It’s Let’s Make A Deal day in the NFL, with the window on trades closing at 4:00 p.m. ET. And the deals made on Monday could become a complication.
The Jaguars gave up a lot for two of the three players they acquired. As to safety Jessie Bates III, it was a second-round pick and a fifth-round pick. For defensive tackle Jordan Davis (a run-stopper with 52-percent playing time), it was a first-round pick and a second-round pick.
Those deals will hover over today’s talks. Teams that are considering trading players will, at some level, be concerned about the perception that they didn’t get enough, relative to what the Jaguars invested on Monday.
If the Jaguars intended that, they’re next-level super geniuses. Go all in, acquire players who’ll help the team get to the Super Bowl and win it, and make it harder for other contenders to do the same thing today.
As it relates to Jacksonville receiver Brian Thomas Jr., a first-round pick in 2024 who had 1,282 yards as a rookie and doesn’t fit the current offense, that could also result in a better haul, if/when the Rams join the effort (which includes the Chiefs, Steelers, and Commanders) to wrest Thomas away from the Jaguars.
Regardless of the motivation(s), Monday’s trades by the Jaguars could make it harder for deals to get done on Tuesday. Most notably, it could make the Colts decide not to take the best offer on the table for running back Jonathan Taylor.
With the Giants offering a two and a five, would the Colts be willing to accept for Taylor what the Jaguars gave up for Bates? How much more will it take to get the Colts to believe it’s a proper return given the investment made in getting Bates?
However it plays out, if not much happens at the deadline, the wrench thrown into the gears by the Jaguars could be a factor in that.
Falcons Clips
The Chiefs have a clear and obvious kicking problem.
Harrison Butker officially missed one more field goal on Sunday, sailing a 51-yard attempt wide right.
But everyone also saw him miss from 56 a snap before — a play that didn’t count because of a Jets penalty.
Butker has now missed 17 kicks over the last two seasons, which is a league-high.
Kansas City has Justin Tucker on its practice squad, and he would ostensibly be the next man up. But in his Monday news conference, Reid told reporters that he wasn’t ready to commit to any changes at kicker.
“With Butker, I haven’t made any decisions yet,” Reid said. “I’m going to evaluate everything and go forward from there. Again, I haven’t decided on reps during practice, I haven’t done any of that right now. Just going through it, evaluating. And we’ll go from there.”
Butker has made just 12-of-19 field goals so far this season. He’s also missed an extra point.
We’ll see if Reid has more to say about his kicker situation when the Chiefs start their practice week on Wednesday.
The Falcons traded veteran safety Jessie Bates to the Jaguars today, which some might see as a sign that the Falcons don’t see themselves as contenders and are looking ahead at 2027. Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski says that’s not the case.
Stefanski did acknowledge that the Falcons are building for the future, but he also noted that in the NFC South, Atlanta remains very much in contention at 3-6.
“You guys know how I feel about Jessie the person, Jessie the player,” Stefanski told reporters. “But at the same time, this is football, where sometimes you have one foot in the short term, one foot in the long term. There’s things like this that make your team better in the long run. Draft picks are the life blood of an organization. That’s something we believe in.
Stefanski said he wants fans to know that they still are going to compete to win the NFC South.
“Our fans are smart enough to know that in no way, shape or form would we punt on this season. We have three wins, just like the rest of our division. Obviously not where we want to be, we want to play better, but we’re in the thick of this thing and we trust in the guys we have,” Stefanski said.
The Falcons might not be punting on the season, but they are deciding to move on from a player who can help them this season and get draft picks for future seasons. The Falcons still might win the worst division in football, but today’s trade is not the trade of a team that thinks it’s a Super Bowl contender this year.
While Patrick Mahomes’ elbow injury looked bad when it happened on Sunday, he was able to finish the game, helping power the Chiefs to a 35-12 win over the Jets.
It sounds like he might not miss any further playing time either.
“Patrick, he is really day-to-day right now,” head coach Andy Reid told reporters in his Monday news conference. “It was more positive news than negative news on Patrick. It looks like it’s just a matter of some rehab in there and getting rid of some of the soreness. And we’ll just see where it goes from there.
“But he’s in good spirits today — I have seen him today, so he’s in good spirits today.”
Mahomes suffered the injury late in the first half. In the third quarter, he completed 7-of-10 passes for 81 yards. He was 5-of-6 for 41 yards in the fourth quarter.
Additionally, Reid mentioned Xavier Worthy (hamstring) and Jaylon Moore (ankle) are day-to-day with their respective injuries.
The Chiefs will be on the road to play the Falcons in Week 10. The first injury report of the week will be issued on Wednesday.
The Jaguars announced their trade for safety Jessie Bates on Monday.
Bates is headed to Jacksonville to strengthen a position that’s been hit by injuries this season. Eric Murray will miss the rest of the year with an elbow injury and Antonio Johnson missed Week 8 with an ankle injury before returning for last Thursday’s win over the Ravens.
“Jessie has been a proven playmaker on the defensive side of the ball for the last 8+ seasons,” Jaguars General Manager James Gladstone said in a statement. “His skillset complements our style of play and the person he is aligns with our culture. We look forward to integrating Jessie into our team as we prepare for the back half of the season.”
The Jaguars are sending a 2027 second-round pick and a 2028 fifth-rounder to the Falcons. The Falcons also agreed to pay the bulk of Bates’s salary for the rest of this season. Bates is set to be a free agent in March.
Bates was a second-team All-Pro for the third time in his career last season. He has one interception this season and had 14 in his three-plus years with the Falcons.
The Jaguars are making a move to bolster the back end of their defense.
According to multiple reports, they have agreed to trade for Falcons safety Jessie Bates. The Jaguars will send a 2027 second-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick to the Falcons in exchange for Bates.
Bates was named a second-team All-Pro for the third time in his career last season and he has 60 tackles, an interception, three forced fumbles and a fumble return for a touchdown in nine games this season. He is in the final year of the four-year contract he signed with Atlanta in 2023 and reports indicate the Falcons will pick up most of his remaining salary to facilitate the trade.
The Jaguars, who improved to 6-2 with Thursday’s win over the Ravens, lost safety Eric Murray to a season-ending elbow injury recently and Antonio Johnson has also dealt with injuries, so Bates gives them the stability and high-end play they need at the position.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had a sensational first half as the Bengals jumped out to an early lead that they never relinquished, beating the Falcons 34-17 Sunday in Madrid.
The NFL’s early-morning kickoffs in Europe always draw mixed reviews from American fans, but this game saw some entertaining play from some of the NFL’s best offensive playmakers, particularly Chase and Falcons running back Bijan Robinson.
Chase caught 10 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown, doing almost all if it within the first 25 minutes of the game. In the second half, the Bengals didn’t need to throw to Chase much, and running backs Chase Brown and Samaje Perine were running out the clock for much of the fourth quarter. Tee Higgins was a smaller part of the offense, catching just five passes for 32 yards, but Higgins did score two touchdowns.
Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow completed 24 of 29 passes for 271 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Burrow also ran for a touchdown on a quarterback sneak.
Robinson was his usual excellent self, carrying 19 times for 100 yards and a touchdown and also leading the Falcons with six catches. But after a strong first drive, Michael Penix and the Falcons’ passing game couldn’t do much. Penix finished with just 162 passing yards, and his late interception sealed the loss.
The win improves the Bengals’ record to 6-2, and they’re in great shape in the AFC playoff race. The Falcons fall to 3-6.
Falcons running back Bijan Robinson is having a big game against the Bengals in Madrid.
With six minutes left in the third quarter, Robinson has 80 rushing yards and 50 receiving yards, and his one-yard touchdown run in the third quarter brought the Falcons to within one score as they trail the Bengals 24-17.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase has been the story of the game so far, but Robinson is also playing very well, as two of the league’s best offensive playmakers are putting on a show for an international audience.
As is so often the case with international games played on soccer fields, the footing has been a concern. Several Falcons reportedly changed their cleats to get better traction, and Chase and Joe burrow were seen before the game taking a close look at what appeared to be an uneven part of the playing surface.
But the footing hasn’t slowed down Robinson or Chase.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase is having an eye-popping first half today in Madrid.
Chase caught eight passes for 142 yards and a touchdown in the first 25 minutes of play against the Falcons, helping the Bengals take a 21-10 lead over the Falcons.
It’s the most receiving yards that Chase has ever had in the first half of a game in his career.
The rest of the Bengals’ offense hasn’t done anything special, with a total of 91 yards on any play that isn’t a pass to Chase, but they haven’t needed to. Chase is taking over the game.
It’s going to be a long flight home from Spain for the Falcons’ defense if they can’t find a way to stop Chase from running free through their secondary.
The Bengals and Falcons are putting on a show for the fans in Madrid.
In the NFL’s showcase in Spain, Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow hit wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase for a 47-yard touchdown to tie the score 7-7 in the first quarter.
Both teams scored on their opening possessions, the Falcons on a seven-play, 80-yard drive and the Bengals on a five-play, 75-yard drive.
It’s been an entertaining first six minutes of football at Bernabéu Stadium.
