13 NFL trades that need to happen before Nov. 1 deadline, plus Saints-Cardinals picks for Thursday night

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Welcome to the Thursday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!

Usually, this is the part where I hype you up for tonight's game, but for the third straight week, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to do that. Before the season started, Saints at Cardinals seemed like it could potentially be a good game, but that potential has been thrown out the window. Not only have the Saints been decimated by injuries, but we're going to be seeing Andy Dalton start a game in prime time and if you've ever seen Andy Dalton start a game in prime time, then you know why that's not a good thing.

Even Amazon knows this might be a bad game, which I'm guessing is why they hired TAYLOR SWIFT to give a sneak peek of her new album during the second half. Swifties are going to turn this into the highest-rated Thursday night game ever.

That being said, as bad as the last two Thursday games were -- Colts 12-9 over Broncos and Commanders 12-7 over Bears -- I was actually oddly fascinated by both games because they went down to the wire. If Arizona and New Orleans give us a bad game that goes down to the wire, I will be more than happy, especially since it's going to include that whole Taylor Swift thing.

Anyway, that's the last time I'll be mentioning Taylor in today's newsletter. Let's get to the rundown.

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1. Today's show: Brady Quinn breaks down the latest NFL news

If you're going to listen to just one episode of the Pick Six podcast every week, then you should definitely make sure that you're listening every Thursday, because that's when Brady Quinn joins the show. For today's episode, the former first-round pick chatted with Will Brinson about a multitude of topics, including Jerry Jones' beef with Roger Goodell, plus he made his weekly apology to Jets fans.

OK, so Brady didn't actually apologize for anything, but he is going to write a check for $1,000 to charity because the Jets beat the Packers on Sunday. If you haven't been following the escapades between Jets fans and Brady this year, let me fill you in: Before the season started, Brady said he wouldn't be surprised if the Jets ended up going 1-8 or 0-9 through the first nine weeks. Jets fans took offense to that, and Brady responded by saying that he would DONATE $1,000 TO CHARITY every time the Jets won this season.

If you're scoring at home, the Jets are now up to four wins and Brady is going broke. Also, Brady might finally be thinking about jumping on their bandwagon.

The former NFL QB has been extremely impressed with two specific defensive players for the Jets this year.

"Sauce Gardner might get Defensive Rookie of the Year," Quinn said. "I think you need to consider Quinnen Williams for Defensive Player of the Year. I don't know that people were walking into the season thinking those two things."

Of course, Mr. "I used to hate the Jets, but now I might not" did also note that the team has been kind of lucky this year because they've faced a backup QB in three of their four wins (Browns, Steelers, Dolphins) and this week, they get a banged-up Russell Wilson. So maybe he's not on the bandwagon just yet.

If you want to hear everything else Quinn had to say on today's podcast, then be sure to click here. If you want to see his handsome face, then you can also watch today's episode on YouTube by clicking here.

2. Thursday night preview: Prepping you for Saints at Cardinals

On paper, this might seem like a game between two teams that are underachieving -- and it is -- but it could definitely still be entertaining. For one, DeAndre Hopkins will be back on the field for the Cardinals, who will be trying to end an eight-game home losing streak that dates back to last season.

My good buddy Jared Dubin wrote our deep-dive preview for this game here at CBSSports.com, and here's how he sees the game playing out:

Why the Saints can win: The Saints have been hit hard by injuries and because of that, they're going to be down multiple offensive weapons tonight, including wide receivers Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry along with tight end Adam Trautman. If the Saints are going to win, they're likely going to need a huge game from Alvin Kamara. The running back totaled 194 yards in New Orleans' Week 5 win over the Seahawks. He then followed that up with 124 total yards in the Saints' near upset of the Bengals in Week 6. If Kamara has another huge game, that will give the Saints a fighting chance to beat the Cardinals.
Why the Cardinals can win: The Cardinals are a different team when DeAndre Hopkins is on the field and he's going to be on the field tonight for the first time all season. Since he arrived in Arizona, the Cardinals have averaged EIGHT points more per game (27.4 vs. 19.4) when Hopkins is on the field vs. when he's not, so don't be surprised if his return gives the team an offensive spark that spurs them to a win.

You can get a full preview of the game from Dubin by clicking here.

If you're thinking about betting on the game, Tyler Sullivan put together a full gambling preview (odds via Caesars Sportsbook). You can check out Sullivan's full gambling preview by clicking here, but if you don't feel like clicking over, here's one prop from both of us for tonight's game.

ONE PROP TYLER LIKES: Kyler Murray OVER 244.5 passing yards (-104): "Not only will Murray be getting DeAndre Hopkins back for this game, but Hopkins should have a plush matchup, particularly with Marshon Lattimore sidelined for New Orleans. Also, Murray will be facing a Saints secondary that ranks 21st in the NFL in DVOA against the pass and is allowing 6.8 yards per pass attempt this season. Murray also should have a relatively clean pocket to throw from as the Cardinals O-line is allowing pressure at the fifth-lowest rate in the NFL this season and the Saints are getting pressure at the worst rate in the league."
ONE PROP I LIKE: Alvin Kamara OVER 4.5 receptions (+104): Kamara has played with Andy Dalton in two games this season and he had SIX receptions in each of those games. Not only that, but Kamara was targeted 15 total times in those two games, making it pretty clear that Dalton loves to throw to him. When you combine the fact that Dalton loves to check down with the fact that the Saints are going to be short-handed at receiver -- Michael Thomas and Jarvis Landry will both be out -- this seems like a game will Kamara will be touching the ball early and often. Other prop I might consider: Kamara OVER 99.5 rushing plus receiving yards (-119).

Finally, if you're wondering who we're picking, here's who we have tonight in a game that's so close, the oddsmakers currently have it as a pick'em:

Dubin's pick: Cardinals 23-17 over Saints
Sullivan's pick: Cardinals 30-27 over Saints
My pick: Saints 20-17 over Cardinals

Over on our CBSSports.com picks page, our experts are pretty split with four of the seven taking the Cardinals and three taking the Saints.

3. One move each contender can make to get over the hump

With the NFL trade deadline less than two weeks away, we decided to take a look 10 contenders this year and come up with one move they could pull off over the next few weeks to make their team into a bone fide Super Bowl contender.

So what do the best teams need to do to get better? Here's what CBSSports.com's Bryan DeArdo came up with:

Bills: Land Christian McCaffrey. "A new defensive back would also help, given the injury to Micah Hyde and Tre'Davious White still working his way back from injury. But the Bills' defense has largely managed to hold down the fort to this point, which brings us to McCaffrey. It's hard to imagine anyone stopping Buffalo's offense with McCaffrey playing alongside Josh Allen, Stefon Diggs and company."
Chiefs: Get help for the secondary. "Kansas City could use some help on defense after placing 25th in the league in scoring, 27th in passing yards allowed and last in touchdown passes allowed through six weeks. Possible trade options here include Washington's William Jackson III and Seattle's Sidney Jones."
Giants: Bring back Odell. "The Giants have had back luck with receivers lately, so why not bring back one of the best wideouts in franchise annals to help right the ship? If healthy, Odell Beckham Jr. can help provide much-needed stability at the receiver position."

DeArdo covered a total of 10 teams and if you want to see the move that he recommended for each of those teams, then be sure to click here.

4. NFL trade deadline: 13 deals that would make sense before Nov. 1

With the NFL trade deadline coming on Nov. 1, you can bet we're going to see plenty of deals go down over the next 12 days. With that in mind, Cody Benjamin decided to play matchmaker by coming up with THIRTEEN TRADES that NFL teams should look to make before the deadline.

Here are three of the biggest trades that Cody is proposing:

Christian McCaffrey deal

49ers acquire: RB Christian McCaffrey
Panthers acquire: 2024 second-round pick, 2023 fourth-round pick, RB Tyrion Davis-Price
Cody's take: "Kyle Shanahan can make most anyone thrive in his run-heavy system, but McCaffrey is of a different breed -- so proven as a pass catcher that he'd give Jimmy Garoppolo an every-down safety valve, not to mention another Swiss Army Knife alongside Deebo Samuel."

Cameron Jordan deal

Chiefs acquire: DE Cameron Jordan
Saints acquire: 2023 second-round pick, 2023 third-round pick
Cody's take: "An all-time Saint, Jordan may desire to retire in New Orleans, but he'd probably rather go out chasing a ring, and his team is in dire need of restocking for a rebuild. This is the same price the Rams paid for Von Miller in 2021. The Chiefs could use a steadier edge presence alongside Chris Jones as they seek a Lombardi."

Riley Reiff deal

Rams acquire: OT Riley Reiff
Bears acquire: 2023 sixth-round pick
Cody's take: "Wasting away on Chicago's bench, Reiff is no longer full-time material, but he's got 139 career starts at left or right tackle. Matthew Stafford has folded behind shoddy protection for much of the year, and with blind-side blocker Joe Noteboom now out for the year, the Rams could use any insurance they can get."

If you want to check out all 13 trades that Cody proposed, then be sure to click here.

5. One thing we learned about each team in Week 6

With Week 7 kicking off tonight, we decided that we're going to take one more look back at Week 6. Jeff Kerr decided to wade through the aftermath to figure out one thing we learned about each team.

Here's a look at the one thing we learned about four different teams:

Falcons: It's time to take this team seriously. "The Falcons were one of the teams that appeared to be playing for the No. 1 draft pick when the season started, but that hasn't been the case so far. All Atlanta has done is go 3-3 in its first six games, and the argument could be made the Falcons should be 5-1. The Falcons have won three of their last four games behind a consistent rushing attack and a defense that has 10 takeaways through six games."
Broncos: Russell Wilson's contract gets worse by the week. "The Broncos are giving Wilson $124 million guaranteed and can't get out of the deal until 2025 at the earliest. In his first season with the team, Wilson is completing 58.6% of his passes for 1,442 yards with five touchdowns to three interceptions (83.3 rating). The Broncos have scored more than 20 points just once (and they lost that game). That's just not good enough."
Rams: Decimated offensive line is killing any chances at a Super Bowl repeat. "Left tackle Joe Noteboom is lost for the season with a torn Achilles, the latest injury to an already thin offensive line. Tremayne Anchrum Jr. was already lost for the year, while Brian Allen, Coleman Shelton, and David Edwards have spent time on injured reserve. To keep count, that's the starting left tackle, starting guard, starting center, backup left guard, and backup center spending time on the injured list through six games. They also lost their starting left tackle from last season (Andrew Whitworth) to retirement and another starting offensive linemen (Austin Corbett) to free agency."
Buccaneers: The defense may not be as good as we thought. "Mitchell Trubisky has struggled to complete passes against everyone this season, well, except the Buccaneers, who allowed him to complete 9 of 12 for 144 yards with a touchdown (142.4 rating) in relief of Kenny Pickett. Something is off with the defense in Tampa Bay. The third-down situational defense (42.7%, 22nd in NFL) and red zone defense (75%, 29th in NFL) have to be better."

If you want to see the one thing we learned about all 32 teams, you can check out Kerr's entire story by clicking here.

6. Rapid-fire roundup: Mac Jones expects to be ready for Monday night

It's been a busy 24 hours in the NFL, and since it's nearly impossible to keep track of everything that happened, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you.

Mac Jones could play on Monday. The Patriots QB hasn't played since Week 2, but according to ESPN, Jones is expecting to be healthy enough to play on Monday against the Bears. Of course, just because he's healthy doesn't mean he's going to start. The Patriots offense has been rolling with Bailey Zappe and Bill Belichick has been evasive anytime he's been asked if Jones would be the starter when he's healthy. According to the Athletic, Jones will definitely be keeping his starting job once he's healthy enough to play. That being said, it wouldn't be a total surprise to see Zappe start on Monday as Jones works his way back from the injury.
Dak Prescott medically cleared to play. Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy announced on Wednesday that Prescott has been medically cleared. This was the last remaining hurdle to getting him back on the field. The Cowboys haven't officially named him the starter for Sunday's game against the Lions and that's likely because they want to see how he handles a couple full practices. If he's extremely sore after practice or if his throws look off, the team could conceivably give him one more week to heal.
P.J. Walker will start at QB for Panthers, Sam Darnold returns to practice. In non-Dak QB news, the Panthers will be moving forward with P.J. Walker as their starting QB for the second straight week. Sam Darnold could also have a chance to get the starting job back in the next few weeks as he's finally set to return to practice after missing the first six weeks of the season with an ankle injury.
Ben Roethlisberger comments on Tom Brady's body language. I'm not sure if Big Ben is a body language expert, but he did make an interesting comment on Brady's body language this week. "It looked like he didn't want to be out there," Big Ben said. Hearing a two-time Super Bowl winner say this about Brady is definitely fascinating. Brady might finally be regretting coming out of retirement. You can read Big Ben's full comments by clicking here.
Tua offers details on his concussion. The Dolphins QB was asked if he got worried after suffering his concussion and the answer he gave really puts into perspective how serious concussions are. "I wouldn't say it was scary for me at the time because there was a point where I was unconscious, so I couldn't really tell what was going on," Tagovailoa said. He doesn't know if he was scared because he WAS unconscious. You can check out all of Tua's comments about his concussion by clicking here.
Oldest living Pro Football Hall of Famer dies. Charley Trippi, who turned 100 back in December, passed away on Wednesday. Trippi's NFL career started all the way back in 1947 when the Chicago Cardinals made him the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft that year. During his rookie year, he played a key role in the Cards' NFL Championship game win over the Eagles. In that 28-21 win, Trippi had two punt return touchdowns while totaling 206 all-purpose yards. Trippi is the only player in the Hall of Fame who finished his career with at least 1,000 receiving yards, 1,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards. Trippi spent his entire nine-year career with the Cardinals before retiring in 1955.
Commanders wrote a bad check to a fan. If the Commanders ever write you a check, you might want to ask for cash instead. The team apparently wrote a $14,000 check to a fan that ended up bouncing and if you want the details on that, be sure to click here.