NFL Trade Rumors: Analyzing Latest Reports on Tee Higgins, Marshon Lattimore and More
NFL teams have until Tuesday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. EST to complete any trades they can, with hopes of bolstering their rosters as they make playoff pushes and attempt to compete for a Super Bowl in the 2024 season.
The question is, which players are and are not available?
From Super Bowl participants to elite defenders, to young game-changers, the answers await in this collection of insider reports ahead of the deadline.
Bengals Not Trading Tee Higgins
It has been a tumultuous year for Tee Higgins and the Cincinnati Bengals, dating back to the offseason, when the team refused to trade him and applied the franchise tag rather than paying him a long-term deal.
Higgins has missed the last two games due to a soft tissue injury in his quadriceps. He missed the first two of the season with a hamstring injury.
Despite the injuries and despite what has to be a contemptuous relationship with the only franchise he has ever known, the Bengals will not be trading the talented wide receiver before Tuesday's deadline, per Dianna Russini of The Athletic.
Higgins is still a talented wide receiver with raw, game-changing abilities when healthy and on the field. In five games this season, he has 29 receptions for 341 yards and three touchdowns.
He is a trusted, favorite target of quarterback Joe Burrow and someone who has played on every major stage in professional football, including the Super Bowl.
He is absolutely an asset to Cincinnati and one that the team probably should have taken care of re-signing when they had the chance a year ago.
Higgins may leave the organization eventually, probably via free agency, but it will not be through a trade before Tuesday.
Despite a wealth of teams who would likely jump at the chance to acquire a player of that skill set.
Marshon Lattimore a "Curiosity" Around the League
Marshon Lattimore is an elite cornerback in the NFL and despite a hamstring that currently has him sidelined, is considered a "curiosity around the league" by NFL Media's Ian Rapoport.
The insider reported that several teams have checked in on Lattimore's status. Fox Sports insider Jordan Schultz echoed that report, but added that it remains unclear if New Orleans would be willing to entertain that deal.
Schultz concluded, "Rival teams believe that a loss to Carolina could prompt New Orleans to strongly explore multiple moves."
The Saints did, in fact, lose to Carolina.
Still, that does not mean the organization will start selling off pieces. Rapoport wrote, "rival general managers all know Saints executive vice president/GM Mickey Loomis is not usually someone who will sell off parts."
Ultimately, any deal surrounding the starting cornerback would have to be an impressive one to convince the Saints to part with one of their best players.
Perhaps such a deal comes from Kansas City, whom ESPN's Adam Schefter noted was one of the teams interested in acquiring Lattimore.
Regardless, a bad Saints team is likely to field calls about several of their key players. It will be up to the front office to decide if the team is officially in rebuild mode or not.
Cardinals Looking to Bolster Defense
The Arizona Cardinals are a surprise 5-4 and sit atop the NFC West.
They are not content to be in contention, though. The team wants to bolster its defense and make sure that they can finish the season strong and make their first playoff appearance since 2021.
To do that, they have checked in on New York Giants edge rusher Azeez Ojulari and the Titans' Arden Key, per Russini.
Ojulari has six sacks through nine games and Key has four.
Both are considered bright young players with tremendous upsides who can explode off the edge and get much-needed stops. In a division that includes the electrifying offenses of the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers, and a tough, physical Seattle Seahawks team, having those rushers is key to defensive success.
Ojulari is just 24-years-old and has been the more coveted of the two, with the Bengals and Falcons also checking in on him.
With the New York Giants a disappointing 2-7, it would not be surprising to see the team trade away the potential game-changer in exchange for picks or pieces it can use in another franchise rebuild.