The trade deadline is still two weeks away, but the deals are starting to roll.
The Colts are sending offensive guard Quenton Nelson, an eight-time Pro Bowler, to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a third-round pick in 2027 and a fifth-rounder in 2028.
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The trade has major implications for both teams and could signal more future activity from each club. It also takes one of the best blocking pieces off the market for now.
Who got the better end of the trade? Let’s dive in.
The firing of GM Chris Ballard was the first indicator that the Colts’ mentality had shifted for this season. At 2-2, the team was still very much in the thick of things. After three straight losses, the Colts can’t be viewed as contenders, especially as head coach Shane Steichen is having to answer questions about QB Daniel Jones’ job security as the team’s starter.
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So on the one hand, trading off assets feels like a reasonable approach, especially for an expiring-contract player who’s on the back half of his career such as Nelson. But on the other hand, Nelson was also a lifelong Colt who was a massive favorite of late owner Jim Irsay and still one of the team’s most dependable, rock-steady players and leaders.
Trading Nelson is one indication that no Colts player should feel untouchable with Ed Dodds replacing Ballard (for now) and Carlie Irsay-Gordon taking over the team’s operations from her father. She’s routinely been seen on broadcasts doing an audit (or a triage?) of the team’s game-day operations and clearly is taking her role very seriously.
The Colts have other players who are far less tethered to the organization who also soon could be moved. Lacking a first-round pick next year from the Sauce Gardner trade, the Colts are trying to recoup as much draft-pick value as possible before the spring. With Jones’ struggles, along with the Colts’ apparent lack of trust in Anthony Richardson, the team almost certainly will be going quarterback hunting in the offseason.
The return in value might feel low for a player of Nelson’s talent and reputation. But given his age (turning 31 in March), contract status and positional value, the price feels adequate. For comparison, the Chiefs traded a 32-year-old Joe Thuney – in the final year of an expensive deal – to the Bears for a 2026 fourth-round pick in March 2025. Apples to apples, the Colts got plenty more in return.
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The Colts were slated to have more than $60 million in salary-cap space prior to the Nelson deal, so this opens them up to be even bigger players in free agency. Trading off more assets and dealing with Jones’ contract in the offseason figures to open up even more space and flexibility.
But it also indicates the depth of the rebuild facing Irsay-Gordon and whoever lands the full-time GM job, be it Dodds or an outside candidate. You could argue that after the Nelson trade, Jonathan Taylor is the only elite-level offensive player remaining – and Taylor’s name has come up in trade rumors. (Just ask Taylor’s wife.) The defense also lacks blue-chip talent and might also lose a few pieces in the coming weeks.
Dealing Nelson is a move that has financial sense. It’s probably the right thing to do, considering the circumstances. But it’s also a painful loss that opens up some old wounds from the team’s recent missteps, and those don’t always heal quickly.
Grade: C+
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The Seahawks’ dominant victory over the Chiefs was a good reminder of just how tough Seattle can still be. The Nelson trade only figures to improve their chances of winning a second straight Super Bowl.
That’s, of course, far from a given. But with a dominant defense and an offense that has felt incomplete to this point, adding known quantities at needed positions feels like a savvy stroke by GM John Schneider.
Nelson also embodies the toughness that head coach Mike Macdonald wants coursing through his roster’s veins. There’s also an argument to be made that Nelson joining an established contender could light a fire under him. The Colts have gone 31-43-1 the past five seasons and haven’t made the postseason since 2020.
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Generally speaking, Nelson is probably a more efficient run blocker than pass protector, although it’s hard to say that he’s anything less than above average in the latter department. He hasn’t been credited with allowing a sack since Week 14 of last season, per PFF, and has allowed a mere six pressures all season.
Nelson has also continued being the road grader in the run game he had been for years.
