NFC Super Bowl Contender Emerges in Will McDonald Jets Trade Sweepstakes
A Super Bowl contender has emerged from the pack.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini revealed that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a team to watch in the Will McDonald – New York Jets trade sweepstakes ahead of the Tuesday, November 4, deadline.
“Will McDonald’s name has come up. There are some teams that might be looking at him. I would keep an eye on Tampa Bay there. I could see McDonald getting traded, I really could, and here is why: he wasn’t drafted by this regime,” Cimini explained on the “Flight Deck” podcast. “McDonald to me is a one-dimensional player. He can rush the passer, and I think Aaron Glenn wants more of a two-way lineman. I know he has spoken about McDonald being a good run defender, but I’m not buying it. I think they see him as an undersized pass rusher who might be able to bring back some value. So I would keep my eye on him as a trade possibility.”
Insider Spills Details on McDonald Ahead of NFL Trade Deadline
“Will McDonald, I was told [could garner] a two or a three depending on your value and your evaluation of him. He is not an every-down player. He is a one-trick, rush up the field, go get the quarterback guy who is a liability against the run. By the way, this year, he is not rushing the passer particularly well. He hasn’t had a sack since the opener. He has just one quarterback hit in each of the last three games,” NFL Insider Connor Hughes of SNY said on “Jets Final Drive.”
“It’s not like he is Abdul Carter right now, who is not getting sacks, but he is getting a ton of pressures. Will McDonald isn’t even necessarily doing that,” Hughes added.
“Out of all of the things you just said, I think trading Will McDonald for a two or three honestly makes the most sense to me. I think he is what he is. I don’t know if he is dominant enough to hold onto him if you don’t believe in him necessarily. They don’t play him on running downs; they only play him on passing downs. So I would trade Will McDonald for that kind of value,” Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic admitted on “Jets Final Drive.”
Looming Contract Decision for McDonald
The former Iowa State product entered the league as the No. 15 overall pick in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft.
McDonald, 26, has at least a year and a half remaining on his rookie contract. During the 2026 offseason, the Jets or whichever team owns his rights will have to decide on his fifth-year option.
According to Over The Cap, McDonald’s projected fifth-year team option will be worth $14.96 million. That is a fully guaranteed figure. If the Jets or any team that trades for him accepts that, he will be under contract through the 2027 season. However, if that team option is declined, McDonald is set to be a free agent after the 2026 season.
Studying the McDonald Canvas Through His NFL Career so Far
McDonald is not a complete player.
Through the first two and a half seasons of his career, McDonald has appeared on average in just 48% of the defensive snaps.
However, he brings a special set of skills to the table. McDonald has 15.5 career sacks, 34 quarterback hits, three forced fumbles, and a blocked field goal that was returned for a touchdown.
In a quarterback-driven league, players who can get after the passer will always have a place.
Kyle Dugger Absence vs. Browns Strains Patriots Secondary
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — With their Week 8 matchup against the Cleveland Browns set to kick off at
The Patriots (5-2) enter this matchup on the heels of a dominant 31-13 victory over the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium. Cleveland (1-5) also won its Week 7 contest against the Miami Dolphins by a score of 31-6 at Huntington Bank Field.
With just over an hour until the 1:00 p.m. ET kickoff, the Patriots and Browns have released their lists of inactives:
PATRIOTS INACTIVES:
S Kyle Dugger
LB Caleb Murphy
WR Efton Chism, III
DE Eric Gregory
DE Keion White
G Caedan Wallace
QB Tommy DeVito (3rd QB)
What it Means for the Patriots:
Dugger entered the weekend as questionable for Week 8 with a knee injury. The Lenoir-Rhyne product did not participate the the Pats final practice of the week and was the lone Patriot to be listed on their ultimate injury and practice participation report.
This season, Dugger has appeared in all seven games [making four starts] while compiling 17 total tackles. Due to his preseason and early-season struggles, the former Pats’ team captain has been the subject of both trade and release rumors — the former of which are expected to continue up to the NFL’s
Throughout his five-plus seasons in Foxborough, Dugger has appeared in 81 regular season games, making 69 starts. He also started his only playoff appearance in 2021. The Decatur, Georgia native has compiled 441 total tackles, nine interceptions and two fumble recoveries, while scoring three defensive touchdowns. His extensive knowledge of the Patriots playbook made him the logical choice to serve as their starter with veteran Jaylinn Hawkins being sidelined for the past two games with a hamstring injury.
Despite having just been signed by the Patriots on Oct. 15, defensive back Richie Grant’s elevation from the practice squad may indicate that he is likely to inherit some of the reps normally allotted to Dugger. The veteran safety was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an unrestricted free agent this past offseason but was released prior to the start of the season. Throughout his four seasons in the NFL, the 6’0” 200-pound defensive back has played in 67 games with 33 starts and has accumulated 264 total tackles, three sacks, three interceptions, 17 passes-defensed and 11 special teams tackles.
The Patriots may also turn to second-year defensive back Dell Pettus, perhaps the more-likely choice to receive Dugger’s reps. Pettus has logged 10 total tackles, one forced fumble and one run-stuff in reserve duty this season.
BROWNS INACTIVES:
QB Shedeur Sanders
CB Jarrick Bernard-Converse
S Damontae Kazee
RB Raheim Sanders
G Zack Zinter
T Cornelius Lucas
DT Adin Huntington
