Winners, losers from NFL trade deadline

By Eric Smithling | Last updated Nov 1, 2023 8:03 AM ET

With Tuesday's NFL trade deadline in the rearview, here are the biggest winners and losers.

Winner: San Francisco 49ers

They can't keep getting away with this. The 49ers — who acquired star RB Christian McCaffrey at the trade deadline last season — won the trade deadline for the second consecutive season by adding former No. 2 overall pick Chase Young in a deal that sent a third-rounder to the Commanders.

San Francisco's defense has been as much of an issue as QB Brock Purdy (if not more) during the team's current three-game skid. The pass rush, in particular, is a concern. Defensive end Nick Bosa has only three sacks after signing a five-year, $170 million extension in the offseason. With Young, the 49ers added a talented edge defender who offenses must account for, potentially freeing Bosa to exploit one-on-one matchups.

Loser: Chicago Bears

Did Chicago not ask for Young?

The Bears gave up a second-rounder to Washington for defensive end Montez Sweat, who is set to be a free agent after the season. It's difficult to see what this achieves for Chicago. Yes, it makes its league-worst pass rush better, but instead of being five sacks behind the second-worst sack-producing teams, they might only be one or two sacks worse. If the Bears dream really big, maybe they can rank in the top 30 in the league in sacks by season's end.

Adding Sweat at the trade deadline also doesn't guarantee he'll want to re-sign with the organization once he hits free agency. The Bears could have kept their pick and courted him when he hit the open market. Instead, they traded a likely top-40 selection for Sweat, who they need to single-handedly lift an awful pass rush. He doesn't have the benefit of playing alongside three former first-rounders in Chicago, as he did in Washington, making this a gamble not worth taking.

Winner: Vikings quarterback Joshua Dobbs

What a year it's been for Dobbs, who went from Lions practice squad to Titans starter for the final two games of the 2022 regular season, then to the Browns as a 2023 free agent. On Aug. 24, Cleveland traded him to the Cardinals (along with a seventh-rounder) for a fifth-round pick.

In Arizona, he started the first eight games this season but was traded for a sixth-round pick at the deadline to Minnesota, where he may be called into action depending on how rookie fifth-rounder Jaren Hall performs with Kirk Cousins (Achilles) done for the season.

It's remarkable how in one season, Dobbs went from a practice-squad player to someone who commands draft picks. Dobbs is a rocket scientist, but even his NFL journey might be too difficult for him to explain.

Loser: Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams

It's probably not a good sign for Williams — the second of Detroit's 2022 first-round picks — that the team acquired receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones from Cleveland.

Williams (seven catches in 10 career games) has failed to gain traction in limited availability. He isn't the first young player to struggle in adjusting to the NFL, but that doesn't fit with the Lions' win-now attitude.

In Detroit's 26-14 Monday night win over the Raiders, the team's outstanding rookies and defense masked the poor production from the wide receivers not named Amon-Ra St. Brown. He had six receptions for 108 yards; the rest of the Lions wideouts combined for five receptions for 53 yards, including Williams, who finished with 16 yards on two catches.

Williams probably won't receive many more opportunities with Peoples-Jones in the mix.

Winner: Washington Commanders

The Commanders reached their ceiling with their core and made the difficult but correct move to trade Young and Sweat. Some will scoff at what Washington received in return, but those picks have a lot of value. Instead of seeing Sweat and Young leave in free agency in a few months, the Commanders got something for them and are in a position they've never been.

The early returns on the team's 2023 draft class aren't good, so giving this regime more picks might not be the path that gets Washington back to the postseason. However, it does give the Commanders options.

With his team a long shot to make the playoffs, Washington head coach Ron Rivera is worth monitoring for the rest of the season. If there's a change at the top, the next coach might want to move on from quarterback Sam Howell, and having multiple draft picks would be an excellent way for Washington to move up in the draft.

Loser: New England Patriots

The Patriots have fallen so far off the radar that no one even came to their garage sale.

NFL insiders Albert Breer and Ian Rapoport reported New England didn't gain traction on trades involving contract players, including linebacker Josh Uche or struggling quarterback Mac Jones. It would be more surprising if a team were interested in Jones. Still, it's another indication there is no mystique left in Foxborough.

The Patriots are just a mediocre team with many holes and seemingly no answers for how to fill them.

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