The 2026 NFL trade deadline has closed, and the dust has settled on one of the most active deadline periods in years. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the league completed 18 in-season trades, the third straight year that number has matched or surpassed 18, with five deals landing on deadline day itself. The Jacksonville Jaguars were the most aggressive buyers, the Indianapolis Colts the most committed sellers, and the Chicago Bears made the boldest bet of all.
Jacksonville’s spree began on Monday, when the Jaguars landed defensive tackle Jordan Davis from Philadelphia for a 2027 first-round pick and a 2029 second-round pick, safety Jessie Bates III from Atlanta, and defensive tackle Davon Godchaux from New Orleans. At 6-2 under head coach Liam Coen, the Jaguars have gone all in on a Super Bowl push, rebuilding their defence in the space of 24 hours to cover season-ending injuries to DaVon Hamilton and Eric Murray.
The Bears’ blockbuster gamble
Chicago’s move came earlier but loomed over the whole deadline. The Bears sent two first-round picks and a fourth-rounder to Tennessee for All-Pro defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, the first time since 1967 that a defensive tackle has been traded for multiple first-round picks, according to ESPN Research. It was a franchise-defining bet, and it set the tone for everything that followed: contenders were willing to pay premium prices for premium players.
The NFC arms race did not stop there. Seattle traded for guard Quenton Nelson and San Francisco for defensive lineman DeForest Buckner, both from the Colts, in late October. Three NFC powers added three former first-round All-Pros in the trenches within days of each other, and the Vikings, Chiefs and Bills all followed with their own deadline-day moves. The conference’s contenders have loaded up, and the second half of the season will show who spent wisely.
Losers: the sellers and the team that stood still
Indianapolis heads the losers’ list, not because the Colts got bad value — they collected a pile of picks — but because they have waved the white flag on the season. Tennessee, too, has chosen the future, trading Simmons and Hooker for draft capital. And then there are the teams that did nothing: the Los Angeles Chargers, who traded away starting linebacker Daiyan Henley to a division rival in Denver, raised eyebrows around the league.
The deadline also produced one piece of late drama: Cincinnati agreed a deal for Philadelphia edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie, only for the Bengals to back out when it emerged the move would also cost them a 2027 compensatory third-round pick, according to ESPN. It was a reminder that even agreed deals can collapse. The 18 trades are done, the picks are spent, and the second half of the season starts now.
Related reading: Jaguars Land Bates, Davis and Godchaux in Deadline Swoop and NFL Trade Deadline Today: Taylor Watch as Clock Hits 4pm ET
