Ranking the 10 Biggest NFL Trade Deadline Mistakes Over the Last Decade

The Herschel Walker deal between the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings is the most infamous trade in NFL history . Ahead of the 1989 NFL trade deadline, the Vikings gave up three first-round picks and three second-round picks as part of their package for the two-time Pro Bowler, which fueled the Cowboys' rise in the 1990s .

While the Walker trade has stood the test of time as a prime example of how a well-timed deal can help or hurt a franchise, other teams have made tragic mistakes in recent years as the trade deadline approached.

The Vikings learned a hard lesson, which a generation of decision-makers saw as a warning sign. However, those executives no longer populate the league. Instead, today's general managers see opportunities and try to capitalize on them.

"The old-school way of thinking was more anti-trade," one NFC assistant general manager told ESPN's Cameron Wolfe . "Now people are much more open to how they add talent to their teams."

Every trade can be a positive or negative for both sides. But over the last decade, some trade-deadline deals have significantly backfired. Here, we've ranked the worst of the worst.

10. Buffalo Bills Trade for WR Kelvin Benjamin (2017)

Trade : The Buffalo Bills trade 2018 third- and seventh-round picks to the Carolina Panthers for wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin.

During the 2016 campaign and entering the 2017 season, the Buffalo Bills lacked a true No. 1 target. Sammy Watkins dealt with injuries in 2016 and missed half the season. The Bills traded him the following offseason.

Ironically, Buffalo tried to replace him with another offensive weapon who turned out to be damaged goods.

Kelvin Benjamin was 26 at the time of the trade. He posted 1,949 receiving yards during his first two healthy seasons. The Panthers had a glut of wide receivers with upside at the time and decided to move the 2014 first-round pick.

For Buffalo, Benjamin was supposed to be a legitimate X receiver with the size on the outside to consistently create mismatches, particularly in the red zone. However, the version of Benjamin seen earlier in his career never showed up in Buffalo. He caught 39 passes and only two touchdowns in 18 appearances before the Bills released him during the 2018 campaign.

"There's a strong belief that Benjamin hasn't been the same player since he suffered a second knee injury [in 2017], tearing his meniscus in his second game in Buffalo," The Athletic's Matthew Fairburn wrote . "Benjamin missed two games with the injury and then played through it for the rest of the season. He had offseason surgery to repair the injury but never regained his explosiveness.

"Benjamin arrived in Buffalo having already undergone surgery to repair the ACL in his other knee in 2015. The injuries robbed Benjamin of the burst he showed in his 1,000-yard, nine-touchdown rookie season with the Panthers in 2014."

9. Dallas Cowboys Trade for WR Jonathan Mingo (2024)

Trade : The Dallas Cowboys trade a 2025 fourth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers for wide receiver Jonathan Mingo and a seventh-round pick.

The amazing part of the Dallas Cowboys' acquisition of Jonathan Mingo is how little they've received in return even though he's still on the team. To make matters worse, the Kansas City Chiefs flipped a lower draft pick to acquire DeAndre Hopkins prior to the same trade deadline.

"We wanted Mingo when we left [the 2023 NFL draft]," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said during his weekly radio appearance after making the deal. "We were disappointed we didn't get him. We found out that he could be available. When we found that out, we started a dialogue there. We were looking at a player we had a big interest in when he was coming out. He fits the profile of what we want. He's the type of receiver that is Dak-friendly."

Here's the thing: Mingo hasn't been a "friendly" target for quarterback Dak Prescott. He's caught nine passes in 19 appearances over two-plus seasons. Mingo has started exactly one game during that stretch. He hasn't given the Cowboys anything they envisioned when they made the deal.

Instead, an overreliance on CeeDee Lamb eventually led Dallas to trade for George Pickens, which further pushed Mingo down the depth chart. He and KaVontae Turpin basically flip-flop between the team's fourth and fifth wide receiver options.

8. Baltimore Ravens Trade for Edge Yannick Ngakoue (2020)

Trade : The Baltimore Ravens trade 2021 third-round and 2022 conditional fifth-round picks to the Minnesota Vikings for defensive end Yannick Ngakoue.

After Yannick Ngakoue had a public falling out with Jacksonville Jaguars leadership prior to the 2020 campaign, they traded him to the Minnesota Vikings, where he lasted less than two months before being moved again. Ngakoue finished the season with the Baltimore Ravens, but he did little to elevate their defense.

Ngakoue proved himself as a pure pass-rusher early in his professional career. The 2016 third-round draftee registered 37.5 sacks during his four seasons in Jacksonville. After contract negotiations with the Jaguars broke down, Ngakoue demanded a trade, and the Vikings ponied up. However, the Vikings started the 2020 campaign with a 1-5 record and suffered from buyer's remorse.

The Ravens then added Ngakoue, but they received little in return. The edge-rusher managed only three sacks in 11 total appearances, two of which came in a revenge game against his old team. He provided even less during Baltimore's two postseason outings, with two total pressures.

Ngakoue left in free agency to sign with the Las Vegas Raiders during the following offseason.

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7. Oakland Raiders Trade WR Amari Cooper to Dallas Cowboys (2018)

Trade : The Dallas Cowboys trade a 2019 first-round pick to the Oakland Raiders for wide receiver Amari Cooper.

The Raiders organization hasn't been known for its deft negotiating tactics or drafting. Both bit the franchise when it chose to trade wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys prior to the 2018 trade deadline.

The Raiders gave up on the 2015 No. 4 overall pick after seeing a downturn in his production and consistency.

"The production wasn't what it needed to be," Cooper admitted years later . "That's really the only way a team will get rid of you. So I understand. ... I do take responsibility because I did have some drops when I was there. So I do take responsibility for that." However, Cooper rediscovered himself on the Cowboys. He caught 292 passes for 3,893 yards and 27 touchdowns in three-plus seasons with the team. Meanwhile, Hunter Renfrow became the only Raiders wide receiver to post a 1,000-yard campaign during that same stretch. No one else at the position even managed 900 yards.

To make matters worse, the Raiders used the first-round pick they got in return for Cooper to draft safety Johnathan Abram. He spent three-plus seasons with the team, but he got exposed as a one-dimensional safety. The Raiders didn't pick up his fifth-year rookie option and eventually waived him during the 2022 campaign.

6. Houston Texans Trade LT Duane Brown to Seattle Seahawks (2017)

The Trade : The Seattle Seahawks trade 2018 third-round and 2019 second-round picks to the Houston Texans for offensive tackle Duane Brown and a 2018 fifth-round pick.

The Houston Texans thought they were getting a premium return for a declining veteran. They were wrong.

Duane Brown was 32 years old when the Texans shipped him to the Seattle Seahawks. Brown would go on to play seven more seasons, including four and a half in Seattle.

Before the trade, Brown held out in a contentious contract dispute that ended after the first six weeks of the regular season. The offensive lineman even called out Texans owner Bob McNair at the time for what he believed to be were misplaced comments about the team.

Instead of working things out with an excellent performer at a premium position, the Texans sent Brown to the Great Northwest, where he made two Pro Bowls and once earned second-team All-Pro honors.

Without Brown in the lineup, the Texans had a significant roster hole at left tackle. A year-and-a-half later, they made a massive trade to bring in Laremy Tunsil, which cost them a pair of first-round picks and more.

The second of those first-round selections wound up being the third overall pick in the 2021 draft. Kyle Pitts, Ja'Marr Chase, Jaylen Waddle, Penei Sewell, Jaycee Horn, Patrick Surtain II and DeVonta Smith were the seven players chosen directly after that selection.

Tunsil was an excellent player in Houston, but that trade could have been avoided had the Texans had mended fences with Brown, whose career finally ended after the 2023 campaign.

5. New York Giants Trade DL Leonard Williams to Seattle Seahawks (2023)

The Trade : The Seattle Seahawks trade 2024 second- and 2025 fifth-round picks to the New York Giants for defensive lineman Leonard Williams.

Leonard Williams could realistically appear on this list twice as bad deals by the two teams—the New York Jets, then Giants—that eventually jettisoned the defensive lineman. However, Williams' performance with the Seattle Seahawks made the Giants' decision much harder to swallow. The Giants weren't sure whether they could sign Williams to a contract extension going into the 2024 offseason. Plus, they were in a transitional phase under previous head coach Brian Daboll. So Big Blue pulled the trigger on a trade before the 2023 deadline. In retrospect, the Giants didn't get enough in return for Williams, who has been dominant with the Seahawks. Granted, landing second- and fifth-round picks for an expiring contract is usually viewed as an excellent return. In this case, it wasn't. Williams has since been named to two Pro Bowls and a second-team All-Pro. He won a Super Bowl in 2025 as Seattle's best defensive player. Eventually, the Giants also chose to trade Dexter Lawrence. Can anyone guess what position New York will need to address next offseason because it's currently considered a weakness? The defensive interior.

4. Washington Commanders Trade for CB Marshon Lattimore (2024)

The Trade : The Washington Commanders trade 2025 third-, fourth- and sixth-round picks to the New Orleans Saints for cornerback Marshon Lattimore and a 2025 fifth-round selection.

One poor decision created a butterfly effect for the Washington Commanders.

Washington selected cornerback Emmanuel Forbes in the first round of the 2023 draft. By the following season, Forbes was in a rotational role as the Commanders searched for a top corner.

The Commanders acquired Marshon Lattimore before the 2024 trade deadline. They proceeded to release Forbes before the 2024 campaign ended.

Lattimore, who had been named to four Pro Bowls in New Orleans as one of the game's best pure cover corners, was already dealing with a hamstring injury at the time of the deal. He played in only two regular-season games for the Commanders in 2024, although he did participate in their run to the NFC Championship Game.

The veteran cornerback tore his ACL during the following season. Eventually, Washington released him during the 2026 offseason.

In the end, Lattimore played in 14 total games (including postseason) with the Commanders. Even when Lattimore contributed in 2025, Washington still ranked among the league's bottom five in pass defense.

Ironically, the Saints used two picks from the Lattimore deal to select defensive backs who are now regular contributors in their secondary, which is currently ranked higher than the Commanders' in pass defense.

3. Chicago Bears Trade for WR Chase Claypool (2022)

The Trade : The Chicago Bears trade a 2023 second-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for wide receiver Chase Claypool. Two factors made the Chicago Bears' acquisition of Chase Claypool an awful decision. First, Claypool contributed next to nothing after joining the Bears. He played in 10 games across the 2022 and 2023 campaigns. He caught a total of 18 passes for 191 yards and only one touchdown.

Claypool quickly became disgruntled. The Bears benched him by Week 4 of the 2023 season, then released him midseason.

Second, Chicago paid a hefty price to acquire Claypool.

Technically, the pick it sent to Pittsburgh was a second-round selection. However, it wound up as the 32nd overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft because the Miami Dolphins had to forfeit their first-round selection that year. Chicago could have ended up with a de facto first-round pick, controlled the start of that draft's second day and selected wide receivers Jayden Reed or Rashee Rice, among others. Three years after being released by Chicago, the 28-year-old Claypool is out of the league.

2. Carolina Panthers Trade RB Christian McCaffrey to San Francisco 49ers (2022)

The Trade : The San Francisco 49ers trade 2023 second-, third- and fourth-round picks and a 2024 fifth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers for running back Christian McCaffrey. The Carolina Panthers braced for an inevitable rebuild during the 2022 campaign, and they used their best player to generate as large of a return as possible prior to that season's trade deadline.

Unfortunately, that choice didn't lead the Panthers to more prosperous times. Instead, Christian McCaffrey remains one of the league's top offensive weapons, while Carolina struggles to find any consistency, even in the lowly NFC South. Since being shipped to San Francisco, McCaffrey has generated 3,998 rushing yards, 6,347 yards from scrimmage and 56 total touchdowns in 55 games. He was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year in 2023 and the NFL Comeback Player of the Year last season while earning first-team All-Pro honors in both campaigns. Meanwhile, the Panthers used some of the draft ammunition they received to trade up for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 draft and select Bryce Young. Carolina is 18-40 since choosing Young, with one postseason berth in which the Panthers backed into the playoffs with a losing record and immediately lost in the Wild Card Round.

1. Indianapolis Colts Trade for CB Sauce Gardner (2025)

The Trade : The Indianapolis Colts trade 2026 and 2027 first-round picks plus wide receiver Adonai Mitchell to the New York Jets for cornerback Sauce Gardner.

Initially, the Indianapolis Colts' hyperaggressive approach prior to the 2025 trade deadline made sense. At that point, they had the league's best record even though their defense had struggled. Sauce Gardner was one of the league's best man-coverage corners, was still only 24, and had multiple controllable years left on his current contract.

But since the Colts swung that deal, everything within that organization has become an unmitigated disaster.

Gardner dealt with injuries. Quarterback Daniel Jones suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon. General manager Chris Ballard has been fired. Pro Bowlers Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner were traded. Star running back Jonathan Taylor could be next. Overall, Indianapolis has a 3-13 record since trading for Gardner.

Currently, the Colts are in the midst of a lost season. Gardner's presence in the lineup means nothing.

As a final twist, the Colts are on pace to surrender a top-five selection in the 2027 NFL draft, perhaps handing the New York Jets the quarterback whom Indianapolis now needs to jump-start its upcoming rebuild.