NFL trade deadline winners and losers: Vikings bring back Kirk Cousins as contenders reshape rosters

On 11 November 2026 at the NFL trade deadline, several playoff-aspirant teams completed major deals, headlined by the Minnesota Vikings reacquiring quarterback Kirk Cousins from the Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for a 2027 third-round pick. The flurry of moves included blockbuster defensive additions for Chicago and Jacksonville, veteran offensive lineman movement to Seattle, and targeted secondary upgrades for Buffalo.

Minnesota made the Cousins trade after a loss to the Buffalo Bills in which Carson Wentz completed eight of 25 passes for 81 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions and a passer rating of 8.9. The Vikings entered the deadline with the NFL’s top scoring defense (116 points allowed) but a struggling offense ranked 27th in points scored (146), and their other quarterbacks this season — JJ McCarthy, Kyler Murray and Wentz — have failed to provide consistent production. Cousins, who led Minnesota from 2018-2023 and is in his 15th NFL season at age 38, has this year completed 202 of 315 passes for 2,340 yards, 20 touchdowns, eight interceptions and a passer rating of 97.1; the rest of the Vikings QBs have combined for 137 of 225 for 1,286 yards, eight touchdowns, five interceptions and a passer rating of 82.0.

Las Vegas’s plan entering the season was laid out: the Raiders signed Cousins to a one-year, $11.3m fully guaranteed contract and used the 2026 draft’s first overall pick on Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza, intending for Cousins to start until Mendoza was ready. The Raiders recoup a 2027 third-round pick in the Minnesota deal.

Chicago handed the Tennessee Titans their own seismic move, trading 2027 and 2028 first-round picks plus a 2027 fourth-rounder for defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons and a 2028 fifth-round pick. Per SumerSports, the Bears’ yards allowed per play fell from 6.39 to 4.45 with Simmons on the field, and his presence has lifted teammates including Montez Sweat and Devin Bush. In Chicago’s 27-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the defense dominated while rookie quarterback Caleb Williams threw four interceptions; Chicago also won in a game in which it committed five or more turnovers for the first time since twice doing so in 2006.

The Seattle Seahawks traded a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick to the Indianapolis Colts for eight-time Pro Bowler Quenton Nelson, sending the club’s premier guard to Seattle as they sought to revive their rushing attack. Nelson, 30, required immediate line adjustments: Seattle moved 2025 first-round pick Grey Zabel from left to right tackle early, and Pro Football Focus showed the Bears aligned Simmons 88% to 12% on Zabel’s side in their 34-17 win at Lumen Field. Seahawks starter Sam Darnold suffered a quadriceps injury and a cracked rib; backup Drew Lock started Seattle’s subsequent win over the Arizona Cardinals while Nelson recovers from a knee procedure and is listed week-to-week. Nelson is in the final year of the four-year, $80m contract extension he signed in 2022.

Jacksonville pursued multiple defensive upgrades while sitting 6-2 and leading the NFL in point differential (+108) and turnover differential (+9). The Jaguars traded a 2027 second-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick to the Atlanta Falcons for safety Jessie Bates III, acquired interior defensive lineman Davon Godchaux for a sixth-round pick amid the season-ending loss of DaVon Hamilton, and sent a 2027 first-round pick plus a 2029 second-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for defensive lineman Jordan Davis. Jacksonville fell into first place in DVOA for the first time in franchise history after a 33-10 win over the Baltimore Ravens; the franchise dates to 1996. Davis, the 13th overall pick in 2022 from Georgia, has become an above-average run defender but has never recorded more than five sacks and 28 pressures in a season, totals he reached in 2025 before signing a three-year, $78m extension with the Eagles.

San Francisco added DeForest Buckner for a fourth-round pick and Keenan Allen for a sixth-round pick from the Indianapolis Colts, moves the 49ers view as incremental depth for a defense and an offense that the article notes have been hampered by injuries this season. Kansas City acquired receiver Josh Downs and a seventh-round pick for fourth- and fifth-round picks; Downs has 33 catches on 57 targets for 354 yards and a touchdown this season, while the Chiefs’ leading non-Travis Kelce receiver, Xavier Worthy, has 278 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Buffalo traded a second-round pick to the Tennessee Titans for safety Amani Hooker and a fifth-round pick to address a safety group that had been inconsistent this season between CJ Gardner-Johnson (who was released after poor play and a spitting suspension), Cole Bishop and Damar Hamlin. Hooker enters tied with Green Bay’s Xavier McKinney for the NFL lead in interceptions with five this season.

With the deadline concluded, teams will integrate their new players into remaining regular-season play: the Jaguars sit at 6-2 leading the league in point and turnover differential, the Seahawks are 5-4 amid uncertainty over Nelson’s availability, and franchises that added veterans will evaluate short-term impact as the season progresses.