NFC West trade targets: Rams, Seahawks and 49ers should make blockbuster deals

With the NFL trade deadline looming Oct. 31, here are trades each team in the NFC West should make. 

Arizona Cardinals: Trade tight end Zach Ertz to Cincinnati Bengals

An Ertz trade out of Arizona seems long overdue. The Cardinals (1-5) enter Week 7 with one of the league's worst records, are in the middle of an extensive rebuild and have no use for a 32-year-old tight end. They have a younger tight end in Trey McBride — he's only 23 — who could be a big part of the future. He needs to play.

The Bengals do not have a threat at the position, using a revolving door of players (Mitchell Wilcox, Drew Sample, Tanner Hudson and Irv Smith Jr.) who have combined for 16 catches, 107 yards and zero touchdowns. Ertz on his own has caught 24 passes for 168 yards and a touchdown. 

The cost to Cincinnati could not possibly be anything more than a late-round pick, and Joe Burrow needs another receiving threat. 

Los Angeles Rams: Trade for Carolina Panthers LB Brian Burns

Per ESPN, the Rams offered two first-round draft picks for Burns before last year's trade deadline. They should take another run at him.

Los Angeles is hanging around in the NFC playoff race, and with a healthy QB Matthew Stafford and an impressive group of wide receivers, its offense has the potential to compete. The defense, however, could use a boost, especially at linebacker. Burns, who has blossomed into a star as an edge-rusher, would be an ideal fit. 

It would also make a ton of sense for the Panthers to shop him. At 0-6, they have already played their way out of the playoff race, and Burns is set to be an unrestricted free agent after this season. 

The Rams have just five sacks from linebackers this season, three from rookie Byron Young. Burns has four after recording 12 last season. 

Seattle Seahawks: Trade for Minnesota Vikings edge-rusher Danielle Hunter

Hunter's name has been in trade rumors for a while, and with the Vikings off to a 2-4 start, it's a good time for Minnesota to send him elsewhere. Seattle would be an ideal landing spot.

The Seahawks have the offense to compete for the NFC West title and potentially make a run in the NFC playoffs, but their defense has significant weaknesses. Getting an elite pass-rusher like Hunter (eight sacks, tied for NFL lead) would provide a significant boost. 

San Francisco 49ers: Trade for Denver Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II

Earlier this season, San Francisco GM John Lynch tried to lower expectations for another big trade-deadline acquisition — the Niners acquired star RB Christian McCaffrey at the deadline in 2022 — but that doesn't mean we should rule one out. The 49ers could use a stellar corner, and Surtain II would be an intriguing option. He's still under a rookie contract and affordable under the salary cap.

Denver's season is rapidly slipping away, and Surtain is a player who could bring a big trade return to help recoup draft assets it has traded in recent years. The NFC West is loaded with deep wide receiver groups in Los Angeles and Seattle. Stellar corners are a must against those teams as well as any competition the Niners will face in the playoffs.