The New England Patriots are sitting at 2-6 and will play just one more game against the Tennessee Titans before the NFL’s trade deadline on Tuesday, Nov. 5 at 4 p.m. They already made the move to trade edge rusher Josh Uche to the Kansas City Chiefs for a future pick, but I wouldn’t rule out more action around the deadline. Win or lose, they’ve been a bottom feeder of the NFL all season, and I don’t expect a game to change anything. While most teams in their position would be sellers, there may be some reason for them to buy with the young core of players headlined by Drake Maye.
Trade Idea #1: Trading WR K.J. Osborn to the Houston Texans
K.J. Osborn is by no means a star, but he’s an NFL proven player. There was some reason for excitement when he signed a one-year contract with the team this last offseason, as he came off a 48-catch season in Minnesota – his fewest in a season at that point, but nonetheless a respectable total for a WR3. On the Patriots, he’s been an afterthought, buried in the depth chart behind the likes of Ja’Lynn Polk and Kendrick Bourne, and has totaled just seven catches all year. A team like the Texans, sitting at 6-2 with injuries to Nico Collins and now Stefon Diggs, who will miss the rest of the year with an ACL tear, could come knocking. Adding stability to a core now headlined by Tank Dell and Xavier Hutchinson could use a facelift, and Osborn, as a short-term fix could do the job.
Trade Idea #2: Swapping damaged goods with the Titans
The Treylon Burks experiment hasn’t worked out in Tennessee, and neither has the Tyquan Thornton one in New England. Maybe the teams opt to swap damaged goods to see if they can each get the best out of each others’ guys? Burks has caught just 53 balls in two and a half seasons, far from the output expected of the former first-round pick. He’s struggled with injuries too, and is on injury reserve now as well, though he’s expected to return in the coming weeks. Thornton’s 4.28 40-yard dash speed hasn’t come to fruition on the field yet, but a trade centering around the pair of struggling wide outs could be a worthwhile throw at the dart board.
Trade Idea #3: Jonathan Jones to the Commanders
Jonathan Jones has been a fan favorite since coming into the league and has been an excellent special teams player and nickel back during his time in Foxborough. We’ve certainly seen a dip in play this season, though, and he seems to have lost a step. Trading him while he still has value may be the best option for the team, and if they could nab Washington’s fourth or fifth round pick, it would be hard to rule out Jerod Mayo and general manager Eliot Wolf saying no.