That has changed the past decade or so. Teams are more willing to ship off players at or near the deadline, usually when they understand their season is going nowhere and it's best to grab some future draft picks.
With the trade deadline coming up on Tuesday, here are the 12 biggest in-season trades in NFL history:How big this trade was will fade as time goes on. But in 2013, the Browns trading Richardson, a former No. 3 overall pick, to the Colts for a first-round pick was huge news. And it turned out horribly for the Colts, as Richardson averaged just 3.1 yards per carry over his two Colts seasons. He played his final regular-season game in 2014, about 15 months after the Colts traded for him.
Dallas’ 2018 trade for Amari Cooper was better. The Cowboys sent a first-round pick to the Oakland Raiders for Cooper. Cooper had 3,893 yards and 27 TDs in four Cowboys seasons before he was traded to the Browns in a salary-cap related move.Despite legions of NFL analysts insisting the New England Patriots couldn't dream of trading Garoppolo, they had little choice. The Patriots still had Tom Brady and Garoppolo was about to become a free agent.
Carolina received second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-round picks for McCaffrey, which is fine for a rebuilding team. But the 49ers shouldn't have any remorse.On Oct. 12, 1989, after Walker had played five games for the Dallas Cowboys, the Vikings and Cowboys pulled off a trade that has become synonymous with one-sided deals.
You know how it turned out. Walker played three seasons with the Vikings and never topped 1,000 yards. Dallas used those picks to help build a dynasty that included three Super Bowl champs. The Vikings have still never won a Super Bowl.