NFL trade deadline grades: Cowboys flop and a missed Cheetah opportunity

Marshon Lattimore from New Orleans Saints to Washington Commanders

The appointment: Washington Commanders get Lattimore and fifth-round pick in 2025; Saints will get third-, fourth- and sixth-round picks in 2025

Figures: Commanders A-; Heiligen B

The Saints did well to acquire some big draft capital, while Washington needed someone who could play in the backfield. The Commanders got the cornerback at a discounted rate: He was a perennial Pro Bowler until 2021, when his play started to decline. That’s how good he can be, though, and the dip in production may have something to do with how tough life was in the Big Easy under head coach Dennis Allen, who was fired earlier this week. What better way for a great player to get back on track than to shore up the sagging Commanders defense in hopes of matching the excitement on the other side of the ball.

Za’Darius Smith from Cleveland Browns to Detroit Lions

The deal: Lions get Smith and a 2026 seventh-round pick; Browns get a fifth-round pick in 2025 and a sixth-round pick in 2026.

Figures: Lions B-; Brown C+

The NFC favorites made the obvious move of using pass rushing help to replace some of the significant threat of Aidan Hutchinson, who suffered a serious leg injury in October. Detroit’s ridiculous offense masks a massive decrease in pressure on opposition quarterbacks, especially on third down. The Lions’ pressure when it matters most has fallen from 53% with Hutchinson to just 20% since his injury. No opposing team has exploited that weakness yet, but it would have hurt Detroit in the postseason if they hadn’t taken action. Smith, a 32-year-old defensive player, shouldn’t be much more than a short-term fix as the Lions only had to give up a pair of day three selections for him.

Mike Williams from New York Jets to Pittsburgh Steelers

The deal: Steelers get Williams; Jets get fifth round pick in 2025.

Figures: Steelers B; Jets B-

Mike Tomlin has given the green light to moonball mania in Pittsburgh after giving Russell Wilson the starting quarterback gig. His blinkered ability to throw the majority of passes deep to the sideline when not checking makes the 6-foot-4 Mike Williams a good fit to beat defenders, even if diminished by last season’s ACL tear . He joins an underrated roster with a chip on their shoulders, and should fit in well as he tries to rip off Aaron Rodgers for bombing him out of town. The Steelers’ propulsive defense could also be fueled more by the team’s confidence in a quietly brilliant regular season.

Jonathan Mingo from Carolina Panthers to Dallas Cowboys

The deal: Cowboys get Mingo and 2025 seventh-round pick; Panthers get 2025 fourth-round pick.

Figures: Cowboys D; Panthers B+

On a dreary day in Dallas, quarterback Dak Prescott looked back to go to the wounded reserveit got even darker. Carolina sent Mingo to Texas for a fourth-round pick and the deal seems unhinged when you take into account the wide receiver’s production and market value.

In 19 career starts, Mingo has yet to score a touchdown. This season, he has just 121 receiving yards and was still fourth on the Panthers’ mediocre depth chart. The former second-round pick has averaged less than one yard per route in each of his first two seasons.

The Panthers must have been happy when they traded Diontae Johnson, a better receiver, for just a fifth-round pick last month. The return for Mingo is further put into perspective when you look at what other teams have for superior receivers. The Titans got just a fifth-round pick (which could go all the way to a fourth-round pick) for five-time All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins. Dallas traded elite Amari Cooper in his prime to Cleveland for a fifth-round pick; the Browns then sent him to the Bills for a third-round selection last month.

In mitigation, Mingo was highly rated at Ole Miss and could still develop into a solid pass catcher if given the right coaching and opportunities, which he clearly didn’t get in Carolina. But with the Cowboys’ season almost over, now was the time to lay low and wait for the draft. Jerry Jones struggles mightily with that concept.

Transactions we would have liked to see

Tyreek Hill from Miami Dolphins to LA Chargers

The Cheetah is a caged animal in Miami. With the Chiefs unwilling to bring the wide receiver and his electric speed back to Kansas City, someone should have let him go for a push to the playoffs. That team: the Chargers. Quarterback Justin Herbert is on his way back to his best, but lost Keenan Allen and Mike Williams this offseason and desperately needs a receiver who can cover huge stretches of yardage.

The top receivers they have, Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston, are gifted but unreliable, and the numbers – the Chargers have just 10 passing touchdowns in eight games and sit at 27^e in total passing yards – shows they need more talent to ensure a wild card. The outlook is still positive for the 5-3 Chargers, with Herbert helping dominate the impressive defense by throwing just one interception so far this season. But the team’s conservative strategy feels too precarious, with the aggressive Chiefs and Ravens lurking if the Chargers make it to January. The Hill-Herbert partnership would have been a deadly combination – and he would have looked great in those thunderbolts, too.

Jonathan Jones from New England Patriots to Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs offense has lifted as Hopkins has compensated for Travis Kelce’s diminishing threat in the red zone. However, the Chiefs are thin at cornerback after letting L’Jarius Sneed leave, and they’ve also lost two defensive backs from the starting lineup to injuries. Meanwhile, veteran Jones is in the final year of his deal and New England is ready to sell as they limp toward the draft. This feels like an easy move for the Chiefs: They could have seen if the Pats were willing to include Jones in the package when KC acquired Josh Uche from New England last week.