Finally appearing healthy again, Carolina Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey is back to averaging north of 100 yards per game from scrimmage in 2022. Yet, the Panthers aren’t any better for it.
Carolina still ranks 24th in scoring and just fired head coach Matt Rhule after a 1-4 start to their season. Could that mean the talented veterans on the Panthers roster could be had for the right price? It’s certainly possible.
If McCaffrey suddenly becomes available, one team that could make more sense than any other trade destination is the Buffalo Bills. General manager Brandon Beane has shown an inclination to swing for the fences in the past (Stefon Diggs) and could look to do so again after rumors have hinted at the possibility. That’s the exact topic we dive into here. Specifically, we’re looking at three reasons why a CMC trade to the Bills makes a lot of sense before the November 1 trade deadline.
Carolina Panthers could soon enter firesale mode
Now that the coach Rhule experiment has ended, there’s no telling what shoe could drop next in Carolina. This is an organization without a franchise QB, and until they get one, no veteran’s standing on the roster can be viewed as ‘safe’. That’s especially true for a 26-year-old running back in a league that chews and spits ballcarriers out every few years, rarely paying a top back into their 30s.
- Christian McCaffrey contract: $8.7M cap hit in 2022, $54.5M due through 2025
With CMC under contract through his age-29 season, he’s a valuable asset as long as he stays healthy. McCaffrey has missed 27 games from 2020 to 2021. It may just get to a point where the Panthers feel they are better off trying to cash in on CMC while he’s near 100%, especially as they look to the future and realize they need as many draft picks as possible to ensure they land a franchise solution at QB.
Since running backs are seemingly a dime a dozen, maybe taking the best deal possible for McCaffrey makes the most sense for Carolina in the long run. They’d also get a better look at 2021 fourth-round pick Chuba Hubbard, who has just four carries this season after receiving 197 touches as a rookie. And you never know, maybe it’s a request that would come from McCaffrey’s camp, as he hasn’t played in a playoff game since 2017, yet his dad, Ed, won three Super Bowl rings with the Broncos.
Related: 4 top Carolina Panthers coaching candidates to replace Matt Rhule
Buffalo Bills can’t keep hoping to solve their biggest offensive weakness
There’s no denying that Bills Mafia has one of the best rosters in football. Sure, they currently have the top-ranked defense, but it’s Josh Allen who manages this herd. The Bills have a great receiving corps, a fantastic quarterback, and a middling offensive line, but the one eyesore offensively is their running game. And it’s been that way for a few seasons now. Buffalo may have finished sixth in yards per attempt in 2021 and are ranked seventh in 2022, but come on, their quarterback is their leading rusher. That may be fine in Baltimore, but not in Buffalo, where their best bet is having Allen throw the ball.
Yet, the only reason Allen is their top rusher is due to the fact that their other internal options just aren’t game breakers. Devin Singletary’s longest rush of the season is still just 23 yards, and backups Zack Moss and James Cook average just three carries per game. The Bills have tried their best to jumpstart their ground attack, selecting Cook in the second round back in April, Moss in the third in 2020, and Singletary in the third in 2019, but none can live up to McCaffrey’s play.
Instead of the Bills only half-trying to solve their lack of a threat in the running game, how about they go out and land a proven commodity? It wouldn’t be any different than when they identified wide receiver as a weakness before landing Diggs prior to 2020. Finally adding a long-term solution just might have a similar impact to when they did add the Pro Bowl wideout. Already averaging 30.4 points per game, could you imagine how tough the Bills would be to stop with CMC?
Related: NFL trade rumors: Latest news on Christian McCaffrey, Robert Quinn and more
Christian McCaffrey is an elite gamechanger
- Christian McCaffrey stats in 2022: 324 rushing yards, 2 TD, 4.5 YPC, 188 receiving yards, 1 TD
The biggest reason why the Bills should do everything possible to land McCaffrey is because he offers something their offense doesn’t currently have. The Bills have been searching high and low for a do-it-all back who doesn’t foreshadow what the offense is doing. Call a pass or a run? Doesn’t matter because McCaffrey is equally as good in both roles.
Yet, the best part about adding McCaffrey is that it should, in theory, keep Allen out of harm’s way, which should be this franchise’s top priority for the rest of his NFL career. If their QB gets hurt on a scramble, coach Sean McDermott will never hear the end of it. Mixing in McCaffrey should not only keep Allen’s legs more fresh but also hopefully keep him healthier in the long run.
Meanwhile, who wouldn’t have interest in adding a back capable of going off for over 2,000 yards from scrimmage? McCaffrey may never put up another 2,392-yard season again, but chipping in an extra combined 100 yards or so each game would take a lot of pressure off Allen to execute on every last play. McCaffrey doesn’t have to be Superman in Buffalo, he only needs to play within his role, catching the passes that come his way and making defenders miss on the way to the end zone. If there’s one trade that might help Buffalo more than any others, it just might be landing CMC.
Related: 5 Christian McCaffrey trade scenarios from the Carolina Panthers