Wilson to Broncos ranks among NFL’s worst deals
In the span of just a few days in March 2022, the Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns made aggressive trades to acquire what they hoped would be franchise-altering quarterbacks.
The results so far have been underwhelming.
The Broncos are cutting ties already with Russell Wilson after investing heavy draft capital and $124 million for two years of mostly disappointing play, making the trade with the Seattle Seahawks and subsequent contract extension one of the worst deals for a team in NFL history.
The Browns still have a shot to get more value out of their trade that sent six draft picks — including three first-round selections — to the Houston Texans for Deshaun Watson. Cleveland then gave Watson a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract only to get better play from his backups the past two seasons.
Here is a look at what are considered some of the worst trades in the NFL over the years.
WILSON TO DENVER
The Broncos believed they finally found the successor to Peyton Manning when they dealt two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-rounder and three players to Seattle for Wilson and a fourth-rounder.
The Broncos believed so strongly in Wilson that they gave him a five-year, $245 million extension before he played a game for them, even though he had two years left on his deal.
Denver is moving on from Wilson before that extension even started but with a high price attached. The Broncos will officially cut Wilson next week after the start of the new league year but will have to carry $85 million of dead money on the salary cap divided over the next two years as a reminder of the bad deal.
HERSCHEL WALKER TO MINNESOTA
The Dallas Cowboys launched what would become their 1990s dynasty when Jimmy Johnson realized the high value of draft picks and turned one running back into a huge haul of them.
Johnson dealt Walker — a Heisman Trophy winner for the Georgia Bulldogs and a pro star for the USFL’s New Jersey Generals before also shining for the Cowboys — to the Minnesota Vikings in 1989 for five role players plus picks in the first, second and sixth rounds of the 1990 draft. Johnson also negotiated terms into the deal that gave Dallas two additional firstround picks, two second-round picks and a third-round pick if they got rid of the players the Cowboys acquired.
The trades helped Dallas acquire draft picks that led to Emmitt Smith — who became the NFL’s all-time leading rusher — safety Darren Woodson, defensive tackle Russell Maryland and cornerback Kevin Smith, who all contributed to three Super Bowl titles.
Walker did little to get the Vikings over the hump, losing in his only playoff game in three seasons in Minnesota.
O.J. SIMPSON TO SAN FRANCISCO
The San Francisco 49ers of the late 1970s were a mess of a franchise, and trading for an aging running back with local appeal epitomized the problems of the years before Bill Walsh took over as head coach and made them Super Bowl champions three times in the 1980s.
San Francisco dealt five draft picks to the Buffalo Bills in 1978 for Simpson, a San Francisco native who was about to turn 31 and coming off knee surgery.
The former star rushed for 1,053 yards over two injuryfilled seasons for the 49ers, while the Bills got two secondround picks, one third-round pick, one fourth-rounder and a first-round pick in 1979 that turned out to be the No. 1 overall selection.
BRETT FAVRE TO GREEN BAY
The Atlanta Falcons invested a second-round pick in Favre in the 1991 draft, but the former Southern Miss quarterback struggled as a rookie, barely getting on the field for a franchise that finally seemed to be finding its way after a decade straight of losing records.
That led the Falcons to cut ties quickly, trading him after the season to the Green Bay Packers for a first-round pick. Favre’s arrival sparked a franchise revival under general manager Ron Wolf and coach Mike Holmgren as the Packers made the playoffs ub his second season, won the Super Bowl in his fifth season and earned 11 playoff berths in his 16 years as starter.
Favre was named NFL MVP three times and ended up as one of the game’s most prolific passers ever with 71,838 yards and 508 touchdowns.
The Falcons turned the pick into running back Tony Smith, who rushed for 329 yards in his career.
RICKY WILLIAMS TO NEW ORLEANS
New Orleans Saints coach Mike Ditka traded his entire 1999 draft class, plus first and third-rounders the following year, to move up seven spots and draft Williams fifth overall.
Williams lasted just three seasons with the Saints — he became an All-Pro in his first season with the Miami Dolphins — while the Washington Redskins got eight picks, including the No. 2 overall selection in 2000 used on LaVar Arrington.
The Saints went 3-13 in 1999, which ended Ditka’s tenure in New Orleans after he produced 6-10 marks each of his first two seasons there.
It was a far cry from his time leading the Chicago Bears, which included the 1985 team that went 15-1 in the regular season and used its dominant defense to steamroll its way to a Super Bowl title and a claim for best team ever.