Dallas Cowboys: Sam Williams, edge rusher
There are always a few different criteria you look for with players who could be trade candidates before the start of the season. Of course, teams needing players as injury replacements will always be a primary reason. Players who were former high draft picks who had high grades could be coveted by teams at a discounted rate.
But it's almost always contract situations as the first and foremost reason. Players entering contract years can become reclamation projects elsewhere, and that's what we have here with Dallas Cowboys edge rusher Sam Williams.
Williams was a 2nd-round pick once upon a time, and has impressive athletic traits. He contributes on special teams. But the Cowboys have a reloaded and revamped edge group with the arrival of players like Rashan Gary and 1st-round pick Malachi Lawrence.
Sam Williams might be the odd man out and could be coveted by pass rush-needy teams who could give him a much better look than Dallas can this season.
Atlanta Falcons: Troy Andersen, linebacker
Troy Andersen was a 2nd-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft who, like many others on this list, has failed to live up to pre-draft expectations, for one reason or another.
Andersen played all 17 games as a rookie, but he's been limited to just 9 games over the past two seasons due to injuries.
He's got all of the size and athletic metrics you covet at the position (6-foot-2, 245 pounds, 4.42-second 40-yard dash time). Coming out of Montana State, there were a lot of folks who absolutely loved him in the pre-draft process. But this offseason could be the end of the line as the Falcons are no longer banking on the 2nd-rounder being in their starting defense plans.
It's a new era in Atlanta, so they might be more willing to say "out with the old" and go a different direction.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Ko Kieft, tight end
The Buccaneers might have been the most difficult team on this list to try and figure out a player who could be a trade candidate.
The Bucs have depth on their roster in certain places, but nothing you really feel great about when it comes to a guy being a legitimate trade candidate. One of the positions that ended up being an exception is the tight end position, where Ko Kieft is back on a one-year deal with less than $500,000 in total contract guarantees.
He played just three games last season due to injury, and has been a rotational player and special teams standout for a few years. The Buccaneers brought back Cade Otton in free agency. They've got Payne Durham as their TE2 right now, and then they've drafted tight ends in two of the last three classes (Bauer Sharp, Devin Culp).
Detroit Lions: Mekhi Wingo, defensive lineman
It felt like the Detroit Lions landed a steal in the 6th round of the 2024 NFL Draft when they drafted Mekhi Wingo out of LSU.
Wingo was routinely projected to go off the board somewhere in the 3rd-4th round of the 2024 Draft, but he fell all the way to the 6th, and the Lions scooped him up. Unfortunately, he's only appeared in 13 games as an NFL player, including just two this past season.
He played in 48 percent of the snaps in those two games, so maybe the Lions have bigger plans for him in Year 3 than anyone realizes (present company included), but they also have other players they're trying to develop on the defensive front. With just 1 QB hit in his first 13 NFL games, maybe the pre-draft hype with Wingo was a bit overblown.
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