Colts Trade Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner
Start House Cleaning with NFL Trade Deadline Pending
NFL Trades: Quenton Nelson & DeForest Buckner
The Indianapolis Colts began their offseason house cleaning early after a poor 2-5 start, following consecutive losses. They traded Quenton Nelson to the Seattle Seahawks and DeForest Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers in a major two‑player, multi‑pick deal as part of a full roster teardown
Quenton Nelson is an eight‑time Pro Bowler, 3‑time All‑Pro guard and was traded to the Seattle Seahawks for a 2027 3rd‑round pick and a 2028 5th‑round pick. Nelson is an excellent addition to help the Seattle line and protect Sam Darnold and a veteran anchor for their offensive line. Nelson is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent this March. The Colts added draft capital to aid their rebuild, though they lost a franchise offensive line leader.
DT DeForest Buckner is a three‑time Pro Bowl defender who was traded to the San Francisco 49ers for a 2027 4th‑round pick. The 49ers reunite with the player who was their #7 overall pick in 2016, adding a proven pass rusher to a defense that has struggled in sacks with injuries along the line. The Colts’ return of only a #4 pick in the NFL Draft 2027 may be considered modest for Buckner’s talent, but he is another Colts upcoming player in his final year of his contract and set to hit free agency and not expected to resign.
The Colts started poorly at 2‑5 and after consecutive weak losses, fired GM Chris Ballard last week and a signal on a roster turnover as they enter a rebuilding phase. They have $37M on their current salary cap and a huge $97M on their 2027 salary cap.
Both players were in the final year of their contracts and north of 30 years of age. The moves also cleared over $17.7M in cap space, in addition to adding middle round selections. The Colts will listen to offers for two of their top players in CB Sauce Gardner and runner Jonathan Taylor and to a lesser value in DT Grover Stewart.
The NFL trade deadline is Nov. 10th and looks like a busy period for deals with several contenders looking to add veterans for the playoff chase.
Draft Insiders’ will have several articles on the potential upcoming NFL trades over the next two weeks. Potential playoff teams have been very aggressive at the trade deadline recently to fill need areas. Players entering NFL Free agency in March will usually come at a much cheaper prices while quality veterans near the end of their careers will press to go with a contender in hopes of earning the coveter SB ring.
