The 2026 NFL Trade Deadline is on November 10th, which is shortly after Week 9 action wraps up. The deadline being a bit later in the season could make the moves that much more meaningful, as playoff races in both conferences are heating up, and it's pretty easy to see the divide between the best and worst teams in the sport.
We have already seen some pretty notable trade deadline moves, and more are sure to be on the horizon. In our latest deadline exercise, we have crafted three league-altering moves that would only make the deadline more entertaining.
Some of these moves might be unlikely, but that is also part of the point here - we're getting a little bit aggressive with our trade proposals, but we do have sound reason for creating them. Let's dive into it here - three deadline moves that we want to see happen and would change the league.
Three 2026 trade deadline moves that would shake-up the NFL
Justin Herbert to the Minnesota Vikings for four high draft picks
How about this one? While a trade is unlikely, there could already be a framework for a potential trade if the Los Angeles Chargers would begin to entertain the idea:
"It’s extremely unlikely the Chargers quarterback gets traded despite their 0–7 start. Herbert is signed through 2029 and has largely been a top-10 quarterback throughout his career. This year has been a disaster for him on both an individual and team level, and he leads the league with 10 interceptions.
Still, a front-office executive told our Gilberto Manzano that a Herbert trade would need to include at least three first-round picks, along with other items, such as lower selections and/or established players. The executive pointed to the Deshaun Watson trade and the Bears-Panthers trade, which centered on the No. 1 pick in 2023 and ended up being the Bryce Young selection." -- Gilberto Manzano and Matt Verderame
The Minnesota Vikings do have the draft capital for something like this, and they also happen to have a Super Bowl-caliber defense as well. Kyler Murray has simply not played well this year and might not be much of a fit in Kevin O'Connell's offense. In fact, Carson Wentz might be the better option going forward.
The Vikings are 6-1 on the season and are clearly in a position to make the playoffs at minimum, but Murray's play is obviously limiting the ceiling of this team. The Chargers probably have no desire to trade Herbert, but he's clearly a broken, struggling player right now, and with how poorly-built this roster is overall, getting four high draft picks back might be worth moving on from their veteran QB.
There just isn't much to like with the Chargers' roster right now, as they are a plethora of quality starters away from competing for a Super Bowl, which was the entire point of bringing Jim Harbaugh on board back in 2024. Minnesota, despite having a winning tenure under O'Connell, have had major QB instability, and the way this team has approached the QB position cannot continue any longer - a different most every single season is eventually going to catch up with the team.
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