NFL Insider Names Six Teams Who Will Make Moves Before The Trade Deadline

There are going to be more trades in the NFL this month.

The trade deadline is not until next month. And that doesn’t matter.

From a practical standpoint, the trade deadline begins when roster cutdowns begin in September, because until or unless the NFLPA and NFL decide to move it back past Week 9, the sense of urgency to move in real-time is going to be there. We’ve already seen a handful of major trades since the season began involving a recent top five pick (Marvin Harrison Jr.) and a starting corner (Joey Porter Jr.) and a two-time Pro Bowl center (Cam Jurgens) and a recent first-round quarterback (JJ McCarthy).

And we’ve only just begun. Things will heat back up in a big way this week with the failing Chargers on a bye week and their roster one that competing general managers are salivating over right now, and it’s only a matter of time before someone pries one of these top pass rushers away and once that happens the rest of that market will fall into place.

There does not appear to be a super team this season, most of the division races will stay quite competitive down the stretch and that means no shortage of execs thinking big and creatively about how to make their team better fortified for a Super Bowl run. And with so many significant trades already taking place, owners of bad franchises can take cover in a copy-cat league, and it’s not like fans don’t realize why bad teams try to tank for more draft picks in hopes of better days ahead.

That’s happening sooner than ever with each passing year and 2026 is going to remain filled with blockbusters. Here are teams that are on the prowl and what NFL execs tell me are potential trade matches:

Bears – Chargers EDGE Khalil Mack: The Bears got franchise quarterback Caleb Williams back from injury. They have a few weeks to see what that looks like before the deadline. But the unit clearly lacks bite and has been turnover-dependent and Mack is a player they know well from his time there

Cowboys – Cardinals EDGE Josh Sweat/Raiders EDGE Maxx Crosby: The Cowboys defense needs help for years to come. Owner Jerry Jones needs more than a rental for a few games to try to get into the playoffs. They need dudes they can hopefully build around. Arizona is in full tank mode and will likely make at least three more trades (Sweat, RB James Conner once he is healthy, and a QB). "Jerry is getting a pass rusher," a GM told me over the weekend. We think it’s this one, though it certainly could end up being Maxx Crosby from the Raiders. Jones has a close relationship with both ownership groups and could probably go over the heads of some of their football people to try to get what he wants.

Packers – Dolphins RT Austin Jackson: Green Bay continues to shuffle and juggle linemen with massive issues at the line of scrimmage on offense in the pass game and run game. They are getting feature back Josh Jacobs back from the Commissioner’s Exempt List and Jackson would be a significant upgrade at tackle; they may have already stabilized the interior with signings. The Packers have very strong ties to the Miami front office and coaching staff – former Packers staffers are running the show with the Dolphins – and other execs believe Green Bay isn’t done tinkering. "They have a chance to take the offense to another level if they figure out the OL," one longtime NFL exec told me.

Chiefs – Buccaneers WR Chris Godwin: How much of his decline is due to the fact the Bucs haven’t been able to push the ball downfield for years and Baker Mayfield was not good or healthy least year and same thing this year? And the loss of Mike Evans has set Tampa’s pass game back? The Chiefs likely need more than one roll of the dice at the receiver position given all their issues there, and lack of another playmaker was a concern even before the season began. "Even if they sign (free agent WR Tyreek) Hill, Andy (Reid) is going to want to do something else," said an NFL exec who knows Reid well and used to work with him.

Bills – Titans CB Alontae Taylor: The Titans love them some drama and deciding to bench their best corner, who they just signed to a $20M/year deal, six weeks into his tenure there, is right on brand. Buffalo desperately needs to address serious issues on the back end; they don’t have really three NFL quality boundary corners, and Taylor was very good with the Saints. Weird time to rework a brand new free-agent deal for a trade, but Buffalo GM Brandon Beane is quite good, and there are not many corners who could get dealt.

Seahawks – Titans RB Tony Pollard/Buccaneers RB Kenneth Gainwell: They are hopeful of getting healthy at RB but losing a first-round pick to injury at this demanding position so early in his career will give them pause. Yes, some of the issues are along the offensive line, but whether they want someone like Pollard to be a battering ram or Gainwell to help on passing downs and just activate the screen game more in space, GM John Schneider is always driven and loves to make in-season trades. "Schneider is the best in the business for me," one longtime GM said. "He’s going to try to help the offense."