NFL Week 9 latest buzz, trade deadline questions, news

Week 9 of the 2025 NFL season is here, and insiders Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano have been making calls to sources around the league for the latest news and buzz on key situations. And with the 2025 trade deadline just six days away, many of those calls are about players who might be available. What are they hearing about big name players who could have new homes by next week?

Jeremy and Dan have the latest intel on what could happen with Jets running back Breece Hall, Bengals edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, Raiders receiver Jakobi Meyers and the Dolphins edge rusher duo of Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb. What is standing out in those situations, and which of them are most likely to be involved in a trade? Plus, our insiders looked at a few under-the-radar names who could be on the move and picked intriguing teams to watch as the 4 p.m. ET deadline on Nov. 4 approaches.

It’s all here, as our national reporters answer big questions and empty their notebooks heading into the deadline and Week 9.

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Hendrickson | Hall | Meyers | Phillips/Chubb
Under-the-radar | Interesting teams
More notes on Week 9

What are you hearing on Trey Hendrickson‘s chances to get dealt?

Fowler: Up to this point, the Bengals have rebuffed trade inquiries, and sources have maintained that Cincinnati has no plans to trade Hendrickson right now. The Cowboys and 49ers are among the interested teams, though San Francisco made a move for a pass rusher Tuesday night.

The question becomes: Will the Bengals’ win-loss record change things? A loss to Chicago on Sunday would drop Cincinnati to 3-6. The AFC North should remain wide open for a while — an 8-9 or 9-8 record might be good enough this season — so perhaps the Bengals cling to that hope and retain their premier edge rusher. But teams will most likely keep trying to pry Hendrickson away, especially after Sunday’s upset loss to the Jets.

Complicating matters is a hip injury that has compromised Hendrickson’s past two weeks on the field, though that injury is not considered serious and Hendrickson should be full-go for the stretch run, be it for Cincinnati or someone else. The Colts make a ton of sense as a contending team that could be the proverbial “one player away.” It would also represent a reunion between Hendrickson and former Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, now running the defense in Indianapolis.

What about Breece Hall … could he get traded?

Graziano: This one felt like a slam dunk for most of the season, but it has started to sound a little murkier over the past week. Hall is not under contract for next season, and the Jets have a pair of young running backs they like in Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis. But Allen is out for the season with an injury, and there are people in the Jets building who are leery of the idea of trading Hall, who showed Sunday that he can still be a dynamic threat and a key element of their offense. He ran for 133 yards and two scores, and he also threw a touchdown pass.

The fact is, there’s a price for almost everything, and if a team gives the Jets a strong enough offer for Hall, they would probably take it. But a couple of weeks ago, I would have expected them to deal Hall just to get something in return before he left as a free agent. Now, it feels more possible that they consider bringing Hall back next season, in which case they might be more hesitant to trade him now.

The Jets are on bye following their first win of the season, and they have a lot of decisions to make with teams interested in many of their players. This is a long way of saying Hall’s chances of being dealt could go either way, but my sense is that it’s no longer a sure thing.

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What’s the latest with Jakobi Meyers‘ trade market?

Fowler: Teams I’ve talked to believe that Meyers has a decent chance to be dealt — possibly the best chance among available wide receivers. Las Vegas has received interest in the seven-year veteran, and my sense is the Raiders want a strong pick for Meyers. A swap of Day 3 picks won’t do at this stage.

Several teams are believed to be in the receiver market, most notably the Steelers and possibly the Broncos and Bills. Meyers clearly wants out, and the Raiders are in a transitional phase. They just signed veteran Tyler Lockett, which could ease the loss of dealing Meyers. Pittsburgh is keeping tabs on this one but is prepared to be patient, too. If I had to predict a destination right now, I’d say the Steelers.

Other teams seem to be looking for more of a vertical threat than a possession receiver. Meyers has 29 catches for 329 yards this season.

Graziano: I believe one of them will — but which one, I cannot say. I still think the Dolphins want to put a representative product on the field this season. They started 2-6 last year and recovered to win six of their next eight, so they know it’s possible to get back to respectability, even if that doesn’t result in a playoff spot.

That said, with Tyreek Hill out for the year and the vibes around the team feeling different than they did a year ago, it’s entirely possible they’ll deal players and look to the future. They’ll have four days following Thursday night’s game against Baltimore to ponder offers ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, and there’s no shortage of teams looking for pass-rush help. Assuming they lose Thursday and drop to 2-7 (and assuming offers for Phillips and/or Chubb are reflective of teams’ level of desperation), it’s going to be tempting for Miami to consider dealing players they don’t imagine being part of their future.

Who is one under-the-radar player who could get traded before the deadline?

Graziano: Giants offensive lineman Evan Neal. He has played tackle and guard for the Giants, but it has never quite worked out. He’s only 25 years old and was the No. 7 pick in 2022, so the talent is there. He’s eligible for free agency at the end of the season and doesn’t seem to be in New York’s long-term plans. Almost everyone is looking to add offensive line depth this time of year, and there doesn’t seem to be much reason for the Giants not to move Neal if they were offered a pick.

Fowler: It’s worth monitoring whether the Giants can recoup draft capital of several former picks that have not worked out. Former third-round receiver Jalin Hyatt would like a fresh start elsewhere, just as Neal does. Offensive lineman Joshua Ezeudu is on injured reserve with a designation to return, and teams are always looking for offensive line help. So while the Giants might eschew the big deal — I was firmly told that the Giants are not looking to deal edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux right now — perhaps there is late-round value in a series of guys who just haven’t worked out.

My pick, though, is Falcons edge rusher Arnold Ebiketie. I originally went with Keion White, but the third-year edge rusher was traded Tuesday. Ebiketie is another under-the-radar rusher who has garnered interest dating to the preseason. The Falcons don’t want to trade him but typically will listen to offers on players. Like White, Ebiketie is a former second-round pick, and he registered 6.0 sacks in both 2023 and 2024. He’s off to a slower start this season, and Atlanta’s youth movement is on with James Pearce Jr. and Jalon Walker on the edge.

What is the most interesting team heading into the deadline?

Fowler: The Jets. They haven’t done anything yet. And they have players, which is the reason why they should move guys — and kind of the reason why they shouldn’t. After all, they didn’t expect to be 1-7. This roster isn’t barren like the Titans’. Talent exists on both sides of the ball, and because of that, the Jets hoped for a better start. The players have bought into Aaron Glenn. So it’s hard to just break that up solely because of the record.

That’s why I’m guessing New York finds a middle ground, selecting a few veterans deemed expendable while avoiding a fire sale. Slot corner Michael Carter II is the most obvious candidate. The Jets have an in-house replacement for him in Jarvis Brownlee Jr. While teams I’ve talked to say New York seemed willing to part with edge Jermaine Johnson in return for a strong pick, Johnson recently had a productive talk with Glenn, and it feels like he’s staying.

Many teams are calling on defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, but the Jets are not entertaining deals for him unless it’s a massive “every player has a price” type of trade package. So rival teams know the Jets are open to potentially being active over the next week but aren’t yet beholden to that plan. Williams, Hall and others should garner plenty of interest.

Graziano: The Jets are a good call. On the other end, I’m looking at the 49ers, who need help at every single level of the defense, still have a winning record and understand they’re in the latter part of a championship window given the ages of some of their great veterans.

There’s no one-for-one move that would replace a Nick Bosa or a Fred Warner, but the Niners owe it to the rest of their veteran roster not to white flag this season. I know they’ve been calling around about pass-rush help (they got some Tuesday with White), and they’ve been known to be active and creative at the deadline in past years. I’m feeling confident they’ll do something beyond what they’ve already done.

Fowler: The 49ers have remained aggressive. As for others in that category, I’m curious to see what Pittsburgh does. The Steelers just traded for Patriots safety Kyle Dugger to offset the loss of DeShon Elliott to injury. But they have also combed the receiver market, which they did last year, too. Will they settle for a moderate move such as last year’s acquisition of Mike Williams? Or will they locate more of a difference-maker and pay the necessary draft capital to secure the talent? If a deal for Meyers falls through, perhaps the Steelers lean on the Saints for, say, Rashid Shaheed, a speed option who would be costly but not outrageously so.

Graziano: I am hearing a lot of the same chatter about the Steelers and wide receivers, but I’m not sure I get it. Is the offense the Steelers’ problem? They should be looking for help on defense beyond Dugger, because that’s the side of the ball that looks old, slow and threatens to doom their season.

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Fowler: Denver also has my attention. The Broncos have evaluated multiple spots, including offensive guard (with Ben Powers out) and the skill positions (either tight end or wide receiver). While I’m not convinced the Broncos will make a bold move, ideally Denver would like more of a classic, field-stretching receiving option to offset the skill sets already in place while also adding veteran experience.

Graziano: Maybe Sean Payton can swing a deal with his former team and add Shaheed? Those are the really interesting teams to me — the Broncos, Colts, Patriots, etc. AFC contenders that might be further along than a lot of us expected or realized before the season started. The Chiefs are rounding back into form, the Bills will be there in the end, and the Ravens should be too if they can take advantage of their softer second-half schedule.

What will the upstart AFC contenders do to try to keep up with the usual powerhouses? And will it be enough? The Patriots have the cap space to add anyone they want. Is a big splash move coming?

What else are you hearing this week?

Graziano’s notes:

• I’m not a huge “I told you so” guy, but if you read this piece last week, you weren’t surprised that Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson wasn’t able to play Sunday against the Bears.The Week 9 Thursday game against the Dolphins felt like it was Jackson’s target, and he was even telling teammates early last week that he’d be back for the Miami game.

My belief is that the Ravens, knowing this would be a short week and that practices would be more walk-through-ish, practiced him last week to ramp him up for this week’s game. Their late-week injury report shenanigans didn’t go over well with the league office, especially in a week that involved a major NBA gambling scandal, and I believe the Ravens will face some sort of league discipline for that, in the form of a fine and/or loss of draft picks. Regardless, my information is that Jackson is gearing up to play Thursday against the Dolphins and should be able to do so with no limitations, as his hamstring is feeling fully healed.

• I was at Myles Garrett‘s postgame news conference in Foxbourgh on Sunday after he recorded five sacks in a 32-13 loss to the Patriots. Garrett walked in with a serious, somber look on his face, headphones hugging his forehead and his phone blaring “Simple Man” by Lynyrd Skynyrd. He waited until he was at the lectern and behind the microphone to turn off the music. Then he took questions to which the answers were all basically, “I just want to win.” He seemed very sad and very worn down by years and years worth of the Browns of it all. And I’m standing there thinking, “But you took the money, man …”

Remember back during Super Bowl week, when Garrett was publicly telling everyone he wanted to be traded out of Cleveland and that it wasn’t about a new contract but rather about not being able to take all the losing? And then a few weeks later, he signed a four-year, $160 million extension with the Browns. All of that seemed to take away the possibility that Garrett could be traded out of Cleveland and cement the likelihood that he would spend the remainder of his career in Cleveland, regardless of how much the Browns lost.

Thing is, I dug into the contract a bit this week, and I don’t think it’s out of the question that the Browns could trade Garrett — even this week — if he really wanted out. The extension added $7 million to his 2025 compensation and $6 million to his 2026 compensation. It also guaranteed him about $30.5 million for 2027. The signing bonus on the new deal was around $21 million, which isn’t super-onerous for a contract of that size. If the Browns traded him right now, his 2025 cap number would stay about the same, and they’d incur about $41 million in dead money for 2026 — roughly $17.5 million more than his current 2026 cap charge.

That’s a lot of dead money, but it’s not even close to the record. The Broncos took on about $80 million when they cut Russell Wilson last year, and they made the playoffs last season and look poised to do so again. The Buccaneers are still carrying Tom Brady dead money and they win their division every season. We see teams do this more and more as the salary cap continues to rise significantly each year. If someone came offering the Browns, say, two first-round picks, and Garrett (who has a no-trade clause and could therefore veto a deal) really wanted out, it would probably be worth considering.

Let’s say — totally hypothetically — that the Dallas Cowboys or Los Angeles Rams offered both of the 2026 first-round picks they have as a result of prior trades. Cleveland would be looking at the possibility of having four first-round selections in the 2026 draft. The Browns would be able to completely control Round 1 and come out of it with whichever quarterback they wanted. The acquiring team would have to pay Garrett a fairly reasonable $31.5 million in fully guaranteed money in 2026 and about $30.5 million in 2027.

The Browns were adamant in the spring, when Garrett issued his trade demand, that they wouldn’t trade him. And it’s possible they’d take the same stance now. But one significant element has changed since then. Back then, Browns ownership was still trying to secure public funding for a new stadium venture, and now they have. In July, Ohio governor Mike DeWine signed a new two-year budget that set aside $600 million for a new Browns stadium. If one of the reasons they weren’t trading Garrett in February was because he was the face of their franchise and they didn’t want negative attention at a time when they were asking for public money, that issue is now resolved and shouldn’t stand in the way if they decide this is the right football decision.

All of this is to say, the idea of the Browns trading Garrett isn’t inconceivable, especially if that’s what he wants. He didn’t come out and say it in his news conference Sunday, but he also made it very clear he’s not happy with the way things are going. It would be the biggest move of this trade deadline — or of next offseason’s trade market — by quite a bit. But if a team is desperate for an impact pass rusher, it might also be a call worth making.

Fowler’s notes:

• To add to what Dan said on Jackson, his injury outlook late last week was fascinating beyond how the team’s designation for him changed from a full participant to a limited one for Friday’s practice. Here’s what I was told coming out of Friday: One source considered him a game-time decision unless coach John Harbaugh deemed him otherwise (which he did on Saturday, with Baltimore ruling him out). He looked great Friday, throwing a series of “dimes,” as another source recalled. And by at least two accounts, he left the practice session feeling good and with no known setbacks on the hamstring.

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So yes, perhaps running Jackson on the scout team that day was just an entry point into him playing Thursday night against Miami. But Jackson’s impressive work Friday gave the team a lift. He looked like he was ready to play, until he wasn’t. It’s entirely possible Jackson simply opted not to play or wasn’t ready. Hamstrings are tricky — one tweak, and he’s out for a month.

• Many people around the league are watching the 1-7 Saints closely near the trade deadline. What transpires over the next week will say something about where the Saints feel they stand in the roster-building process — which, to most, should be rebuilding. But New Orleans and GM Mickey Loomis have tried staving that reality off for a while. Just two months ago, New Orleans traded fourth- and seventh-round picks to Denver for wide receiver Devaughn Vele.

“It’s time to just rip the Band-Aid off and do it,” an AFC exec said. “They’ve held it off for so long, but they need to replenish with young players.”

New Orleans has tradeable assets, from wide receivers Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed to corner Alontae Taylor and linebacker Pete Werner. The sense is the Saints will at least listen to offers on certain players. Teams I’ve spoken to are under the impression that guard Cesar Ruiz might be available at the right price. Change feels inevitable for the Saints this offseason regardless, with defensive staples such as Demario Davis and Cameron Jordan both turning 37 next year and Alvin Kamara turning 31.

• The Patriots made two trades Tuesday and might not be done. Adding a pass rusher is a potential option for New England, which sent safety Kyle Dugger to Pittsburgh and defensive end Keion White to San Francisco. New England will gauge the market for availability. Right now, the plan is to keep veteran rusher Anfernee Jennings, who was a trade candidate in the preseason.

• While the Dolphins might not be moving a bunch of players at the deadline, they are open to trading pass rusher Matthew Judon. He’s the name I keep hearing when it comes to their rushers. Teams say Jaelan Phillips has the most value of Miami’s edge rushers, but there’s not much buzz that Miami is motivated to move him so far.

• The Lions have been looking for cornerback help at the deadline. They come up pretty often in my talks with teams about CBs, along with Philadelphia. Those two are potentially ones to watch there.

• Much is made of Jakobi Meyers’ trade prospects out of Las Vegas, but let’s not forget about San Francisco’s Jauan Jennings, who also asked for a trade in the offseason over the lack of a new deal. Despite nearly 1,000 yards in 2024, Jennings is off to a slower start this season, ranking fifth on the 49ers in receiving (212). Both sides could use a fresh start.

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• The Panthers are happy with Bryce Young‘s progress on the ankle injury, which should give him a chance to play Sunday against the Packers. He made strides last week despite limited-to-no practice work. Carolina noticed that he was pushing to at least make it interesting. And Andy Dalton‘s Week 8 dud gives all the more reason for Young to push even harder. The Panthers need his instinctive play, timing and mobility. Let’s see how the week progresses, but Young is determined to get back.

• The Broncos had originally hoped that reigning Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain II would miss one to two weeks on his pectoral strain, but after more testing Monday, it looks like he will miss more weeks than that. Denver has a three-game stretch facing Houston, Las Vegas and Kansas City, followed by a Week 12 bye. One person I spoke to said he believes Surtain can beat a timeline of four to six weeks and that a return “after the bye would be [ideal].” That gives Surtain four full weeks to heal up and not be rushed back.

• Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is trending positively coming off a minor groin injury. The feeling right now is that he should be in a good spot after the bye week.

• Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton got banged up Monday night, but an MRI revealed no structural issues to his knee. It could be a situation where he’s limited early in the practice week but gets to the field Sunday.

• The Steelers are calling safety DeShon Elliott (hyperextended knee) week-to-week, but people I’ve talked to are not optimistic that he can return this season. The team is placing him on injured reserve and just added Dugger at safety. Beyond the knee, Elliott was being examined for potential hamstring damage, as well.