Well, I wonder why we’re doing this specific list today.
Yes, a certain quarterback was just shut down for the season, and we’ll talk more about him shortly. But that reminded us that there have been some rubbish trades in NFL history where one side was severely let down while the other team stroked their mustache and let out an evil laugh. These are the six worst trades in NFL history.
The Bears trade up, draft Mitch Trubisky
The Chicago Bears spent money and draft picks in the most hilarious of ways in 2018. They have Mike Glennon a $45 million contract, which was enough to make Bears fans question all of their life decisions up to that point. But wait, there’s more. In the 2017 NFL Draft, the Bears sent the San Francisco 49ers their first, third, and fifth-round draft picks in 2017, and a 2018 third-round pick, to move up one spot to draft Mitch Trubisky out of North Carolina.
Bears fans in attendance were not pleased with the decision, nor was Mike Glennon, who was at the Bears’ draft party as this happened. The Bears took Trubisky, and then eight picks later, the Chiefs traded up for Patrick Mahomes, who, from the sound of it, has played fine.
The Colts trade for Trent Richardson
In a rare instance of the Browns winning a trade, they sent running back Trent Richardson to the Indianapolis Colts for a first-round pick. The trade came a year after Richardson ran for 11 touchdowns as a rookie, and occurred after just two games in 2013. Richardson ended up being a colossal bust for the Colts.
In his two seasons in Indianapolis, he never eclipsed 600 yards rushing, and totaled only three touchdowns on the ground in each season. We’ll always have the Alliance of American Football, though.
What did the Browns do with the pick they received in exchange for Richardson? They used that pick to move up and take Johnny Manziel. Whoops.
Saints trade entire draft for Ricky Williams
Ah, Mike Ditka- bless his heart.
In 1999, the Saints were a franchise in need of a franchise centerpiece and a reason for fans to have hope. They were coming off consecutive 6-10 seasons, and hadn’t had a winning record since 1992.
Knowing New Orleans needed an offensive playmaker to change their fortunes, Ditka went all in and traded the Saints’ first, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh-round picks to Washington, as well as additional first and third-round picks in 2000, to move up to the No. 5 spot to select Texas running back Ricky Williams. Torry Holt and Champ Bailey were the next two picks in the draft, the Saints went 3-13 in 1999, and Ditka was fired.
The Colts trade up for Jeff George
Hello, Indianapolis. Lovely to see you again, but my goodness do you have a bad track record when it comes to these sorts of things.
Ahead of the 1990 NFL Draft, the Colts needed a quarterback, and they had their eyes set on Illinois quarterback Jeff George. In order to ensure they could select George, they sent a package of Andre Rison, Chris Hinton, a fifth-round pick, and a 1991 first-round pick in exchange for the No. 1 overall pick, as well as a fourth-round pick and an additional conditional pick.
George had a huge arm, a great mullet, A+ mustache, and a lovely aesthetic. Unfortunately, that all didn’t formulate to create a great quarterback. He won just 14 of his 49 starts with the Colts, and would go on to play for five teams over a 12-year career.
The Herschel Walker trade
It’s the Titanic of NFL trades- everyone has heard of it, everyone knows about it.
In 1990, Jimmy Johnson sent a package comprised of Herschel Walker and four draft picks to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for three first-round picks, three second-round picks, linebacker Jesse Solomon, defensive back Isiac Holt, running back Darrin Nelson, linebacker David Howard, and defensive end Alex Stewart. The players weren’t the important part of the trade, it was the six draft picks acquired by Johnson, which he used to build a Cowboys team that would win three Super Bowls in four seasons.
Walker only played two seasons in Minnesota, making this the most lopsided trade in NFL history.
The Browns sell their souls for Deshaun Watson
Maybe it’s recency bias, but no one can feel good about this for several reasons. We all know the background of Watson going into the trade, and the baggage he comes with, and the Browns didn’t care. They traded three first-round picks to the Texans, as well as a 2022 fourth-round pick, a 2023 third-round pick, and a 2024 fourth-round pick in exchange for Watson before giving him a fully-guaranteed $230 million contract.
On top of that, knowing he would be punished by the league, they got cute and structured his deal in a way that would only see him make $1 million in the first year. Since then, Watson has looked putrid on the field (29th in success rate this season), and is now getting season-ending shoulder surgery. It doesn’t get better for the Browns, either. Watson’s cap hit for the foreseeable future is as follows:
- 2024: $200,915,000
- 2025: $136,938,000
- 2026: $72,961,000
Plus, no one is trading for that contract and all of that bad PR, especially not when he’s played like a bottom five quarterback over the last calendar year. Meanwhile, the Texans have found their guy in C.J. Stroud and look like they will be a playoff team this season. This all blew up in the Browns’ face, and precisely no one feels bad for them.
