Welcome to Staten News — where the deadline is still 11 days out and half the league already has its phone off silent.
Thursday the Bears paid two first-round picks for a defensive tackle. In October.
That's the market now. The NFL trade deadline hits Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 4 p.m. ET, and teams aren't waiting for the last hour anymore. Seven deals are already done, three of them since Tuesday.
✅ What's already done
Every trade since the season kicked off, newest first:
Bears get DT Jeffery Simmons (plus a 2028 5th) from the Titans for a 2027 1st, a 2027 4th and a 2028 1st. Oct. 29.
49ers get DT DeForest Buckner from the Colts for a 2027 4th. Oct. 27.
Seahawks get G Quenton Nelson from the Colts for a 2027 3rd and a 2028 5th. Oct. 27.
Texans get WR Marvin Harrison Jr. (plus a 2027 7th) from the Cardinals for a 2027 2nd and a 2027 6th. Oct. 11.
Ravens get C Cam Jurgens (plus a 2027 7th) from the Eagles for a 2027 5th and a 2028 2nd. Oct. 7.
Cowboys get CB Joey Porter Jr. from the Steelers for a 2027 6th and a 2028 2nd. Sept. 30.
Giants get QB J.J. McCarthy from the Vikings for a 2027 5th after Jaxson Dart got hurt. Sept. 28.
🐻 Chicago went all in
Simmons is 29, signed an extension in June and is locked in through 2030. That's the part that makes this different from a rental. The Bears didn't buy a half-season of a Pro Bowl tackle. They bought the next five years of one.
The price is the price, though. Two firsts and a fourth for an interior lineman is the kind of deal that gets graded twice: once now, and again in April 2028 when you see who Tennessee drafts with that second pick.
For the Titans, it's an easy call. A rebuilding team that can turn one player into two first-round picks does that every time.
🏷️ Everything in Indianapolis must go
Now look at the Colts. They fired GM Chris Ballard, sat at 2-5, and then moved two Pro Bowl linemen in the same afternoon.
Nelson was on an expiring contract, so a 3rd and a 5th beats watching him walk in March. Buckner went back to San Francisco, where he started his career, for a single 4th. That one is less about value and more about clearing the deck.
And they're not done. Jonathan Taylor confirmed he asked for a trade, while saying he's still "proud to wear the horseshoe." Josh Downs has reportedly asked out too.
When a team sells its two best linemen and two of its best skill players are asking for a new address, that's not a slump. That's a teardown.
🔮 What could still happen
Everything below is speculation. Some of it comes from national reporting, some of it is us connecting dots. None of these deals is done.
Jonathan Taylor to the Vikings. CBS's Zach Pereles floated Minnesota as the match. The Vikings already moved McCarthy, so they've shown they'll make a call. A team trying to win now with a back who wants out of a rebuild is the cleanest fit on the board. Possible? Very. The question is whether Indy wants a first or settles for less.
Saquon Barkley to the Bengals. This is the one that would break the internet. Pereles also paired Barkley with Cincinnati, and the logic is real: the Eagles have already sold Jurgens, their offense is banged up, and they "figure to be sellers," per CBS. Trading the face of your offense is a different kind of decision than trading a center, though. We'd put this one at long shot.
Brian Thomas Jr. to the Chiefs. Kansas City has been linked to a receiver for weeks, and ESPN's Ben Solak flat out predicted it'll happen. Thomas is the name CBS keeps attaching to Kansas City. If Andy Reid gets a true deep threat in November, the AFC gets a lot less comfortable.
Josh Downs to anyone who calls. CBS listed the Rams, Patriots, Falcons and Chiefs as fits. A slot receiver who asked out on a team in teardown mode is the most likely move on this list. If we had to bet on one deal getting done, it's this one.
Maxx Crosby and Khalil Mack. Both sit in CBS's top tier of trade candidates. Crosby is the bigger swing. Mack is the cheaper rental for a contender that needs one more pass rusher in January.
Not happening, probably: Garrett Wilson. The Jets are 2-5 and the rumors were inevitable. Wilson said he wants to stay in New York. Take that at face value until somebody gets a first-round pick offer they can't ignore.
⏰ The clock
Eleven days. The Bears set the price of a premium player at two firsts, the Colts showed everyone they're open for business, and every contender knows it.
This is the deadline where the sellers got organized before the buyers did. Whoever waits until Nov. 10 at 3:59 p.m. is going to pay the most.
Sources: ESPN trade deadline tracker, CBS Sports deadline live blog
— The Bandicoots 🏈📞🔥