3 home run trades Packers can’t afford to pass up before the deadline
By Mark Powell
The Green Bay Packers need to wake up and smell the coffee. With the NFL trade deadline approaching, these potential ‘home run’ moves loom.
Forgive me, it’s still baseball season in a few cities around the country.
The NFL Trade Deadline is Nov. 1, meaning many teams around the league need to decide whether they are buyers, or sellers. Given this is one of Aaron Rodgers final seasons in Green Bay, you can expect the Packers to be an obvious buyer by then, barring a midseason collapse the likes of which they’ve never seen with No. 12 behind center.
Some pedestrian showings have made obvious what pundits suggested heading into the season — the Packers don’t have the players necessary to replace Davante Adams. The lack of separation at the wide receiver position has made it tough on Rodgers and the offense. With that in mind, Green Bay’s ‘home run’ trade suggestions start there.
Packers trade rumors: DJ Moore
I brought this up in a column just yesterday, but since then the Panthers have made it even more obvious that they plan on selling the farm by early November. Per Adam Schefter, Christian McCaffrey and more Panthers playmakers are expected to be readily available, for a fair price of course.
A player like Moore would cost at least a second-round draft pick. Given Carolina is demanding multiple firsts for McCaffrey, Brian Gutekunst has to negotiate the Panthers down from whatever they perceive Moore’s value to be.
Moore averaged 1,100 yards receiving from 2019-21. This season, his numbers are down, but much of that can be attributed to the quarterback play. The 25-year-old signed a three-year contract extension last offseason, which is the only major hold-up on any trade.
Paul Bretl of Dairyland Express summed up the financial dilemma well:
"“In 2023, Moore has a guaranteed salary of $19.96 million and comes with a cap hit of $25.04 million. The cap hit is then $20.92 million in 2024 and 2025, according to Over the Cap. Green Bay could get out of the deal in 2024 and save a few million dollars, but they would still incur $9.75 million in dead cap, and also, why make the trade to then just release the player less than two years later?”"
If Gutekunst and the Packers can stomach the financial side of things, Moore should be a Packer by the deadline.