Generally, you don't often see a lot of high-profile trades made in the NFL. Teams aren't often willing to part with Pro Bowl-caliber players and/or high draft picks. This offseason, though, general managers are throwing caution to the wind.
There have already been a few landscape-shifting deals, and who knows what will come in the next few days or weeks?
Among the players who are already on the move, the three stars below will provide the most immediate impact on their new teams.
LeSean McCoy, Buffalo Bills
In the long term, the Philadelphia Eagles will probably end up getting the better of the LeSean McCoy-Kiko Alonso deal. Running backs don't tend to last long in the NFL and are becoming increasingly interchangeable.
Over the life of his career, Alonso will probably bring more value to the Eagles than McCoy would have.
The Buffalo Bills should get more short-term value out of the trade, though.
Will the Buffalo Bills make the playoffs in 2015?
Will the Buffalo Bills make the playoffs in 2015?
Yes
No
The best comparison you can make is with the Clinton Portis-Champ Bailey swap in 2004. Portis was good for about the first five years after that trade. The Washington Redskins got one of the league's best running backs and the anchor for their offense.
Bailey's continued excellence made that trade look somewhat one-sided for the Denver Broncos by the time everything played out.
There's a revenge factor at work for McCoy. He'll want to have a career year in 2015 so he can stick it to Chip Kelly and the Eagles' brass.
"It feels good to be here. It feels good to be appreciated," the 26-year-old said in his first press conference as a Bills player, per Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. "I can’t wait to get to work. I can’t wait to see my teammates, work hard and get that goal, and that’s to get a championship."
Stylistically, McCoy should thrive in Buffalo.
Everybody knows Rex Ryan's brand of football. In McCoy, the Bills have the kind of running back who can shoulder the load and set the tone offensively. NFL Network's LaDainian Tomlinson called it a "perfect marriage" between Ryan and McCoy:
Suddenly, having EJ Manuel or Matt Cassel under center isn't as much of a concern. Whomever starts will have Sammy Watkins as a target in the passing game and McCoy in the backfield.
Throw in one of the best defenses in the league, and you've got a playoff contender.
Haloti Ngata, Detroit Lions
Nick Wass/Associated Press Beyond the Green Bay Packers, the NFC North isn't exactly stacked. The Minnesota Vikings are probably another year or two away from being really good, while the Chicago Bears parted ways with one of their best receivers and are stuck with Jay Cutler for the foreseeable future.
The path to the playoffs won't be much easier in the near future for the Detroit Lions.
That's why it was important to find the right kind of replacement for Ndamukong Suh, who looks headed to Miami, per ESPN's Chris Mortensen.
While he's not a like-for-like stand-in, the presence of Haloti Ngata will ensure that the Lions defensive line doesn't see a demonstrable decline in Suh's absence. Ryan Mink of BaltimoreRavens.com confirmed that the Ravens sent the veteran defensive tackle to Detroit.
Ngata won't be anywhere near the same kind of pass-rusher Suh was with the Lions. The 31-year-old has 25.5 career sacks over nine years compared to 36 in five for Suh.
However, Ngata will plug holes inside, and there's little chance that he'll hit any sort of noticeable decline in 2015. According to Pro Football Focus, he was outstanding in 2014:
Trading for Suh should help the Lions remain competitive in the NFC North. If they can't win the division, then a wild-card berth should be within reach.
Jimmy Graham, Seattle Seahawks
To a certain extent, it's hard to say whether Jimmy Graham will have a ton of impact on a team that's gone to the Super Bowl in each of the last two seasons. How much better could he possibly make the Seattle Seahawks?
NFL fans are about find out after the reigning NFC champions acquired the Pro Bowl tight end, per ESPN's Adam Schefter .
It's not like the Seahawks needed a ton of help offensively. They finished with the fifth-best unit in the league last year, according to Football Outsiders.
But Russell Wilson's never had a target like this. Despite being somewhat hampered by injury last year, Graham still outproduced Seattle's wideouts, per ESPN Stats & Info:
According to Gregg Bell of The News Tribune in Tacoma, Washington, Wilson and Graham are already planning their offseason together:
Adding Graham on the roster eliminates one of the Seahawks' few flaws. Bleacher Report's Mike Freeman spoke to a scout for the San Francisco 49ers who summed up the reaction from the rest of the league:
Freeman also went so far as to say that the 1972 Miami Dolphins might have a serious threat to their standing as the NFL's only unbeaten team:
This will go down as one of the most significant trades of all time. It will change everything for this team, including giving it a solid chance to challenge the Dolphins' undefeated mark. I'm serious. I'm totally serious.
My reason is actually rational and level-headed and a reflection of what I've watched this Seahawks team do the past few years. They've been to consecutive Super Bowls with one of the least explosive passing offenses of any Super Bowl team. They had no speed or athleticism at wide receiver and were still a dumbass play call away from winning two straight championships with a slow receiver and a slower receiver.
On paper, the Seahawks now have a complete team. It's hard to see who will be able to challenge them in 2015 with the strength they have on both sides of the ball.
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