ESPN grades Colts' DeForest Buckner, Quenton Nelson trades
After trading away Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner, what grades did the Colts get for these two deals?
On Tuesday, the Indianapolis Colts made two significant trades, sending away franchise staples Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner. To assess the Colts' performance in these deals, we turned to ESPN's Seth Walder for his grading.
For the Quenton Nelson trade, the Colts received two draft picks: a 2027 third-round selection and a 2028 fifth-round pick from the Seattle Seahawks. Nelson was in the final year of his contract and was still performing at an elite level, ranking third among guards in PFF's pass-blocking efficiency metric and seventh in run-blocking grade.
Given that the Colts were in the midst of a rebuild, the priority was to acquire as much premium draft capital as possible. Walder concluded, "Ultimately, this is a win-win trade." His grade for this trade was a B+.
In the DeForest Buckner trade, the Colts walked away with a 2027 fourth-round pick from the San Francisco 49ers. Like Nelson, Buckner was in the final year of his contract and would have been a free agent afterward. By moving Buckner now, the Colts received draft capital in return. Walder noted, "Perhaps this was the best offer Indianapolis received for Buckner today, but they also didn't have to trade Buckner right now."
He added, "There are two weeks left until the Nov. 10 trade deadline. I would have thought they could have at least squeezed another Day 3 pick in addition to the fourth-rounder." Consequently, Walder graded this trade a B-.
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