Graziano: Josh Sweat, James Conner pair of way-too-early trade candidates at deadline
Josh Sweat and James Conner were included in ESPN analyst Dan Graziano's list of players he thinks could be on the move at the trade deadline.
Watch: Who is the Arizona Diamondbacks' biggest threat for the NL Wild Card? | 33 mins
The Josh Sweat trade chatter likely isn’t going away anytime soon.
The Arizona Cardinals pass rusher was among 10 candidates who could be moved at the NFL trade deadline in ESPN analyst Dan Graziano’s way-too-early list published Thursday.
Sweat is staying away from Arizona’s offseason program and letting it be known he’s not happy there. An acquiring team would take on a guaranteed $17 million in 2027 compensation for Sweat, and none of the remaining years or money on his contract is guaranteed after that. That’s a good deal for a player such as Sweat and should result in decent outside interest.
Graziano adds the Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots make a lot of sense.
While Sweat has been a notable absence from the Cardinals’ voluntary team activities this offseason, it’s not out of the ordinary for the pass rusher. He did the same thing last year.
“I do my own training every offseason. This is nothing new,” Sweat said on Instagram in response to a Cardinals fan.
Sweat also hasn’t publicly said he’s unhappy, and the Cardinals are reportedly not trading him.
Still, with a head-coaching change from Jonathan Gannon — someone Sweat came to Arizona to play for — to Mike LaFleur, the noise around trading Sweat is warranted.
What his attendance looks like at mandatory minicamp next week will either increase the chatter or subdue it for the time being.
Josh Sweat not the only Cardinal named as a way-too-early trade candidate at deadline
The Cardinals revamped their run game in a major way this offseason with the additions of Jeremiyah Love and Tyler Allgeier.
They’re expected to lead the way for Arizona’s backfield.
But what about the rest of the room that includes multi-year starter James Conner, Trey Benson and Bam Knight?
Given the surplus of backs, Graziano pinpointed Conner as the most likely trade candidate of the bunch, though he didn’t leave out the possibility of the team moving on from Benson.
Conner accepted a pay cut this past spring, so it’s possible he’s in their plans and that someone such as Trey Benson is more likely to get traded to alleviate the logjam at running back. But it feels like one of the Cardinals’ six RBs has to go, and a team looking for a reliable veteran back could make a move for Conner if he’s having a hard time getting carries. The Bengals and Giants jump to mind; they were looking for running back help this offseason but didn’t bring in much.
Dealing Conner or Benson, a pair of running backs coming off season-ending injuries, makes a lot of sense given Arizona’s future outlook of Love and Allgeier pacing the ground game.
The Jacksonville Jaguars, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Green Bay Packers are among the teams to watch as potential trade partners.
Related
Report: Cardinals are not trading pass rusher Josh Sweat
Can BJ Ojulari pick up the slack in the Cardinals' pass-rushing department?
Takeaways from Cardinals' final round of OTAs
Could the Cardinals' RB surplus be the Packers' gain?
Solak: Cardinals' run game saw biggest offseason boost across the NFL
Cardinals CB Will Johnson confident about health headed into Year 2
Comments
1 Comments
I'd hate to see Conner go, but if you can get something for a guy who figures to be your 3rd string RB, that is a move you probably should make.
I would only trade Sweat before the season if it's an offer you can't refuse. You can re-evaluate depending on how the team and Sweat are doing right before the trade deadline.