The NFL trade deadline is now just a little over a week away. Going in, the Carolina Panthers have needs on both sides of the line of scrimmage, and particularly at the boundary cornerback spots—where they're down to their third and fifth options, respectively.
But it's a good thing the Panthers don't really need a running back—because the top one on the market is going to cost a pretty penny. According to Adam Schefter at ESPN, the Indianapolis Colts are looking for a Christian McCaffrey type of return in any trade for superstar rusher Jonathan Taylor.
In other words, they want a deal at least equal to the second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-round picks the San Francisco 49ers sent the Panthers for McCaffrey in 2022.
In 2022, the 49ers traded second-,
third-, fourth- and fifth-round picks to the Carolina Panthers for running back Christian McCaffrey. The Colts would seek a similar compensation package from teams looking to acquire Jonathan Taylor. https://t.co/6U6bHcoA7S
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 1, 2026
Besides providing some immediate salary cap relief, that move didn't work out too well for Carolina. Despite getting just about an entire draft class of picks, they didn't turn it into much.
Here's how that return ultimately materialized . . .
- 2023 second-round pick (61st overall): Traded to Chicago Bears as part of deal for 2023's first overall pick
- 2023 third-round pick (93rd overall): Traded to Pittsburgh Steelers as part of deal for 2023's 80th overall pick
- 2023 fourth-round pick (132nd overall): Traded to Pittsburgh Steelers as part of deal for 2023's 80th overall pick
- 2024 fifth-round pick (166th overall): Traded to New York Giants as part of deal for 2024's 39th and 141st overall picks
The second-rounder was used to catapult to the top of the 2023 draft for quarterback Bryce Young, the third and fourths helped land them outside linebacker DJ Johnson and the fifth was used, in part, to grab running back Jonathon Brooks in 2024.
If Young gets back on track after this little two-game slide, then that second-round pick was certainly useful. But the same cannot be said about the rest of the package—as Brooks has appeared in only five regular-season games since being drafted and Johnson is currently out of the league.
So, the Colts may end up getting quite a few picks in return for Taylor. What they do with—as evidenced by the Panthers—is an entirely different story, though.
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This article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Colts using infamous Panthers trade as framework for potential Jonathan Taylor deal
