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The closing bell rang on the 2025 NFL trade deadline Tuesday with the New York Jets stocking up a load of future draft capital in a fire sale for the ages. The Jets offloaded two of their best defensive stars to the division rivals Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, each trade for a pair of much-needed defenders, multiple promising receivers moved teams, and a number of franchises sought out injury relief in a loaded cycle of movement. In fact, the eight trades on Tuesday are tied for the second-most deals on a single deadline day since 1990 (10 trades on Nov. 1, 2022). ADVERTISEMENT Article continues below this ad To easily digest all the action, we offer one-sentence “Winner & Loser’’ evaluations on each of the 10 biggest trades leading up to the deadline … 1 – New York Jets trade DT Quinnen Williams to Dallas Cowboys for a 2026 second-round pick, 2027 first-round pick (higher of DAL/GB picks that year), and DT Mazi Smith ADVERTISEMENT Article continues below this ad Dealing a first-rounder and assembling a trio of $20 million DTs is risky business, but Williams has proven to be that good of a run-stopper … and Jerry Jones is more desperate to show he is trying to “fix” his porous defense, even if it’s short-term focused. WINNER: Jerry Jones. At least he was true to his word. 2 – Cincinnati Bengals trade LB Logan Wilson to Dallas Cowboys for a 2026 seventh-round pick Read Top Stories First From EssentiallySports Click here and check box next to EssentiallySports A veteran with Super Bowl-level leadership is an awesome return for a measly seventh-round pick, but was there a reason he was benched in favor of a fourth-round rookie, Barrett Carter? ADVERTISEMENT Article continues below this ad LOSER: Logan Wilson. He moves from one of the two worst defenses in the NFL to the other worst defense in the NFL. 3 – New York Jets trade CB Sauce Gardner to the Indianapolis Colts for a 2026 & 2027 first-round picks and WR AD Mitchell A trade equally impactful, but for completely opposite reasons: the one-win Jets offload a large contract and collect premium draft capital to rebuild with, while 7-2 Indianapolis shockingly rolls the dice in the biggest “win-now” move of the season. Power moves across the board. WINNER: The Jets. Yes, it’s yet another rebuild. But they are stocked up like few others. 4 – New Orleans Saints trade WR Rashid Shaheed to Seattle Seahawks for 2026 fourth-and fifth-round pick. An excellent pickup to pair with rising star Jaxon Smith-Njigba and equip a resurgent Sam Darnold with enough weapons to make a serious run at the NFC crown. LOSER: The Saints. They probably should’ve dumped even more guys. Maybe the league didn’t find this poor roster very worthy. 5 – Las Vegas Raiders trade WR Jakobi Meyers to Jacksonville Jaguars for 2026 fourth- and sixth-round pick. Jacksonville gathers an interesting, albeit banged-up, receiver trio with Brian Thomas Jr. (ankle) and Travis Hunter (knee, on IR), but the risk of Meyers as a rental (his contract expires this offseason) puts unnecessary pressure on a sub-par team to make a quick turnaround to yield this successful. WINNER: Jakobi Meyers. The Raiders are, as is so often the case, going nowhere. 6 – Miami Dolphins trade OLB Jaelen Phillips to Philadelphia Eagles for 2026 third-round pick. Howie Roseman, as aggressively savvy as ever, nabs a coveted prospect from a selling team before the chaos of deadline day ensues … because who cares about non-first-round picks when you’re trying to win back-to-back Super Bowls. WINNER: The Eagles. Howie’s go-for-it mode makes him a source of envy for fans in other NFL cities. 7 – The Cleveland Browns trade QB Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals for a 2026 fifth-round pick. Our only trade involving a quarterback in October/November is a rare in-division (and in-state!) one, but so far the gamble on a 41-year-old has more than kept Cincy afloat after the loss of their cornerstone star … and the Browns’ quarterback curse remains what it always has been. LOSER: The Browns. Why in the world would they give away a starting QB to their arch-rivals? 8 – Baltimore Ravens trade CB Jaire Alexander and 2027 seventh-round pick to Philadelphia Eagles for 2026 sixth-round pick. The Ravens’ injury-plagued defense (and slippy 3-5 record) wasn’t getting much out of the fading star, so they figure it’s worth getting something in return while they can from a team that needs depth amid the injury to starter Quinyon Mitchell. LOSER: Anybody who thinks Alexander retains star quality. 9 – Cleveland Browns trade DE Joe Tryon-Shoyinka to Chicago Bears for 2026 sixth-round pick. Chicago, at 5-3 and tied for second in the division, shows that they are serious about making a postseason push in Year 1 under Ben Johnson by finding reinforcements for a season-ending injury on the D-line. WINNER: The Bears. They aren’t supposed to be as good as the Lions or the Packers, but that shouldn’t stop them from trying. 10 – New Orleans Saints trade OL Trevor Penning to the Los Angeles Chargers in exchange for a 2027 draft pick The Chargers are desperate for anything they can get their hands on (in this case, a struggling former first-round pick) after the devastating injury loss to future star Joe Alt. WINNER: Trevor Penning. OK, so it turns out there is somebody else on the Saints worth poaching.
