NFL trade grades: Evaluating every deal made ahead of the 20...

With the 2025 NFL trade deadline firmly in the rearview, it's time to take a closer look at how the sides fared in 20 deals made between the start of the season and Nov. 4.

With Charvarius Ward on IR, Indy's CBs needed help. So the Colts pushed all their chips into the middle, and now in comes Sauce to play savior.

Gardner opened his career with smashing success, using his length and physicality to compile 31 passes defended and two INTs in his first two seasons, earning All-Pro honors in each campaign. The corner position being fickle, the past two years haven't been as kind; he's struggled some in coverage and dealt with a concussion earlier this year. When he's on, though, Gardner remains an upper-echelon cover man. Per Next Gen Stats, he faced No. 1 receivers on 45.5% of his coverage matchups, the NFL's highest rate (min. 125 matchups). When targeted, he has forced tight windows (allowing less than 1 yard of separation) at a rate of 53.8%, also leading the league (min. 20 targets).

The Colts are betting big that their Lou Anarumo-led defense will present Sauce with a better situation than he played under the past two seasons in New York. Still, considering that the cost is similar to what Green Bay gave up for pass rusher Micah Parsons (two first-round picks and a player), it's a hefty price to pay for a corner. Even one as good as Sauce can be.

On the Jets' end, it's a stunner of a move. They just handed Gardner -- drafted fourth overall in 2022 -- a sizable contract this offseason to be one of their building blocks, and four months later, said building block is headed for Indianapolis. Once we pick our jaws off the floor, it's not hard to see the logic for New York. The windfall was simply too good to pass up. What good is a star corner when the rest of the operation is crumbling?

Netting two first-rounders, even if they wind up coming later on draft night, gives the Jets flexibility to fill several major holes, plus the ammo to position themselves to select a quarterback, if necessary -- by far their greatest need at this point. The Mitchell toss-in adds another wideout to the mix for the Jets, who need help alongside Garrett Wilson. Mitchell is an athletic wideout who has lacked consistency and was buried in Indy after his fumbled touchdown snafu in Week 4. It's the type of upside talent a team like the Jets should take on.

Then there is the added financial maneuverability. Because Gardner's new contract came with a signing bonus of just $13.75 million, the Jets aren't left with a ton of dead money -- $11 million next year (a paltry sum, compared to some dead money totals attached to other partings). The money saved could go a long way in an important offseason in Florham Park.

Trading Gardner is an admission that Gang Green isn't close to being a fully-formed product -- they're not just a year away from contention. Getting extra first-rounders is the best way to jumpstart their rebuild. It might sting to lose a star, but they had to give something up to restock for the future.

Jerry Jones stuck to his guns, using his ammo to upgrade a woebegone defense. Williams is a legit difference-maker, an All-Pro player who can wreck the pocket, is generally stellar against the run and gobbles up blockers. The three-time Pro Bowler is the type of presence who can transform a defensive line. He’s not Micah Parsons, but he brings the kind of playmaking the Cowboys D has sorely missed this season.

As is true of most of the Jets players, this year hasn’t gone swimmingly for Williams, who has netted just one sack with 16 QB pressures. The hope in Dallas is that a fresh start will get him back to his dominating ways.