5 potential NFL trades that make too much sense

Last March saw the NFL offseason get off to a banging start with multiple trades announced in the minutes following the start of free agency.

From Jimmy Graham heading to the Pacific Northwest to the Philadelphia Eagles swapping Nick Foles with the then St. Louis Rams for Sam Bradford, some of these deals were rather shocking.

We have no idea whether this will be the case when free agency starts this year, but there’s a decent chance a few big trades will go down over the next several weeks.

Here is our list of five potential trades around the NFL world that make too much sense.

1. Colin Kaepernick to the Denver Broncos

Let’s look at this scenario for a second here. With Peyton Manning retiring and Brock Osweiler set to hit free agency, there’s a chance that Denver will be looking to add a veteran quarterback to take over under center next season.

That’s nearly unprecedented for a defending champion. And in reality, it could be made much more possible should Osweiler receive a huge contract offer from a quarterback-needy team in free agency — an offer John Elway and Co. wouldn’t want to match.

Enter into the equation a quarterback in Kaepernick that seems to fit the Broncos stretch run scheme to a T — a quarterback that clearly wants out of San Francisco.

Equally as important here is the fact that Elway himself has a good working relationship with 49ers general manager Trent Baalke — something that has to be taken into account.

Depending on what Kaepernick’s value might be, the Broncos could be better off adding the former second-round pick at nearly the same price tag Osweiler is likely to receive on the open market.

The question then becomes whether Denver values Kaepernick at a higher clip than Osweiler. While recency bias tells us this might not be the case, the embattled signal caller is a few years removed from leading San Francisco to the Super Bowl.

He did so with an elite-level defense, which is something Denver possesses right now.

2. Vincent Jackson to the New England Patriots

It’s high time the Patriots actually provide Tom Brady with the assets to have success on the offensive side of the ball.

Brady has provided this organization with the ability to make such a move by taking less money throughout the past several seasons. Maybe the Pats will reward him this offseason.

Outside of needed upgrades at running back, Brady could sure use a big-bodied receiver on the outside to provide him with a consistent third-down target.

For his part, Jackson could very well be on the outs in Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers can save nearly $10 million by releasing the three-time Pro Bowl performer.

If they could potentially get a mid-to-late round pick instead of cutting him for free, the team would surely jump on it.

That’s a reasonable conclusion to draw based on the presence of Mike Evans as Jameis Winston’s top receiving target.

3. Josh Gordon to the Dallas Cowboys

We know very well that the Cleveland Browns have publicly stood by the still-suspended receiver. We also know that what teams tell the public isn’t necessarily what’s happening behind the scenes.

If Cleveland were to place Gordon on the trade block (after his suspension is lifted), Dallas would likely pounce all over the embattled receiver.

As we saw last season, the Cowboys don’t have much of anything behind Dez Bryant at wide receiver. That was magnified by just how much this group struggled with Bryant sidelined for seven games.

Without much cap flexibility to add a starter-caliber receiver, the Cowboys may be forced to take a chance on someone of Gordon’s ilk. He’s still only 24 years old and set to count $1.1 million against the cap next season.

It also must be noted that Dallas hasn’t necessarily been afraid to take on players with pretty damning character concerns.

4. DeMarco Murray to the Tennessee Titans

We know the Philadelphia Eagles have recently stated that Murray wants to return to the team (via Pro Football Talk).

That’s fine and dandy. But as we indicated above with Gordon, what a team says publicly isn’t necessarily what is happening behind the scenes.

Murray was Chip Kelly’s signing last March. The move represented nothing less than Kelly wanting to show the brass in Philadelphia (as well as his players) who was in charge.

Now that Howie Roseman is running the ship again, we have absolutely no idea whether he views Murray as a fit in Philadelphia.

Set to earn $35 million over the next four seasons, the Eagles would surely love to get out from under Murray’s contract. That’s taken to a whole new level following a 2015 campaign that saw the veteran average a career low 3.6 yards per attempt.

In looking at potential trade partners for Murray, we have to check in on squads that both struggled running the ball last season and have the cap room to absorb his contract.

In this, Tennessee makes a ton of sense. Here’s a squad that averaged less than four yards per rush.

Second-year running back Bishop Sankey struggled a great deal, eventually seeing his playing time decrease a great deal. Meanwhile, rookie David Cobb simply couldn’t produce in the limited action he saw.

The need is most definitely here. And if the cost is a late-round pick, the Titans could do worse than teaming Murray up with Marcus Mariota in the backfield.

5. Calvin Johnson to the Washington Redskins

We know by now that there’s a potential Johnson will retire in the coming weeks. What we don’t know is whether that was a ploy for him to get out of Detroit.

Johnson has been a loyal member of below-average Lions teams for the better part of his nine-year NFL career. He could very well be growing frustrated with the team’s inability to contend on even a semi-consistent basis.

Pure conjecture here, but there’s a decent chance Johnson is simply leveraging his way out of Detroit. If so, there would be a rather robust trade market for one of the most productive receivers in NFL history.

Still only 30 years old, Johnson potentially has a lot of good years left in that body — recent injuries notwithstanding. He’d immediately become the No. 1 receiver on a vast majority of the teams out there.

Coming off a surprising NFC East title this past season, Washington could use a player of Johnson’s ilk on what is already a vastly improved offense. He’d act as a solid possession guy to DeSean Jackson’s outside ability.

The presence of Jordan Reed at tight end would also come in huge here, as teams simply wouldn’t be able to throw double teams Johnson’s way on a consistent basis.

It’s the type of move a team on the brink of Super Bowl contention makes. And while the Redskins may be far from that, don’t tell owner Daniel Snyder this.