NFL Trade Deadline 2019: 5 Teams that should be sellers

The NFL has plenty of playoff-level teams, but a handful of teams are better off selling their assets at the NFL Trade Deadline to garner future draft picks.

The NFL Trade Deadline is on Oct. 29, and some teams will be looking to add key pieces to their competitive squads. However, there are plenty of other teams who are looking toward the future. They are rebuilding and will need two or three years to put together competitive squads. That means those teams are better off selling their talented players now, rather than prolonging the rebuilding process.

They aren’t featured in this article, but the Atlanta Falcons, Arizona Cardinals, New York Giants, and New York Jets are also in the range of teams that might move some players at the deadline.

However, the following five teams will be receiving calls about trades all week long leading up to the 2019 NFL Trade Deadline. If front offices have the best intentions for the futures of their franchises, they will answer the phones and make deals happen.

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Trade assets: Cameron Brate, Lavonte David, O.J. Howard, Ndamukong Suh

The Buccaneers might not be last in the NFC South — that distinction belongs to the Atlanta Falcons, but the team has quarterback issues. While Jameis Winston has proven he’s capable of stringing together several weeks of solid play, he always reverts to his worst form. We saw that when he threw five interceptions against the Carolina Panthers in Week 6.

I’m not denying the potential of some Buccaneer players, but the team as a whole isn’t going anywhere with Winston at the helm. However, the Buccaneers might not see their predicament that way. Tampa Bay may try to acquire players near the deadline, but that wouldn’t be in the team’s best interest.

Lavonte David is in the second to last year of a five-year, $50.25 million contract. With Gerald McCoy gone, David is by far the most decorated long-time Buccaneer on the roster. He was taken by the team in the second round in 2012. However, the outside linebacker is now 29 years old. Even though he’s still a Pro Bowl-caliber player, it might be time for Tampa Bay to cash in on David.

Neither Cameron Brate nor O.J. Howard are having much of an impact in Tampa Bay’s offense. While Howard is still on his cheap rookie deal, Brate is in the second year of a six-year, $40.8 million deal. He’s making seven million dollars this year alone. That’s a lot of money for a backup tight end.

I never liked the Suh deal to begin with. If the Buccaneers were going to sign a veteran defensive tackle to a short-term deal, they should’ve tried to smooth things over with McCoy. Suh is making $9.25 million this year to make roughly two tackles per game. That’s just unnecessary.