with the obvious, shall we?

The Vikings won 14 games a year ago behind a career year from Sam Darnold. Believing that he was replaceable in Kevin O’Connell’s QB-friendly system, the Vikings let Darnold walk and handed the keys to unproven 2024 first-round pick JJ McCarthy.

But McCarthy’s first season in Minnesota has been a giant disappointment, to say the least. He missed time due to injury, yes. But the offense has hardly functioned with him behind center, and Justin Jefferson has had the worst season of his career. That largely falls on the QB.

If the Vikings could somehow complete a trade for Burrow, it would make them the NFC’s team to beat. You’re getting a top-three quarterback to throw to JJ – Burrow’s old LSU teammate, Jordan Addison, and TJ Hockenson. The Vikings’ o-line, led by veteran stalwarts Brian O’Neill, Ryan Kelly, and Christian Darrisaw, is miles better than the Bengals’ atrocious unit.

With a borderline top-10 defense to help out, Burrow would immediately join the most complete team of his NFL career. He’d immediately become the NFC’s top quarterback, a luxury the Vikings have never enjoyed.

If you’re Minnesota, just go offer four first-round picks, JJ McCarthy, and whatever else Cincinnati wants. Trading for Burrow would guarantee multiple Super Bowls.

Las Vegas Raiders

We can’t say we know how Tom Brady operates behind the scenes. What we do know is that his decisions to bring in Geno Smith and Pete Carroll completely backfired.

You better believe Brady and owner Mark Davis will prepare for sweeping changes in the offseason. And if Burrow becomes available, you better believe the GOAT will do his best to recruit the almost-Super Bowl 56 champion.

Burrow should love the chance of playing with Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty, who have the skill sets to go down as all-time greats at their respective positions. And though the o-line and defense require reinforcements, you can bet Vegas would spend lavishly to give Burrow a win-now roster.

AKA, something the Bengals clearly aren’t committed to doing.

New York Jets

No team would be in a position to top the Jets’ offer for Joe Burrow. No sir.

After trading away Quinnen Williams and Sauce Gardner at the trade deadline, the Jets set themselves up with two 2026 first-round picks, a pair of second-round selections, and three (!) 2027 first-rounders.

The Jets will be in a position to take one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2026 draft. So why not offer a bundle of your draft picks? 

Giving up your own 2026 first-rounder would give Cincy the chance to take a top prospect like Fernando Mendoza, Ty Simpson, or Dante Moore. How could anyone else top the Jets’ offer?

Burrow would lead an offense featuring Garrett Wilson and, hopefully, Breece Hall if extended. He would single-handedly elevate the Jets into Super Bowl contenders. Their alternative is to draft and probably ruin another young quarterback.

New Orleans Saints

The Saints have sunk to irrelevance in the post-Drew Brees era. Five straight non-playoff berths will do that to you.

The Saints haven’t at all indicated that they’d consider a tear-it-all-down rebuild. With a young foundation in place, why not swing for the fences and see if bringing Burrow back to the Bayou State?

For starters, rookie head coach Kellen Moore has a rich QB resume. Look how much the Philadelphia Eagles miss him after winning the Super Bowl last year.

Chris Olave and Juwan Johnson are a nice pass-catching tandem to work with. Workhorse running back Alvin Kamara isn’t going anywhere. The o-line is set up nicely with Cesar Ruiz and young bookends Taliese Fuaga and Kelvin Banks Jr.

There’s work to do on defense, yes. But that can be addressed via trade, the draft, and free agency. The primary goal here is to provide Burrow with the necessary tools to succeed. And playing in the NFC South would give him a much easier path to the Super Bowl compared to the AFC.

Arizona Cardinals

All indicators are that Arizona will finally move on from Kyler Murray after this season. I mean, it’s a bad look on him that the offense has fared better under career backup Jacoby Brissett.

If Arizona has the guts to cut ties with Murray, then Burrow should be option A. Imagine if Joe Cool were leading an offense headlined by Marvin Harrison Jr., rising superstar Trey McBride, and star running back James Conner. Surely, a QB as outstanding as Burrow would finally help Harrison Jr. reach his potential.

The Cardinals aren’t competing any time soon without a bona fide star behind center. Not with Matt Stafford, Sam Darnold, and Brock Purdy in the division. That’s why they have to be extra-motivated 

Arizona will have a top-10 pick in 2026, so that can be a nice starting point in a Burrow trade offer. They could always throw in a valuable roster player like Paris Johnson Jr., Walter Nolen, or Will Johnson as part of the package.

The point being, few teams need a QB of Joe Burrow’s caliber as badly as Arizona. They have a good mix of young and veteran talent in place. They’re just missing a needle-moving quarterback. And Joe Burrow could be the solution they need.

Cleveland Browns

Yes, we know. We know the idea is crazy. But if the Browns presented the best offer, would the Bengals A) want to play mean or B) do what’s simply best for them?

The Browns haven’t had a true franchise-changing QB since Bernie Kosar, nearly 40 years ago. They struck out on the likes of Tim Couch, Brady Quinn, and Johnny Manziel. They failed Baker Mayfield and embarrassed themselves with the Deshaun Watson trade.

Instead of trusting their flawed organization to draft and develop a young quarterback, why not just acquire an established quarterback to lead the way? And unlike Watson, Joe Burrow wouldn’t come with a lot of baggage.

Cleveland has an extra first-round pick via the Jacksonville Jaguars from the Travis Hunter trade. That would be a nice starting point. Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward or rookie standout linebacker Carson Schwesinger could be included in the package, too.

In this scenario, Cincy would be locked and loaded with draft capital and could target a top QB prospect and build around them on a cheap rookie deal. Facing Burrow twice a year wouldn’t be fun, but like we said…sentiments have to be put aside if the Browns theoretically proposed the best offer.

Miami Dolphins

ESPN’s Adam Schefter dropped two massive bombshells after Tua Tagovailoa was benched for Quinn Ewers. Number one: The Dolphins offered the Bengals four first-round picks at the 2020 Draft in an effort to move up for Burrow.

And two? The Dolphins are planning to move on from Tagovailoa in the offseason. Massive dead money charges be damned. Even though he just began his four-year, $212.4 million extension.

The Dolphins, like several other teams on this list, don’t have an inspiring track record of drafting and developing their own quarterbacks. Ryan Tannehill and Tua Tagovailoa brought mixed bags. The approach has to change.

Along with offering valuable draft picks, Miami could see if Cincinnati would take a flier on Tyreek Hill and give them a three-headed monster at receiver. Since the Bengals need so much help on defense, what if the Dolphins threw in a couple of big names like Minkah Fitzpatrick and Bradley Chubb?

Burrow can turn even the most mediocre of teams into contenders, as we saw in Cincinnati. There’s something to like about an offense featuring him, Jaylen Waddle, and DeVon Achane.

Burrow. Josh Allen and Drake Maye in the same division? Sign every football fan up for that!

Indianapolis Colts

If not for Daniel Jones’ season-ending Achilles tear, Indy would have had an easy call to bring him back in 2026. However, Jones’ injury status now raises a bigger question mark about his future in Indy.

If you’re the Colts, why take a risk when you could just go out and get Joe Burrow?

The Colts have one of the deepest rosters in football. Michael Pittman Jr., Tyler Warren, and Alec Pierce headline a nice offensive pass-catching trio. Jonathan Taylor is a top-three running back. The o-line is elite, and their D should be a top-10 unit for the long haul now that they have Sauce Gardner in the fold.

Indy gave up its next two first-round picks to get Gardner, so a Burrow trade would be tricky to pull off if he hits the market. But they have a wealth of proven veteran studs on both sides of the ball to make this trade work.

What about a package involving multiple first and second-round picks? Let’s throw in wide receiver Josh Downs and 2024 first-round pick Laiatu Latu. If the Bengals want more, it can be further discussed.

Bottom line: Indy has every incentive to pursue a Joe Burrow trade…

Denver Broncos

On one hand, you may ask why a bona fide Super Bowl contender would give up on its young quarterback and trade for a veteran. We get it. On the other hand? Look what happened when the win-now Los Angeles Rams swapped Jared Goff for Matthew Stafford.

Bo Nix has been rock-solid as Sean Payton’s quarterback in Denver. But Payton runs an awfully friendly QB system. And with all due respect to Nix, a LOT of quarterbacks can win with that elite defense and strong supporting cast on offense.

Here, we just can’t help but wonder what the Broncos would look like with Joe Burrow. Hall of Fame Coach? Check. A top-five defense to take some of the burden off him? Check. An o-line that will actually protect him? A third check.

Denver could hypothetically offer up a package built around Nix. The kid has immense potential and could definitely get things going with Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. And again, Cincy would have a QB on a rookie contract to work with here.

So, let’s propose a package including Nix and multiple round-one and two-picks. Cincinnati can see if the Oregon product can sustain his upward trajectory on offense while using the additional picks to fill out the other holes on the roster.

Denver gets a top-three QB to round out a roster that is already good enough to win a Super Bowl as is. We know Russell Wilson didn’t work out in Denver. But Peyton Manning sure did. And Joe Burrow certainly would, too.

Dallas Cowboys

Since we’re near the end, we saved the boldest scenario for last.

Dak Prescott has put up some great numbers with the Dallas Cowboys. But two playoff wins in five seasons just isn’t gonna cut it. And if Jerry Jones were smart, he’d move on from Prescott while he’s still in his prime.

The Rams got tired of underachieving in the postseason with Jared Goff. The Cowboys should feel the same with Prescott, who should also pull a Matt Stafford and seek a fresh start for the back end of his career.

Remember, Jerry has an additional first-round pick courtesy of the Green Bay Packers from the Micah Parsons trade. So he does have the pieces to offer Cincinnati.

We’d like to propose one of two scenarios: Either things get really bold and Cincinnati takes on Prescott as part of the deal. OR, Dallas trades Prescott elsewhere for extra draft picks. Then they pivot and add some of those picks to the trade offer for Burrow.

Among teams needing a QB upgrade, the Cowboys stand out as the best landing spot for Burrow. He’d play behind an elite offensive line with CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, and Jake Ferguson as his top weapons. We’re not saying those guys are Chase and Higgins, but they’re also not that far off.

Burrow has proven himself as a money performer in big games. The Cowboys have never gotten that from Prescott. Put Burrow in Dallas, and dare we say they’ll actually be a prime Super Bowl contender. Yes. We said it.