Tyler Stearns |
This year's NFL season begins in just a few weeks and there is already trade buzz surrounding some of the league's top signal callers.
Dak Prescott is likely the first big name to be traded. His tenure in Dallas has been solid, but not for the Cowboys' standards. He has failed to make it past the divisional round in each year of his career, which is unacceptable for the caliber of players he has to work with. They continuously build around him, drafting new star receivers and signing important offensive line pieces. They even signed him to a massive extension in 2021 that is worth $160 million. This year is the last of that contract and the Cowboys will likely either trade him this summer or let him walk the next. Either way, Prescott doesn't have long in Dallas.
Another QB who has a chance to move soon is Tua Tagovailoa. Tua's tenure as a Dolphin has been weird. He came out of college as a top-ranked QB prospect in a class with Joe Burrow and Justin Herbert. He has been above average in the NFL because his subpar arm strength has held him back. The Dolphins hired Mike McDaniel, an offensive genius, to help create a system where he could thrive. It certainly has helped him, especially in recent years after they drafted Jaylen Waddle and traded for Tyreek Hill. Unfortunately, though, Miami has fallen off toward the playoffs each of the last two seasons. A lot of the back-end failure can be attributed to the lack of physicality in the trenches, but some blame should be placed on Tua for his inconsistency and reliance on the system. The Dolphins may look for a QB who can thrive in the scheme that McDaniel employs while also having the ability to create and improvise when the time arises.
Derek Carr is on the hot seat going into the new season. He had a disappointing season with the Saints filled with injuries and poor play. But his move would be purely for the financial gain of the Saints. New Orleans is plagued by a horrible contract situation not only with Carr but with many other big-name players. They were in massive cap trouble heading into the offseason but were able to fix a few issues. However, it was not enough to build more financial space for the signing of a crucial piece. With Carr, Lattimore, Kamara, Jordan, and Ramczyk (Via Sports Illustrated) taking up over $150 million in cap space, the team is massively overpaying old stars. It may take a trade for Carr to help the team build towards the future because their current financial state simply will not allow them to do that. Perhaps looking at the Texan's strategy would benefit them. Houston has frontloaded the contracts of their new star additions Diggs and Danielle Hunter allowing them to pay off large sums of money now. This gives them space for the eventual extensions that they will have to give to Stroud and Anderson Jr. The Saints should follow this plan.
But the QB most likely to be traded is Daniel Jones. It seems that the Giants are going to back him again this season, a decision that may be costly for the franchise. After his solid 2022-2023 year, New York signed him to a 4-year, $160 million deal that made him one of the top earners at his position. After that season, he crumbled. Even before his ACL tear, he was not at the level of the previous year. He had turnover and accuracy issues and seemed significantly less confident than the year prior. His backup, Tommy DeVito, played much better than him but became too predictable after a few games. The Giants decided to stick with Jones after missing out on a top QB prospect in the draft. If Jones doesn't perform, they will likely trade him and push for the first overall pick and select Carson Beck. Jones is playing for his job this season.
There certainly will be other players who will be traded for poor play or cap space issues like Geno Smith and Aidan O'Connell. There will. also be some tough decisions for franchises in the next few seasons where they will have to decide on extending or trading their QB. The 49ers will directly face this situation as Brock Purdy has now finished his second successful season in the league and will look to sign a big deal with San Francisco. Overall, this year's QB carousel will be interesting to watch.
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