Welcome to the Tuesday edition of the Pick Six newsletter!
It appears the New York Jets have officially decided to take over the NFL news cycle every Tuesday during the month of October. Last Tuesday, they fired Robert Saleh, and today, they also made a big move by trading for Davante Adams. I can't wait to see what they do next Tuesday.
In today's newsletter, we'll be grading the Adams trade and taking a look at the full details of the deal. We'll also be handing out grades from last night's game and ranking every team in the NFL.
As always, here's your daily reminder to tell all your friends and neighbors to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here.
1. Raiders finally trade Davante Adams: Full details, plus grades
The month of October started with Davante Adams requesting a trade out of Las Vegas, and two weeks later, a deal has finally gotten done. Adams will be reuniting with his old buddy Aaron Rodgers after the Jets pulled off a trade for the All-Pro receiver on Tuesday.
Here's a look at the trade details:
- Jets receive: Davante Adams
- Raiders receive: 2025 conditional third-round pick (Could become a second-round pick if Adams makes the All-Pro team or if he's on the Jets roster if they reach the AFC Championship or Super Bowl, per CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones.)
- Other notable parts of the deal: One thing that was holding up a possible trade was that other teams wanted the Raiders to pay part of Adams' remaining salary. However, that won't be happening. According to ESPN, the Jets are on the hook for the rest of Adams' contract in 2024. The receiver has $11.2 million in salary due to him along with a $30,000 bonus for each game that he's active. If he's on the field for each of the Jets' 11 remaining games, that will be an extra $330,000 on top of the $11.2 million. The Jets had roughly $17 million in cap space going into today, according to Over the Cap, so they were able to afford it without modifying his contract.
This trade felt like it was going to happen almost as soon as the Monday night game ended. On the Jets' final possession, Aaron Rodgers threw an interception, and after the game, he threw Mike Williams under the bus for running the wrong route. That felt like Rodgers sending a message to the front office that they better work hard to get an Adams deal done.
TRADE GRADES
Whenever there's a trade, there's 100% chance we're going to hand out grades for that deal and that's exactly what we did in this situation.
- Jets grade: B. Although the Jets are paying a steep price to get Adams, that will more than pay off if he helps them turn their season around. Adams has a long, successful history with Aaron Rodgers and if they can replicate that in New York, this offense just got a lot scarier. The Jets haven't made the playoffs since 2010 and if they can end that drought this season, no one in New York will care what it took to get Adams.
- Raiders grade: B-. The Raiders stuck to their guns: They wanted a second-round pick in return and they'll likely be getting that as part of the conditional trade (It's a third-round pick, but could move to a second-rounder if certain unspecified playing conditions are met). The Raiders also won't be paying any of Adams' contract. On the other hand, the Raiders did give up a first-round pick and a second-round pick to originally acquire Adams, so they paid a steep price and the compensation from the Jets doesn't make up for that.
You can read our full story on the Adams trade here.
2. Bills top Jets: Grades and notes from Buffalo's big 'MNF' win
The Bills took control of the AFC East on Monday night with a 23-20 win over the Jets, who were playing their first game since getting rid of Robert Saleh. If they were hoping that the firing of Saleh would give them a spark, they were wrong. The Jets lost their last two games with Saleh by one score, and they also managed to lose their first game with Jeff Ulbrich by one score. The more things change, the more they stay the same.
It was a sloppy game that saw FOUR missed kicks (three field goals and an extra point). The two teams also combined for 22 penalties for 204 yards, which was the highest total in any game this season. Aaron Rodgers actually complained about the officiating after the game. He even mentioned that a roughing the passer penalty on the Bills shouldn't have been called. You can read his full comments here.
Here are our grades from the game:
BILLS GRADE: B
The Bills are only going to go as far as Josh Allen is going to take them. That's something that's been clear since the start of the season and it was clear in this game. Allen had a huge first half that saw him total three touchdowns, with two of those coming through the air (He also came up with a game-winning third-down conversion in the final two minutes). The Bills got a breakout game from rookie Ray Davis, who totaled 152 yards. Although Allen and the offense struggled some in the second half, Buffalo's defense picked up the slack. Taylor Rapp came up with several big pass break-ups, AJ Epenesa tallied two of Buffalo's three sacks and Taron Johnson came up with a wild interception late in the fourth quarter that iced the game. This was a solid win for a team that was desperate for a victory.
Bills notes
- Rookie running back breaks out. With James Cook inactive for the game, Ray Davis got the start and he had a breakout game. The rookie running back carried the ball 20 times for 97 yards while also adding three catches for 55 yards. His 152 total yards was the highest by any Bills rookie since 2014 when Sammy Watkins totaled 157 yards in a game.
JETS GRADE: B-
If the Jets learned one thing Monday, it's that they made the right decision to take play-calling duties away from Nathaniel Hackett. With Todd Downing calling plays, the Jets offense looked like a reinvigorated group. Breece Hall totaled 169 yards, with 113 of those coming on the ground. Aaron Rodgers also had a strong performance, throwing for a season-high 296 yards, which included a 52-yard Hail Mary for a TD on the final play of the first half (You can see the play here). However, the offense did struggle in the red zone, which is something that Downing will need to fix. Although Downing seemed to give the offense a spark, the firing of Robert Saleh didn't seem to improve things for the defense. Also, Greg Zuerlein had a nightmare game, missing two short field goal attempts (43, 32). The Jets have now lost three straight games by six points or less and if they don't figure out how to win the close ones, it's going to be a long season.
Jets notes
- Greg the Leg lays an egg. Zuerlein missed two field goals in the game with both kicks missing off the upright. His 32-yard field goal was the shortest attempt missed by any kicker this season. He also became the first kicker in the NFL this year to miss two field goals of 43 yards or shorter in the same game.
- Rodgers off to worst start of his career. Aaron Rodgers has been a starting QB since 2008 and he's never had a team start 2-4. Before this year, the worst record Rodgers had ever had through six weeks as 3-3.
You can check out our full takeaways from the game here.
3. Prisco's Week 7 Power Rankings: Cowboys take giant tumble
The Dallas Cowboys ruined Jerry Jones' birthday on Sunday by getting destroyed, 47-9. The team is a total mess right now and Pete Prisco definitely took notice this week. The Cowboys had the biggest drop of any team in the Power Rankings this week.
Before we get to Dallas, though, let's check out the top five teams heading into Week 7:
- Chiefs (Same as last week)
- Vikings (Same as last week)
- Texans (Same as last week)
- Lions (Same as last week)
- Ravens (Same as last week)
I'm not going to spoil the rest of the Power Rankings here, but I am going to give you a few nuggets. Here's what has changed since Prisco's last Power Rankings:
- As I mentioned at the top, the biggest drop in the rankings went to the Cowboys. After watching Dallas get pummeled by the Lions, Prisco knocked them down eight spots from ninth to 17th. This seems to be a team that's going nowhere fast.
- The biggest jump went to the Los Angeles Chargers. The Chargers got a scare on Sunday when Jim Harbaugh had to head to the locker room before the game due to a heart issue, but he soon returned to lead his team to a win over the Broncos. Thanks to that win, Prisco moved L.A. up six spots, from 20th to 14th.
- Another team that made a move this week was the Commanders, except they made the kind of move you don't want to make. Prisco dropped them SIX spots following their loss to the Ravens. Apparently, a one-score loss to the fifth-ranked team was not impressive to Prisco, who dropped Washington from sixth to 12th.
- Now, let's talk about the worst team in the NFL: The Panthers were at the bottom of the rankings last week and after losing by 18 to Atlanta (38-20), you probably won't be surprised to hear that they're also at the bottom of the rankings this week.
If you want to know where your favorite team ended up in Prisco's Week 7 Power Rankings, be sure to click here. If you want to argue with Prisco over his rankings, you can do that on Twitter by clicking here. I argue with him all the time about everything.
4. NFL trades that need to happen before the trade deadline
It doesn't seem possible, but the NFL trade deadline is just three weeks from today. If you're looking at your calendar and thinking, "Wait, Election Day is three weeks from today, that can't be the trade deadline!" Well, it is. The NFL actually moved the trade deadline back one week for 2024. The deadline used to be the first Tuesday after Week 8, but this year, it's the first Tuesday after Week 9.
Anyway, with the deadline so close, Cody Benjamin got a little crazy today by coming up with 10 trades that need to happen (Well, nine now that Adams just got traded to the Jets). We're going to take a look at three of his biggest ones below:
1. Deandre Hopkins to the Bills. "At 32 on a bad knee, his value isn't through the roof. To a contender like the Bills, however, he could prove vital to a potential stretch run, with Josh Allen currently scratching and clawing to make the most of a remade receiver corps headlined by a rookie in Keon Coleman." Titans get: 2025 fifth-round pick
2. Amari Cooper to the Chiefs. "The Chiefs can get by with just about anyone if Patrick Mahomes is under center and Andy Reid is on the sidelines, but it'd be much preferred if they didn't have to lean so much on rookie speedster Xavier Worthy, plus aging tight end Travis Kelce, in search of another title." Browns get: 2025 fourth-round pick
3. Trey Lance to the Dolphins. "Lance remains a project, but he flashed his first-round athleticism under Mike McDaniel in San Francisco, and Dallas has kept him strapped to the bench. He'd make for a low-risk, high-upside rental as added Tagovailoa insurance." Cowboys get: Conditional 2025 fifth-round pick
If you want to check out all 10 of Cody's trade proposals, then be sure to check out his full story here.
5. Breech's Week 7 NFL picks: Chiefs win Super Bowl rematch with 49ers
Every Tuesday, I unveil three of my weekly picks here in the newsletter and if my picks go anything like they did last week, then you're going to want to get a pen and paper so you can write them down. In Week 6, I went 12-2, which was by far my best week of the season.
All right, let's stop wasting time and get to the picks:
- Jaguars (1-5) vs. Patriots (1-5): I think the Jaguars are slightly better than their record suggests and the Patriots might actually be slightly worse than their record suggests, which means I'll be taking Jacksonville here. If the Jags lose, Doug Pederson might need to find his own flight home from London because I'm not sure Shad Khan will let him on the team plane. PICK: Jaguars 24-17 over Patriots
- Lions (4-1) at Minnesota (5-0): The loss of Aidan Hutchinson is a brutal one for Detroit. The Lions had 15 sacks on the year and Hutchinson had half of those (7.5). The Lions likely won't have much of a pass-rush this week, which could lead to a big day for the Vikings offense. PICK: Vikings 27-24 over Lions
- Chiefs (5-0) at 49ers (3-3): The Chiefs will be coming off a bye in this game and if there's one person in the NFL who you should never pick against off a bye, it's Andy Reid. The Chiefs coach is 21-4 in the regular season coming off a bye. That's good enough for me to take the Chiefs. PICK: Chiefs 26-23 over 49ers
If you want to check out the rest of my picks for Week 7, be sure to click here.
6. Extra points: Haason Reddick given permission to seek trade
It was 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.
- Jets might soon be making another trade. After trading for Davante Adams on Tuesday, the Jets could soon be making another trade. CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones has reported that the team has given Reddick permission to seek a trade. If Reddick can find a partner, we could see a deal get done at some point in the very near future. You can read more about the Reddick situation here.
- Seahawks make trade with Jaguars. The Seahawks added some defensive depth on Monday by making a trade for Jaguars' defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris. The Jags will be getting a 2026 sixth-round pick as part of the deal. You can check out our trade grades here.
- Commanders lose Jonathan Allen for the season. The Commanders defense suffered a huge hit this week after Jonathan Allen was ruled out for the season due to a pec injury. Allen tore his pectoral muscle on Sunday against the Ravens. Allen is a two-time Pro Bowler who's been with Washington since 2017 when the team made him the 17th overall pick in the NFL Draft.
- Anthony Richardson expected to start for Colts. After missing two games due to an oblique injury, it appears that Richardson is finally going to return to the lineup. On Monday, Colts coach Shane Steichen said that Richarson will start unless he suffers a setback. That being said, it appeared that Richardson was going to start last week, but then Joe Flacco got the starting nod on Sunday morning in Indy's win over the Titans.
- Texans starter hit with four-game suspension. Texans defensive lineman Mario Edwards Jr. has been suspended four games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. Edwards, who has two sacks on the season, has started all six games this year. The suspension means he's not eligible to return to the field until Houston's Week 11 game against the Cowboys on Nov. 18. One piece of good news for the Texans is that Denico Autry will be returning this week. The veteran pass-rusher, who recorded 11.5 sacks with the Titans last season, had been serving a six-game suspension to start the season.
- Tom Brady expected to become an NFL owner. It took 18 months, but Brady's bid to purchase a minority stake in the Las Vegas Raiders is expected to be approved today at the NFL's annual fall meeting in Atlanta.
