The spiciest thing that can happen during the NFL draft is a trade, and when that trade happens during the first round? Woo buddy. That gets the blood pumping.
The problem is that not every general manager (GM) makes trades. On one side of the spectrum, you have Howie Roseman, who needs to make trades like he needs air to breathe. On the other side, you have Duke Tobin, who might not know you’re physically able to pick up a telephone until the second day of the draft.
There’s an art to this stuff, and because it’s an art, it’s subjective. Some of these guys trade picks to get more picks and have huge draft classes, and some of these guys want to make sure they get the guys they want. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn’t… But that’s the draft in a nutshell.
For this we’re talking explicitly about trades that involved first-round draft picks during the first round of the draft. The Bears and Panthers making the trade for the first-round pick in 2023? That one doesn’t count because it happened before the draft.
Monti Ossenfort, Cardinals (2023)
2023 Draft:
- Traded the third overall pick to the Texans. Received the 2023 12th and 33rd overall picks and 2024 first and third-round picks.
Monti Ossenfort came in hot. He got hired in January of 2023 and immediately turned his first round pick into Paris Johnson (OT), BJ Ojulari (DE), Garrett Williams (DB), Darius Robinson (DL), Isaiah Adams (OG), and Elijah Jones (DB).
The draft is a crapshoot, and no matter how much work you put into the pre-draft process, there is no way that you’ll ever know how players will pan out. So, trading a first-round pick and getting six players in return is almost always a smart move.
Not all of those guys have played out, but it was only three years ago, so there is time for players like BJ Ojulari to live up to his first-round draft grade.
Eric DeCosta, Ravens (2019)
2019 Draft:
- Traded the 22nd overall pick to the Eagles. Received the 2019 25th, 127th, and 197th picks.
Eric DeCosta also made a move in his first year as a GM. He turned his first first-round pick into Hollywood Brown (WR), Iman Marshall (CB), and Trace McSorley (QB).
Brown was good but not great, and the other two guys never turned into anything. This was a rough trade… but if it’s any consolation, the Eagles used the pick they got to draft Andre Dillard. He ended up stinking.
Spin Zone: Was Howie Roseman the genesis for the Ravens to back out of the Maxx Crosby trade? People (not me) are asking.
2022 Draft:
- Traded the 23rd overall pick to the Bills. Received 25th and 130th overall picks.
The Ravens traded Marquise Brown to the Cardinals for the 2022 23rd overall pick. Then they sent that bad boy to Buffalo and turned it into Tyler Linderbaum (C) and Jordan Stout (P).
That ended up being a great move for Baltimore. Linderbaum has been an absolute stalwart of a center, and Stout is an amazing punter. So much so that both of them set records during free agency for being the highest-paid players at their positions… They just didn’t get paid by the Ravens.
Brandon Beane, Bills (2017)
2017 Draft:
- Traded the 10th overall pick to the Chiefs. Received the 2017 27th and 91st overall pick, and the 2018 first round pick.
This is complicated because the pick that the Bills traded to the Chiefs ended up being the pick that Kansas City used to get Patrick Mahomes, who has famously (or infamously) ended the Bills’ seasons four out of the last six seasons…
However, since the Bills had two first-round picks in 2018, they had the freedom/leniency to draft Josh Allen.
2018 Draft:
- Traded the 12th, 53rd, and 56th overall picks to Tampa Bay. Received the 7th and 255th overall picks.
- Traded the 22nd and 65th overall picks to Baltimore. Received the 16th and 154th overall picks
The obvious trade here is what I alluded to: the Bills were able to get the most-loved man in Buffalo with the 7th overall pick that they got from the Buccaneers. No one can knock that. It did overshadow their pick of Tremaine Edmunds (LB) with the 16th pick that they got from the Ravens. He ended up being an absolute killer for Buffalo during his first four seasons.
Some general managers make sure they get their guy. Maybe Brandon Beane is a corporate shill and a shell of himself now, but he made some pretty killer moves back in 2017 and 2018.
Beane also traded his first-round pick in 2022 to the Ravens (we just talked about this) and picked Kaiir Elam (CB) at 23 overall.
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 27th and 130th overall picks to the Jaguars. Received the 25th overall pick.
The Bills decided that they wanted to move up two spots and make sure they were able to get their tight end of the future in Dalton Kincaid (TE). He’s had problems staying healthy, but he’s still been a top-three pass catcher for Josh Allen over the last three seasons. Getting a guy like that is perfectly fine for a pretty minuscule trade package.
2024 Draft:
- Traded the 28th overall pick to the Chiefs. Received the 32nd, 95th, and 221st overall picks
- Traded the 32nd overall pick to the Panthers. Received the 33rd and 141st overall picks
It was weird when the Bills traded their first-round pick to the Chiefs because the Chiefs took no time to turn their draft card in and pick Xavier Worthy (WR). The Bills needed a wide receiver, and it really seemed like Worthy would be a pretty sick receiver for Allen to throw the ball to.
Luckily, they only moved down a couple of spots…which was a draft pick they then traded to the Panthers, who picked Xavier Legette (WR).
The Bills took Keon Coleman (WR) with the 33rd pick, so they finally got a guy for Allen to throw to, but everything about this ended up being a nothing burger. Worthy is nothing more than a gadget player, Legette is silly and nothing more, and Coleman is hated by the organization. It was all a bunch of hubbub that turned into nothing.
Ryan Poles, Bears (2022)
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 9th overall pick to the Philadelphia Eagles. Received the 10th overall pick and a 2024 fourth-round pick
Trading back one spot and getting a mid-round pick is a great move. And since the Bears actually made this trade, it’s safe to say that they were never going to draft Jalen Carter (DT). Instead, they drafted Darnell Wright (OT), who they were probably going to draft anyway.
With the 2024 fourth-rounder, they got Tory Taylor, the 2023 Unanimous All-American, yet Australian, punter.
Both of those guys are really, really good. Ryan Poles made a hell of a trade back in 2023.
Duke Tobin, Bengals (1999)
2004 Draft:
- Traded the 17th overall pick to the Broncos. Received the 24th and 117th overall picks, and Deltha O’Neal (CB)
- Traded the 24th overall pick to the Rams. Received the 26th and 123rd Overall picks
The Bengals are weird. Duke Tobin has been their director of player personnel since 1999, and at some point, he became their de facto general manager. It’s tough to say when he got that control and when that transition of power actually happened.
Regardless, he was in the building during the 2004 draft, and I’m going to give him credit for this semi-blunder.
The trade with the Broncos was a good one. Cincinnati moved back, got more picks, and a very good cornerback. They also used the 117th pick to draft Robert Geathers (DE), who was with the team for 11 seasons… AND the Broncos used the pick to draft a guy the Bengals weren’t going after.
The trade with the Rams, though? Woof… WOOF.
The Bengals made a hell of a gamble. They wanted to leave the first round with a running back, and they had their sights set on Chris Perry. The Rams also wanted to leave the first round with a running back, and they had their sights set on Steven Jackson… so they moved up and got him.
Jackson would go on to be one of the best running backs of all time. He played nine seasons with the Rams, set a franchise record for rushing yards, was a Pro-Bowler three times, and an All-Pro twice.
Perry, on the other hand, was with the Bengals for four seasons. He played in 35 total games and had 606 total rushing yards. Tobin/whoever was in charge made an all-time bungle in 2004.
2012 Draft:
- Traded the 21st overall pick to the Patriots. Received the 27th and 93rd overall picks.
This trade worked out significantly better for Cincinnati than the 2004 one. The Patriots used their pick to get Chandler Jones (DE), and the Bengals used theirs to get Kevin Zeitler (RG). Zeitler ended up being the Bengals' starting guard for the next five years.
Andrew Berry, Browns (2020)
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 2nd overall pick to the Jaguars. Received the 5th, 36th, and 126th overall picks, and the 2026 first-round pick.
It’d be disingenuous to say whether or not this pick worked out just yet. The Jags moved up to make sure they could get Travis Hunter (WR/CB), and the Browns were able to get Mason Graham (DT). We’ll have to see what the Browns do with the 24th overall pick this season.
Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys (1989)
Jerry Jones has been the owner and general manager of the Cowboys for 36 years and has made 16 trades during the first rounds of drafts. For the sake of brevity, I’m only going to go over three big ones, but if you were wondering, these are the years he did them.
1990, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2002, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2021, and 2024.
1990 Draft:
- Traded 21st and 81st overall picks to the Steelers. Received the 17th overall pick.
Jerry Jones moved up to draft Emmitt Smith (RB). If you draft a Hall-of-Famer, then you made a good move.
2010 Draft:
- Traded the 27th and 90th overall picks to the Patriots. Received 24th and 119th overall picks.
This one is notable because the Cowboys used this first-round pick to draft Dez Bryant (WR). If Ol’ Jerry likes you, he’ll make sure he’s able to get you.
2021 Draft:
- Traded the 10th overall pick to the Eagles. Received the 12th and 84th overall picks.
This might be the most interesting of all the Jerry Jones trades, not because it’s the most recent and most complicated, but also because of the fallout.
Before the draft, the Dolphins traded their 2021 (12th overall) and 2022 first-round picks to the Eagles for their first-round pick (6th overall). The Eagles then traded that 12th to the Cowboys for the 10th overall pick to grab DeVonta Smith (WR), who the Giants were aiming to pick with the 11th pick.
The Giants traded that 11th pick because they weren’t able to get the guy they wanted, and the Cowboys used the 12th pick to draft Micah Parsons (LB)… who they would end up trading to the Packers for a couple of first-round picks before the start of the 2025 season. It was an amalgamation of pick swaps, but it all ended with the Eagles and the Cowboys getting better, while the Giants got absolutely hosed.
Brad Holmes, Lions (2021)
2022 Draft:
- Traded the 32nd, 34th, and 66th overall picks to the Vikings. Received the 12th and 46th overall picks.
The Lions made a kind of risky move in 2022 when they traded up to get the 12th overall pick, which they used on Jameson Williams (WR), who tore his ACL three and a half months earlier in the National Championship Game. He ended up on the IR until Week 13, and as you would expect, he didn’t do a whole lot.
Missing time has been his thing. He got suspended for four games in his second season for gambling and then two games in his third season for performance-enhancing substances.
Is trading up for a guy like that the best use of resources? Probably not, but when he’s good, he’s really good.
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 6th and 81st overall picks to the Cardinals. Received the 12th, 34th, and 168th overall picks.
The Lions were still playing with house money in 2023; they had the Rams’ first-round draft pick from the Matt Stafford/Jared Goff trade. They traded that back and picked Jahmyr Gibbs (RB) 12th overall and Sam LaPorta (TE) 34th overall.
Initially, it seemed like the Lions getting a running back that early might’ve been a goof, but their offense was built so that a high-caliber running back was what they needed to turn into juggernauts.
This offseason, the Lions traded David Montgomery to the Texans, so the backfield is Gibbs’. If he’s able to put up the same level of production, this is even more of a slam dunk of a trade than it already was (LaPorta rocks too).
Brian Gutekunst, Packers (2018)
2018 Draft:
- Traded the 14th overall pick to the Saints. Received the 27th and 147th picks in 2018, and a first-round pick in 2019.
- Traded the 27th, 76th, and 186th picks to Seattle. Received the 18th and 248th picks.
This was a pretty shifty move from Brian Gutekunst in his debut draft as the Packers’ GM. He turned a first-round draft pick into Jaire Alexander (CB) and a future first-round pick.
When Alexander was healthy (for his first three seasons), he was really good and ended up being an All-Pro in 2020. He messed up his shoulder in 2021, but came back in 2022 and had another All-Pro season.
Unfortunately, in 2023 and 2024, he hopped back on the injury train and played in only 14 games between the two seasons. They ended up releasing him before the start of the 2025 season.
2019 Draft:
- Traded the 30th, 114th, and 118th overall picks to the Seahawks. Received the 21st overall pick.
Gutekunst was feeling himself a little bit in 2019, and he found out how hard it is to really assess rookie safeties. He traded the pick he got from the Saints in 2018 to go up and get Darnell Savage (S). He was pretty good for his first couple of seasons, but if you’re trading up to get a guy, it means that you really like him and you’re banking on them being very above average. That wasn’t the case here.
However, you can also say that the Packers having two first-round picks in that draft made them feel more comfortable drafting Rashan Gary (DE) with their 12th overall pick. That one was much better than the Savage pick.
2020 Draft:
- Traded the 30th and 136th overall picks to the Dolphins. Received the 26th overall pick.
Regardless of how you feel about him and his ludicrous addiction to throwing fade-away deep balls, the Packers' moving up a couple of spots to draft Jordan Love (QB) was a good move.
Nick Caserio, Texans (2021)
2022 Draft:
- Traded the 13th overall draft pick to the Eagles. Received the 15th, 124th, 162nd, and the 166th overall picks.
Process-wise, this was a good trade… But every other part of it was terrible. The Texans' 13th pick was one that they got from the Browns in the Deshaun Watson trade. They dropped down a couple of spots with this trade (which wasn’t too bad), but gained a fourth and two-fifth round picks (which was good).
With all of those picks, they got Kenyon Green (G), John Metchie (WR), and Thomas Booker (DL). None of those guys are on that team anymore.
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 12th and 33rd overall picks, and a 2024 first and third-round pick to the Cardinals. Received the 3rd overall pick and the 105th overall pick.
Talk about leveraging your future and having it pay off. The Texans went into the draft with two first-round picks: their own (2nd overall) and the Browns’ (12th overall).
With the first one, they got their quarterback of the future in C.J. Stroud (QB). The next thing we heard was the draft chime, and the Texans were back on the board after trading the 12th pick to the Cardinals.
With the third pick, they got Will Anderson Jr. (EDGE). Those two guys both won their respective Rookie of the Year awards. Since then, it’s become a whole lot clearer that Anderson is the real deal and Stroud probably isn’t… But it was still a very solid draft from Houston, and it set their rebuild ahead of schedule.
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 25th overall pick to the Giants. Received the 34th and 99th overall pick, and a 2026 third-round pick.
I’m going to call this trade a failure, purely because of what happened immediately after this:
The Rams were on the clock for the 26th pick, but they traded it to the Falcons for the 46th and 242nd overall picks, AND a 2026 first-round pick. Los Angeles had a worse pick than the Texans, but traded it for a whole lot more value.
You can’t really blame Nick Caserio for this one; The Falcons were really, really stupid.
Chris Ballard, Colts (2017)
2019 Draft:
- Traded the 26th overall pick to Washington. Received the 46th overall pick and a 2020 second-round pick
Andrew Luck retired after the offseason and sent the Colts into a spiral. It’d be mean to say Ballard made a bad decision to trade out of the first round because he didn’t know he’d be without a quarterback… But this was a bad decision.
That 2020 second-round pick ended up being Michael Pittman (WR), so that was nice at least.
James Gladstone. Jaguars (2025)
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 5th, 36th, and 126th overall picks, and a 2026 first-round pick to the Browns. Received the 2nd, 104th, and 200th overall picks.
James Gladstone wanted Travis Hunter, so he went and got Travis Hunter. It’s hard to knock a guy for that. It didn’t work out his rookie season because he got hurt, but we’ll have to see where it goes from here.
They did pick Bhaysul Tuten (RB) with the 104th pick. He was pretty solid last season, and it’s looking like he’s going to be RB1 next season. That’s a good way to spend a fourth-round pick.
Brett Veach, Chiefs (2017)
2017 Draft:
- Traded the 27th and 91st overall picks, and a 2018 first-round pick. Received the 10th overall pick.
You’re going to earn a lot of goodwill if the first thing that you do as a GM is trade up to draft Patrick Mahomes.
2022 Draft:
- Traded the 29th, 94th, and 121st overall picks to the Patriots. Received the 21st overall pick.
The Chiefs wasted no time using the draft picks they got from the Dolphins from the Tyreek Hill trade. They sent the first-round pick to New England to move up and grab Trent McDuffie (CB).
Once again, they got the right guy. He was a first-team All-Pro in 2023 and a second-team All-Pro in 2024. He was also a massive part of the secondary in their back-to-back Super Bowl run. Then, this offseason, they traded him to the Rams for a 2026 first-round pick.
Aside from the part where they don’t really have any defensive backs, the whole McDuffie journey has been a success from start to finish for the Chiefs.
2024 Draft:
- Traded the 32nd, 95th, and 221st overall picks to the Bills. Received the 28th, 133rd, and 248th overall picks.
The Chiefs traded up to make sure they could get Xavier Worthy (WR). He was coming off of breaking the 40-yard dash record, so it kind of made sense… But it’s really looking like he’s going to be more of a gadgety guy rather than being an actual threat like Tyreek Hill was.
The sneaky important player from this trade is Jaden Hicks (S), who the Chiefs drafted with the 133rd pick. There’s a solid chance that he’s going to have a starting job come September. If he’s good, then sweet. If he’s anything less than that, the Chiefs’ defense is going to be hurting for talent even more than we all thought.
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 31st overall pick to the Eagles. Received the 32nd and 164th overall pick.
Veach got the offensive lineman that he wanted in Josh Simmons (OT), and he also got a fifth-round pick. Sure.
Les Snead, Rams (2012)
2012 Draft:
- Traded the 6th overall pick to the Cowboys. Received the 14th and 45th overall picks.
If you've read this whole thing, you learned that the top-10 picks are very valuable. Les Snead traded it and only gained a second-round pick. That seems like bad value.
The Rams ended up drafting Michael Brockers (DT), who had an 11-year career in the NFL. Nine of those years were with the Rams. Unfortunately for him, he left in 2021… The year that the Rams won the Super Bowl.
2013 Draft:
- Traded the 16th, 46th, 78th, and 222nd overall picks to the Bills. Received the 8th and 71st overall picks.
Could you blame the Rams for moving mountains to move up and draft Tavon Austin (WR)? No. No one can… Unfortunately, the St. Louis Rams were a talent-sucking franchise, and Austin never amounted to anything in the NFL. In his nine-year career, he only had 2,239 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns. Tough stuff for the guy with the ultimate high-school and college highlight reel.
- Traded the 22nd overall pick to the Falcons. Received the 30th, 92nd, and 198th overall picks.
The Snead won this trade. The Falcons traded up to get Desmond Trufant (CB), and the Rams sat back and drafted Alec Ogletree (LB). It took a second for Ogletree to come into himself, but he was an All-Pro in 2016.
2019 Draft:
- Traded the 31st and 203rd overall picks to the Falcons. Received the 45th and 79th overall picks.
Looking back at it, this trade didn’t make much sense. Snead either wanted to keep getting rid of first-round picks as a bit, didn’t care about getting a guy who has a fifth-year option, or hated the top of the 2019 draft class.
Whatever the reason, getting a second and third round pick for a first-round pick doesn’t seem like a great trade.
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 26th and 101st overall picks to the Falcons. Received the 46th and 242nd overall picks and the Falcons 2026 first-round pick.
The Rams saw the Texans traded back into the first round; they traded a second, third, and future third-round pick to get the 25th overall spot. Then Snead's phone rang, and the Falcons said they wanted to send a future first to Los Angeles for the 26th overall pick. I imagine Snead said, ‘Absolutely. No takesies-backsies and no do-overs.’
I have no idea what Atlanta was thinking, if they were thinking.
Mickey Loomis, Saints (2002)
Mickey Loomis is going into his 24th season as the Saints’ GM. So, like I did with Jerry Jones, I’m not going to go into every one of his seven mid-first-round trades. However, if you’re interested, those trades happened in the 2003, 2005, 2008, 2011, 2014, 2018, and 2022 drafts.
2005 Draft:
- Traded the 16th and 66th overall picks to the Texans. Received the 13th overall pick.
Loomis has not been good at choosing the guys that he goes after. He’s good at getting those guys, but the guys he chooses to trade up and get, historically, have not worked out more than they have worked out.
They used the 13th overall pick to get Jammal Brown (OT). He was one of their few success stories: he was a brick wall when he pass-blocked and a train when he run-blocked. The bummer for him is that he wasn’t able to play during that 2009 season when the Saints won the Super Bowl because he tore his ACL.
2011 Draft:
- Traded the 56th overall pick and a 2012 first-round pick to the Patriots. Received the 28th overall pick.
The 2011 draft was huge for the Saints. They used their first-round pick to draft Cam Jordan (DE). He’s been a staple of that team for the past 15 years; he’s amazing.
Then they traded back into the first-round and drafted Mark Ingram (RB). He ended up being a saint for 10.5 years before he retired after the 2022 season. It wasn’t always pretty for Ingram, but when he was cooking, he was really cooking.
Joe Schoen, Giants (2022)
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 25th, 160th, and 240th overall picks to the Jaguars for the 24th overall pick.
The Giants spent a fifth and a sixth-round pick to move up one spot. The assumption is that they caught wind that someone wanted to draft the guy they were going after, which ended up being Deonte Banks (CB).
They probably wish they could have that one back. Banks ended up losing his job to Cor’Dale Flott last year.
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 34th and 99th overall picks to the Texans. Received the 25th overall pick.
This is the exact inverse of the Texans' side of this trade: Joe Schoen fleeced Nick Caserio. Immediately after the Giants sent a second-round pick to Houston for the 35th pick, the Falcons sent a first-round pick to the Rams for the 26th round pick.
Schoen deserves none of the accolades for that, but it was still a fleecing.
Howie Roseman, Eagles (2010)
2010 Draft:
- Traded the 24th, 70th, and 87th overall picks to Denver. Received the 13th overall pick.
Could there have been a better way for Howie Roseman to start his reign as the Eagles GM? Probably not.
He traded up to get Brandon Graham (DE). Sure, BG’s career started pretty terribly, and a lot of people called him a bust… but he also strip-sacked Tom Brady with a little over 2 minutes left in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LII, and helped the Eagles win their first Super Bowl.
2012 Draft:
- Traded the 15th, 114th, and 172nd overall picks to Seattle. Received the 12th overall pick.
Howie Roseman’s second mid-first-round trade was to get Fletcher Cox (DT), who spent all 12 years of his career in Philadelphia. He was a Pro-Bowler six times, and All-Pro four times, and the best player on the Eagles' defense when they won the Super Bowl in 2017. Great trade.
2014 Draft:
- Traded the 22nd overall pick to the Browns. Received the 26th and 83rd overall picks.
This trade didn’t really result in anything for the Eagles, but with the 22nd pick, the Browns drafted Johnny Manziel (QB). That’s pretty neat.
2018 Draft:
- Traded the 32nd and 132nd overall picks to the Ravens. Received the 52nd and 125th overall picks.
This ended up being a pretty important trade for the history of both the Ravens and the Eagles. Baltimore drafted Lamar Jackson (QB) with the 32nd pick, and the Eagles turned the 52nd pick into the 49th pick, where they drafted Dallas Goedert (TE). It turns out that both of those guys are pretty, pretty, prettttyyyy good.
2019 Draft:
- Traded the 25th, 127th, and 197th overall picks to the Ravens. Received the 22nd overall pick.
This was a tough trade for Howie Roseman. He moved up three spots to draft Andre Dillard (OT), who ended up losing a camp competition in 2021 to Jordan Mailata. In a perfect world, your first-round draft pick is a long-time starter who doesn’t lose his job to a guy who never played football before… But it turns out Mailata is amazing, so it’s totally cool.
2021 Draft:
- Traded the 12th and 84th overall picks to the Cowboys. Received the 10th overall pick.
This was a masterclass: Roseman traded the 12th overall pick to move ahead of the Giants to draft DeVonta Smith (WR), who the Giants were going to draft. That led to the Giants trading back and drafting Kadarius Toney (WR).
Unfortunately, the Cowboys were able to get Micah Parsons (LB). Fortunately, that amounted to nothing for them.
2022 Draft:
- Traded the 15th, 124th, 162nd, and 166th overall picks to the Texans. Received the 13th overall pick.
During the combine, Jordan Davis (DT) ran a disgustingly fast 4.78-second 40-yard dash and became the third player over 330 pounds to run one under five seconds. Roseman saw that and knew that he needed to get him, so he did.
Davis just signed a three-year deal for $78 million and rightfully became the highest-paid nose tackle in the NFL.
There’s no way Howie could top this kind of trade, right? Wrong. Because about 30 minutes later…
- Traded the 18th and 101st overall picks. Received A.J. Brown (WR)
If a team is willing to trade the most dominant X-Receiver in the NFL, you trade for the most dominant X-Receiver in the NFL. Plain and simple.
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 10th overall pick and a 2024 fourth-round pick to the Bears. Received the 9th overall pick.
Jalen Carter (DT) had some pre-draft legal issues that caused him to slip in the draft. If it weren't for those, he probably would’ve gone in the top-five… But he was available at nine, so Roseman paid the measly price of a fourth-round pick to move up one spot and get him.
Carter would go on to save the Eagles' 2024 season by sacking Matthew Stafford on third down and then forcing an incompletion on fourth down late in the divisional round of the playoffs.
2025 Draft:
- Traded the 32nd and 164th overall picks to the Chiefs. Received the 31st overall pick.
Three months after beating the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, Howie Roseman paid them a fifth-round pick to move up and draft Jihaad Campbell (LB). In other words, the Eagles paid a fifth-round pick to win the Super Bowl. Some teams just want it more.
Omar Khan, Steelers (2022)
2023 Draft:
- Traded the 17th and 120th overall picks to the Patriots. Received the 14th overall pick.
The Steelers saw something that they liked in Broderick Jones (OT) and traded a fourth-round pick to go up and get him. It’s a good thing they didn’t spend more than that because Jones has not consistently played how you want a first-round pick to play.
As a matter of fact, the Steelers went and got another offensive tackle in the first round of the 2024 draft.
John Lynch, 49ers (2017)
2017 Draft:
- Traded the 2nd overall pick to Chicago. Received the 3rd, 67th, and 111th overall picks, and a 2018 third-round pick.
- Traded the 34th and 111th overall picks to Seattle. Received the 31st overall pick.
Textbook stuff from John Lynch right off the bat. He knew that other teams were going to be wanting to trade up to get a quarterback, and he played ball. He ended up using that third overall pick on Solomon Thomas (DE), who never really turned out to be close to what they hoped for.
He then flipped one of the picks from that first trade to get back into the first round and drafted Reuben Foster (LB). That one was bad. Foster ended up getting all kinds of legal trouble for weapons, drugs, assault, and domestic violence.
2020 Draft:
- Traded the 13th and 245th overall picks to the Buccaneers. Received the 14th and 117th overall picks.
Nothing to see here. The Buccs traded up to get Tristan Wirfs (and nailed it), while the 49ers got a fourth-round pick and also drafted Javon Kinlaw. Everyone got their guy… but Tampa’s guy was/is much better. Also, this was a first-round pick that the 49ers got for trading DeForest Buckner to the Colts; another round of playing with house money.
- Traded the 31st, 117th, and 176th overall picks to the Vikings. Received the 25th overall pick.
The 49ers traded up to go and get Brandon Aiyuk. Remember him? He didn’t play last year, and he only played seven games in 2024, but he was really good for them. He’s a free agent now and a total psychopath, but he’s still out there somewhere.
John Schneider, Seahawks (2010)
2012 Draft:
- Traded the 12th overall pick to the Eagles. Received the 15th, 114th, and 172nd overall picks.
That would be a problem, but the Seahawks also ended up drafting Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson later in this draft. So… It’s all good.
2014 Draft:
- Traded the 32nd overall pick to the Vikings. Received the 40th and 108th overall picks.
In hindsight, the 2014 draft was more about getting a bunch of players rather than it was about getting high-end players. That’s not a terrible strategy if you’re picking 32nd overall.
The Seahawks traded their first round picks for two picks. Then they traded one of those picks for two more picks, traded another one of those picks for two more picks, etc.
They left the draft with 11 new players. None of them really worked out all that well, except for Luke Wilson (TE), who they drafted in the fifth round.
2016 Draft:
- Traded the 26th overall pick to the Broncos. Received the 31st and 94th overall picks.
If the Broncos call you up and say, ‘Hey, we want to trade with you. What if we give you our first and a third? We really like this Paxton Lynch kid.’ You agree and hang up the phone before they can change their mind.
The Seahawks ended up getting Germain Ifedi (G) with their new pick. He was their starting guard for the next four years, and that is a perfectly fine outcome when you're drafting someone at the end of the first-round.
2017 Draft:
- Traded the 26th overall pick to the Falcons. Received the 31st, 95th, and 249th overall picks.
- Traded the 31st overall pick to the 49ers. Received the 34th and 111th overall picks.
This was another season where John Schneider wanted to get as many guys as possible. He kept doing the same thing that he did in 2014, and left the draft with 11 players. The good player he got this time was Shaquille Griffin in the third round.
2018 Draft:
- Traded the 18th and 248th overall picks to the Packers. Received the 27th, 76th, and 186th overall picks.
The Seahawks were able to trade back and get Rashaad Penny (RB). When he was healthy, he was a meatball… but he was almost always injured. In 2019, he tore his ACL late in the season. In 2020, he was on the PUP for almost the entire season. In 2021, he went on the IR with a calf thing. And in 2022, he broke his fibula in Week 5.
But when he played, he was a lot of fun to watch.
2019 Draft:
- Traded the 21st overall pick to the Packers. Received the 30th. 114th, and 118th overall picks.
- Traded the 30th overall pick to the Giants. Received 37th, 132nd, and 142nd overall picks
Let me know if you heard this one before: Schneider kept trading back and ended up drafting 11 guys. This time, D.K. Metcalf (WR) was the belle of the ball.
Jason Licht, Buccaneers (2014)
2016 Draft:
- Traded the 9th overall pick to the Bears. Received the 11th and 106th overall picks.
If a team wants to give you a fourth-round pick to move up two spots in the first round, it’s hard to say no. The problem (if you want to call it that) is that the Giants picked Eli Apple(CB) with the 10th pick, and the Buccaneers had to draft Vernon Hargreaves (CB).
I don't know if the Buccs had a preference for Apple or Hargreaves, but trading back did limit their options. That’s a bummer for them,
However, both guys ended up not being special talents, so it’s all good.
2018 Draft:
- Traded the 7th and 255th overall picks to the Bills. Received the 12th, 53rd, and 56th overall picks.
This was a win-win. The Bills traded up to get Josh Allen, and the Buccs were able to get Vita Vea (DT). A franchise quarterback might be more valuable, but Vea has been the standard for gut-punching nose tackles for the last eight years.
Tampa also turned one of those second-round picks into Carlton Davis (CB) too, so that rocks.
2020 Draft:
- Traded the 14th and 117th overall picks to the 49ers. Received the 13th and 245th overall picks.
Tristan Wirfs (OT) has been a Pro-Bowler every season except for his rookie season, and he’s been an All-Pro in three of those years. Jason Licht spent a fourth-round pick to move up one spot and made sure that he got his guy. It doesn’t get much better than that.
2022 Draft:
- Traded the 27th overall pick to the Jaguars. Received the 33rd, 106th, and 180th overall picks.
Tampa Bay got a pretty good haul by trading out of the first round. Yeah, the Jaguars used that 27th pick to get Devin Lloyd (LB), but the Buccaneers used their picks to get Logan Hall (DE), Luke Goedeke (OT), and Rachaad White (RB). That’s three starters. Some teams don’t leave drafts with three starters.
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