2026 NFL trade deadline: 10 big-name players who could be traded and where they might land

We’re nearly through Week 7 of the 2026 NFL season, and before you know it, the trade deadline will be here. 

This year’s NFL trade deadline is set for Tuesday, Nov. 10, which comes on the heels of Week 9 of the season. Deadlines spur action, certainly, but we’ve already seen several high-profile trades occur with the Giants trading for Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy, the Ravens adding former Eagles center/guard Cam Jurgens, the Steelers shipping cornerback Joey Porter Jr. to the Cowboys and the Texans acquiring receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. from the Cardinals. 

So what other trades are in store for us over the next few weeks? 

Players who could be traded before the 2026 NFL trade deadline and their best landing spots

We’ve identified 10 big-name players who could have new homes when the trade deadline dust settles, and we also break down which teams are good fits for these players. 

Jonathan Taylor, Colts RB

The Colts made waves last week by firing longtime general manager Chris Ballard. At just 2-5 and clearly not in playoff contention this year, the Colts could be in for a fire sale. 

Indy has several notable names who I’d watch here, such as receiver Josh Downs and veteran guard Quenton Nelson, but Taylor would be a massive addition for any contender. 

The star running back is among the best in football each and every year. He has 587 rushing yards and eight touchdowns as Taylor is well on his way to another 1,000-yard campaign. Taylor just signed an extension through 2028 before the year began, but that was before Ballard was fired and before a disastrous start to the year. 

Taylor would be a big get for a lot of teams. There’s been speculation the Seahawks could add Taylor or another running back, but Zach Charbonnet and rookie first-round pick Jadarian Price could both be back as soon as Week 8 against Chicago. Minnesota is an interesting team as the Vikings could stand to upgrade over Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason. The Broncos are reportedly interested in him as well, which would be interesting as they’ve rolled with a committee approach. The Bengals are a team that just isn’t getting enough from Chase Brown and Samaje Perine in the run game could certainly stand to upgrade in the backfield. 

And, of course, a surprise team that’s dealt an injury could always emerge as well. 

Maxx Crosby, Raiders DE

The Raiders started the year 3-0, catching everyone by surprise after a 3-14 season last year. But the schedule has caught up to them and they’ve now dropped four in a row. Things remain tough moving forward with the Rams, 49ers, Seahawks and Broncos making up four of the team’s next five games. As such, selling may be on the table despite that 3-0 start. 

If that’s the case, all eyes will be on Crosby. After all, the Raiders had a deal in place with Baltimore over the offseason for a large draft pick package, but Crosby failed his physical and returned to Vegas, where he has two sacks thus far.

Edge rushers are always valuable at the deadline. After all, most Super Bowl-winning teams have either one or two Grade A pass rushers, or they have a deep rotation of high-end edge players. Regardless, Crosby fits a ton of teams.

The 49ers have a top-flight rusher in Nick Bosa, who has been banged up and missed nearly all of last year, and the prospect of pairing those two together has to be intriguing for San Francisco. If the Cowboys feel they’re still set to contend, they need all the help they can get on defense. The Jaguars and Bears are two other contenders that make sense as fits for Crosby, and while an in-division trade may make this off the table, Kansas City’s pass rush has not been very good this year – just saying. 

Brian Thomas Jr., Jaguars WR

Thomas’ fall from grace has been staggering. After compiling nearly 1,300 yards with 10 touchdowns as a rookie in 2024, he barely eclipsed 700 yards in 2025 despite the Jaguars having a much better offense. Things have been even worse in 2026 with the LSU product compiling nine catches for 105 yards and one touchdown through six games. He was held without a catch in Weeks 5 and 6. 

We saw one team move on from a highly-drafted 2024 receiver. Could the Jaguars do the same? With Parker Washington clearly entrenched as Trevor Lawrence’s No. 1 option, Jakobi Meyers having signed an extension after being traded to the Jags last year and even Josh Cameron having more production than Thomas, perhaps Jacksonville tries to find a package comparable to what Arizona got for Harrison. 

It is worth noting that recent reports have said the Jags aren’t interested in trading Thomas, but his usage and a potential return in any trade could cause them to change their mind. There’s still a lot of time left between now and the deadline. 

Teams surely are enamored with Thomas’ skillset. He’s big and fast and, as he showed as a rookie, he can beat NFL defenses for big plays. For whatever reason, it just hasn’t clicked in Liam Coen’s offense. So who could be an option?

The 49ers could use receiver reinforcements with Ricky Pearsall out for the year, Deebo Samuel banged up and Mike Evans set to miss time with an Achilles injury.

A sneaky team I’d watch for would be the Seahawks. Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the guy for Seattle, but after him? It’s a big gap. Cooper Kupp is a reliable option, but he clearly is more of a No. 3-type of receiver. Rashid Shaheed signed a big deal this offseason to return to Seattle, but he hasn’t found a reliable role on offense just yet, showcasing more of his talent on special teams. Second-year wideout Tory Horton has a nose for the end zone, but he’s missed a lot of time with injury. In Seattle, Thomas could be a long-term No. 2 option for the reigning champs, especially as the Seahawks are a team that loves to push the ball down the field. 

Mac Jones, 49ers QB

Jones played very well as a fill-in for Brock Purdy last season, which has made him a popular name in trade rumors as a result. The former first-round pick has not attempted a pass this year, but he completed 69.5% of his passes for 2,151 yards and 13 touchdowns to six picks in 11 games (eight starts) last season. For a team that has a wide-open competitive window, adding more picks – whether to add high-end NFL Draft talent or flip them for different players – makes a lot of sense. 

But Jones is arguably the NFL’s best backup quarterback, which is tremendously valuable. He’s shown he can operate this system at a high level, and with Purdy having missed nine games last season and a handful of other games in his career, it likely would take a massive haul to get Jones away from the Bay. Plus, this is a 49ers team that has been snakebitten by injury the last few years. The last thing Kyle Shanahan wants is to move on from Jones just for Purdy to get hurt. A trade like this likely would come down to both the offer the team gets, but also the trust level in third-stringer Kurtis Rourke, a seventh-round pick from Indiana in the 2025 draft. 

If Jones gets moved, I’d look to the NFC East. All eyes will turn to the Eagles this year given they lost Jalen Hurts for the season due to blood clots. Tanner McKee is a serviceable backup, but with the NFC East seemingly still wide open, a trade for Jones could make the Eagles the team to beat in the division once again. 

Mason Rudolph, Steelers QB

Given I don’t expect Jones to be on the move ahead of the deadline, Rudolph makes the most sense as a quarterback who could be moved. 

The longtime Steeler has played all but one year in Pittsburgh since joining the league in 2018, and he’s played quite a bit over the years, both as a starter and as a fill-in option due to injury. We know what Rudolph is and isn’t at this point. He’s a solid but unremarkable starter who is better than most backups but isn’t in any sort of long-term plans. 

Rudolph is backing up the 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers right now, and that alone is reason for Pittsburgh to hold onto him. But the Steelers also drafted Will Howard in 2025 and Drew Allar last year, so the team has some potential backups with upside. 

The Steelers probably wouldn’t get a ton for Rudolph in a trade barring multiple long-term injuries to current starters elsewhere, but if Pittsburgh likes what it has in Howard and/or Allar, adding more draft picks is never a bad option. Again, the Eagles make a lot of sense for a player like Rudolph should McKee struggle. 

Tony Pollard, Titans RB

Pollard is a name that will likely get thrown out there a lot in trade talks over the next two weeks. He’s a safe back who has rushed for 1,000 or more yards each of the last four years, even behind a makeshift Tennessee offensive line. He’s in the last year of his contract, and the Titans are 1-6, so it’s not like the Titans are set to compete this year. 

The Bengals and Vikings are two teams I’d keep an eye on when it comes to running back trade rumors. 

James Conner, Cardinals RB

Conner’s availability will be intriguing. The Cardinals hardly need the veteran tailback given they signed Tyler Allgeier this offseason before drafting Jeremiyah Love with the No. 3 overall pick, so Conner could be expendable. 

The issue is Conner is on injured reserve due to an ankle injury he suffered early last year. Arizona has yet to open his 21-day practice window, so we don’t know when he’ll be able to play. With the Cardinals 2-5 and having Love and Allgeier, there’s not really a need to keep Conner if he’s able to play ahead of the trade deadline. 

If Conner is active before the deadline and is dealt, the Packers could use some depth in the backfield behind Josh Jacobs. Additionally, the Vikings could be an intriguing fit with Jones being good, not great, and Jordan Mason only recently returning to action.

I’d also keep an eye on another NFC North team in the Lions, who could use a reliable No. 2 back behind Jahmyr Gibbs. Second-year back Sione Vaki is the current backup as Isiah Pacheco is on IR after having back surgery, and former Cardinals offensive coordinator Drew Petzing worked with Conner for three years, including a pair of 1,000-yard seasons. 

Stefon Diggs, Commanders WR

The Commanders had one of the more embarrassing finishes to a game you’ll ever see in Week 5 when they bungled the end of overtime and suffered a tie with the Giants as a result. They followed that up with a valiant comeback effort against San Francisco, but they wound up with the loss. 

Due to all of that, Diggs, a proven receiver on a one-year deal, could be on the move. 

Diggs has been great in the touchdown department with four in five games, and he’s now the clear WR1 in Washington with Terry McLaurin out for the year. Jayden Daniels needs targets to throw to, but the Commanders are simply not a playoff contender. Diggs’ services could be better served on a contending team. 

The Chiefs could use a proven receiver to complement Rashee Rice, Travis Kelce and Kenneth Walker III as playmakers for Patrick Mahomes. I also think at some point the Ravens will try and get a more reliable second option for Lamar Jackson in the passing game behind Zay Flowers. 

Jerry Jeudy, Browns WR

Jeudy is an intriguing player for the deadline. He’s signed through the 2027 season as part of an extension he signed in 2024, but the veteran Alabama product has seemingly fallen out of favor in Cleveland. 

The Browns have an exciting rookie receiver tandem in KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, the team’s first- and second-round draft picks this year. Tight end Harold Fannin Jr. is also a key part of the passing attack. As such, Jeudy has just 171 receiving yards this year despite playing in every game. 

Trading Jeudy given his contract could be tricky, but there figure to be teams that could use a player of his caliber. The 49ers need a WR2 behind Evans, the Seahawks could stand to upgrade that room, the Falcons could use a more reliable second receiver behind Drake London and the Giants, who are in the pole position in the NFC East, could certainly stand to get a better WR2 behind Malik Nabers, especially with him having missed nearly all of 2025. 

Khalil Mack, Chargers EDGE

Mack is no longer the double-digit sack machine he once was in Vegas, Chicago and even his early Chargers days, but he’s still a darn good edge player. Mack is 35 years old and playing on a one-year deal, and with the Chargers being one of the NFL’s biggest disappointments at 0-6, a Mack trade has to be on the table.

As we outline with Crosby above, edge players hold tremendous value at the trade deadline. Kansas City, Carolina and San Francisco are all contenders who haven’t had as much success as needed rushing the quarterback. The Bills, Ravens and Jaguars are also contenders that could use another edge rusher. And don’t sleep on a reunion with the Bears, who have a good pass rush and have been rumored to be interested in bringing Mack back to the Windy City.