Buffalo, New England May Be Targeting Same Players Via Trade
Eight weeks into the 2025 season, and not many expected the Buffalo Bills to be anywhere else but first place in the AFC East.
But that’s exactly where they find themselves amid a resurgence from the division rival New England Patriots under head coach Mike Vrabel, who’s in his first season with the franchise after a storied playing career in Boston, and second-year quarterback Drake Maye, who’s flourishing under Vrabel’s tutelage.
And while the Bills and Pats will likely be battling it out until the end of the year for the division crown, they may also be fighting one another for assets on the trade market as well.
NFL.com’s Eric Edholm recently named his top buyers and sellers ahead of the NFL trade deadline on Nov. 4, and he believes both Buffalo and New England could possibly be competing for some of the same players as both look to upgrade its rosters.
“In a perfect world, the Bills should be aggressive,” Edholm wrote. “They arguably need help at both cornerback and safety, as well as a wide receiver for Josh Allen. The WR need can’t be overlooked; their advanced metrics are pretty blah across the board at that position, and the offense hasn’t topped 245 net pass yards since Week 1.
“They added Amari Cooper last year, which shows that GM Brandon Beane will attack needs, but Cooper didn’t necessarily deliver as expected. The other impediment to any deal is the lack of salary-cap space. The Bills are currently only $2.5 million under the cap, per Over the Cap. So, Beane will need to be creative in his approach.”
The two biggest areas of need for the Bills are wide receiver and cornerback, and the same could be said for the Patriots as well.
Both teams have been recently linked to several big-name wide receiver trades — Philadelphia’s A.J. Brown, Vegas’ Jakobi Meyers, New Orleans’ Chris Olave — and the AFC East rivals could potentially be pulled into a bidding war over one or more of them.
“No team is better equipped to take on salary at the deadline; New England is currently sitting more than $50 million under cap, and the Pats are currently set to have three additional Day 3 picks at their disposal in next year's draft,” Edholm continued. “And it wouldn't be shocking to see LB Anfernee Jennings dangled.
“Pass rush and secondary help figure to be atop the needs list, although certain receivers might also tempt them. Mike Vrabel having recent ties to (and familiarity with) the Titans and Browns could make those teams natural trade partners.”