5 Early NFL Trade Deadline Candidates

Michael Ginnitti
Michael Ginnitti, Managing Editor & NFL/MLB ExpertOctober 03, 2024
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With the November 5th NFL trade deadline just a month away, the hot stoves are already burning strong with potential candidates. We’ll dive into five players being discussed early on, including their contract statuses now and in the future.

WR Davante Adams (31, Raiders)

2024: $13.5M remaining ($968,333 less per week, $8.6M at the deadline)
2025: $36.25M (non-guaranteed)
2026: $36.25M (non-guaranteed)

The Raiders appear poised to grant Adams’ trade request this month, but they may need to retain some of this remaining salary to secure the type of draft compensation (2nd Rd pick) they are reportedly asking for. A few notable teams (Washington, Dallas, & the Jets) could slide Adams’ salary into their current books without disruption. The WR-needy Chiefs would need to process a salary conversion or two to make things work. While Buffalo, another team with interest, doesn’t have a path to free up even half of what Adams is owed for the rest of 2024.

LB Haason Reddick (30, Jets)

2024: $11M ($791,666 less per week, $7.1M at the deadline)
2025: UFA

Reddick has yet to report to the Jets, forfeiting/owing over $9M of salary & fines per his holdout. The pending free agent with 27 sacks over the past 2 seasons is seeking a multi-year extension from NY. The Jets have already given up a 3rd round pick in 2026 for this debacle (would convey to a 2nd with 67.5% snaps + 10 sacks this year), so any kind of trade would likely need to offset this as much as possible. There’s a world where the Jets pay this salary down a bit (since they’ve paid him nothing to date) in order to secure a healthy draft pick from a team like Arizona or Seattle, who are better positioned to hand Reddick the contract extension he’s looking for.

Of note: Reddick must report to the Jets (or his new team) by the Tuesday following the tenth week of the regular season, at 4:00 pm New York time, or he will be ineligible to play football in 2024, and his salary will toll to 2025. The Jets will retain his contractual rights into the offseason, further complicating Reddick’s future.

WR Amari Cooper (30, Browns)

2024: $941,111 ($67,222 less per week, $604,998 at the deadline)
2025: UFA

Cooper and the Browns have been rumored toward a split for the better part of 2024, which made an $18.79M salary conversion at the end of August somewhat puzzling. Yes, it makes for a hell of a clean trade offer, but it also means $19M paid to a player that you only kept for a few weeks this season.  

S Budda Baker (28, Cardinals)

2024: $11M ($788,888 less per week, $7.1M at the deadline)
2025: UFA

Baker has been included in trade rumors for the better part of 2 seasons, but he’ll finish out his 5 year, $62.6M contract in totality (a rarity in the NFL for contracts of or around this size). He remains a Top 20 safety in all of football according to PFF, so there will be plenty of interest from a football standpoint. But his deadline salary is on the higher side for most contending teams to swallow. The Cardinals may be inclined to take on salary and buy themselves a draft pick as they continue to rebuild around Kyler Murray.

QB Bryce Young (23, Panthers)

2024: $711,666 ($50,833 les per week, $457,500 at the deadline)
2025: $4.2M (guaranteed)
2026: $5.9M (guaranteed)
2027: Club Option

Young likely won’t be any team’s answer to band-aiding an injury for the rest of 2024, but getting him into a new regime to ensure he has a full offseason (and then some) to get up to speed on his new surroundings does make a lot of sense. Teams like Las Vegas, New York, & Tennessee, to name a few, could have interest in this idea before it’s all said and done.


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