Yesterday's NFL trade deadline saw a number of moves, and what is "typically a footnote on the calendar" was more "berserk than any one in recent history," according to Andrew Beaton of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. The trade with the "biggest fallout may have been the one that seemingly came out of nowhere" as the Patriots sent QB Jimmy Garoppolo -- "long seen as Tom Brady's heir apparent" -- to the 49ers. Meanwhile, the Eagles acquired RB Jay Ajayi from the Dolphins and the Seahawks traded for Texans OT Duane Brown. This deadline was just the "boiling point for something the league has typically been missing -- a frenetic bonanza of headline-stealing moves, which has always been a hallmark moment during the NBA and MLB calendars." Since August, there have been "more trades than any of the same months over the last 10 years." Former Buccaneers GM Mark Dominik said, "It’s part of the new generation of general managers in the league." Dominik said the trading season gets “more exciting every year” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 11/1). In DC, Mark Maske notes the "flurry of trade-deadline activity took many within the league by surprise, and few had concrete answers as to why they think it happened." One possible reason is that the "next generation of GMs is running the sport" and they "don’t cling to the traditional notion that trades are not a viable means of NFL roster construction, especially in-season deals" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 11/1). The AP's Arnie Stapleton noted midseason trades "rarely bring much excitement or shake up the playoff race," as the trade deadline most years "comes and goes without much happening" (AP, 10/31).
ACTIVE VOICES: Many Twitter observers were impressed by the level of activity around the trade deadline. ESPN's Trey Wingo: "Maybe the greatest trade deadline in NFL history, usually you get a 7th rounder for a bag of footballs." WSCR-AM's Julie DiCaro: "Finally, something fun about the NFL. Angry trades!" Hoop Magazine's Josh Eberley: "Best NFL trade deadline of my lifetime." SB Nation's John Hendrix: "Everyone: 'No one is gonna trade their best players.' NFL Trade Deadline: 'Hold my beer.'" Rock River Times' Robert Zeglinski: "Okay the NFL trade deadline is never this lit." CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora: "If the NFL moved the trade deadline back 2 more weeks, as many GMs would prefer, would spur more activity."
READING THE FINE PRINT: In Cleveland, Mary Kay Cabot reports the Browns "dropped the ball on a trade" yesterday for Bengals QB A.J. McCarron. The two clubs agreed to the trade "dangerously close" to the 4:00pm ET deadline, but the Bengals "managed to send their signed paperwork into the NFL on time." A source said that the Browns "did not." The Browns appealed to the NFL to allow the deal, but the league "rejected it." The Bengals "copied the Browns on the signed document they emailed to the NFL." Sources added that separate documents from each team -- signed only by that team -- "constitutes a trade." A source said that the Browns "sent a signed document to the Bengals and expected them to also sign it and send it to the NFL." But a Bengals spokesperson said that the team "never received any paperwork from the Browns and that they executed their end of the bargain, and that the league office confirmed that they did" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 11/1).
GASE'S GAMBLE: The Dolphins traded Ajayi to the Eagles for a fourth-round pick, and in Miami, Greg Cote writes the Dolphins can "spin" the move any way they wish, "but I'm not buying it." The NFL's lowest-scoring offense "just got weaker" and a team "already dim on starpower just got less interesting." It almost feels like the trade was a "little white surrender flag for this season" (MIAMI HERALD, 11/1). But in Ft. Lauderdale, Dave Hyde writes locker rooms that "win consistently have pros" and Ajayi "wasn’t a grown-up pro." After "big games, he’d talk to the media." But after wins when he "didn’t play a big role ... he was moping to the point he wouldn’t talk." The trade becomes Dolphins coach Adam Gase's "biggest gamble" (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 11/1).
