Analyzing the 2023 trade deadline moves: Washington defensive ends going different ways at the deadline

Rasul Douglas traded from the Packerss to the Bills

Buffalo adds a veteran presence to a wounded secondary

Bills receive: Rasul Douglas and 2024 fifth-round draft pick

Packers receive: 2024 third-round draft pick

Finally, my favorite fit in terms of a team addressing a clear area of weakness, I really like what Buffalo did here. This defense has not been the same over the past month as the unit we saw destroy the Raiders and Commanders before holding the Dolphins two touchdowns below their season average (20 points).

And the main reason for that have been season-ending injuries for Tre’Davious White (torn Achilles), Matt Milano (broken leg) and DaQuan Jones (torn pec). The latter of those two seem to have outside shots at making a return for a playoff run, but White unfortunately will once again not make a return for the third straight season.

So the Bills desperately needed one of their young guys to step up. Dane Jackson and Christian Benford especially have performed above the level of expectations as late day-three selections, but last year’s first-rounder Kaiir Elam unfortunately has been a pretty big disappointment.

While I’d say Buffalo’s coverage structures take pressure off their guys on the perimeter with how much zone they call on paper, within that, you still end up with Elam isolated on the backside with someone like Calvin Ridley when you run quarters, and he gets routed up.

Rasul Douglas isn’t your traditional shutdown boundary corner, but where he excels at is keying on route patterns of closing on stuff as a high-low defender, he can move inside in case Taron Johnson misses a little bit of time, he’s good at funneling the run inside and being a reliable tackler and most importantly, he’s a play-maker, with 12 turnovers forced and two pick-sixes since the start of 2021.

And looking at different trade value charts, this compensation amounts to about a fifth-round pick – so definitely below market value for a versatile starter in the secondary.

As we flip things around with the Packers, this feels like just trying to get something back in return for a team that clearly isn’t at a point where they feel like they can compete in the NFC. Sitting at 2-4 and being on a four-game losing streak, with a bye week in-between those, there just hasn’t been a whole lot to hang your hat on recently.

They beat up on an overrated Bears squad in convincing fashion on opening Sunday, lost on a walk-off field goal at Atlanta and then were able to put together an impressive 18-point comeback in the fourth quarter against the Saints.

I thought they had the defensive front and a couple of cover-guys to put pressure on opponents to hold up one-on-one while the offense would be built around Aaron Jones and a quarterback who deliver a few explosives down the field and as a runner.

However, Jordan Love simply hasn’t been accurate enough on a consistent level, Jones hasn’t been healthy for the most part and the defense may include a couple of cornerstone pieces, but it feels like a collection of highly-drafted misfit toys under DC Joe Barry’s stubborn, antiquated scheme.

Weirdly enough though, I thought Douglas was one of the few guys that made sense for what they’ve been trying to do and has at least played up to the three-year, 21-million-dollar extension from March last year. So this must have been more about trying to get something back for a player, who has somewhat openly been talking about how the offense and general operation has been a bit of a mess, from what I can tell.

Either way, it feels like they’ll be making a switch in terms of play-calling duties defensively at least after the season. I thought Chicago’s Jaylon Johnson would’ve made a lot of sense for Buffalo initially, but getting Douglas from their division-rivals instead gets them more bang for their buck.

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