NFL Rumors: Surprising Team Emerges As Frontrunner To Land A.J. Green At Trade Deadline
The A.J. Green sweepstakes is heating up with just a few days remaining until the NFL trade deadline, and an unlikely team may have emerged as the frontrunner to land the Cincinnati Bengals star.
Green has yet to play a down this season while rehabbing from injury, but the Bengals are still expected to move the All Pro wide receiver, as his contract is up and the team appears to be headed toward a rebuild. The market still appeared hot for Green, but the onetime frontrunner New England Patriots seem to have dropped out after trading for Mohamed Sanu in a move this week.
As The Sporting News noted, the new frontrunner may be a divisional rival of the Patriots, a team not known for making splashy moves. The Buffalo Bills have the AFC’s second-best record this year at 5-1, but have jumped out to the surprising start largely on the strength of one of the league’s best defenses. The Bills offense has struggled at times behind second-year quarterback Josh Allen and a receiving corps lacking any star players.
As The Sporting News noted, A.J. Green could be an important addition that might solidify the Bills’ place in the AFC wild card race.
“John Brown has been a boon for the offense so far as Josh Allen’s top outside go-to guy with his field-stretching skills, and Cole Beasley has been the ideal slot target,” the report noted. “The team was able to deal Zay Jones because it had faith in former CFL superstar Duke Williams, but there’s no doubt Green would be a great upgrade asset to have as a better all-around No. 1. He can still run to tailor to Allen’s arm strength and make the Bills harder to defend everywhere on the field.”
The Bills may not be willing to give up too much for Green and his expiring contract, as the team is still in the final stages of a rebuild and still has holes to fill through the upcoming NFL Draft.
There are other teams that could be interested in A.J. Green, including the Green Bay Packers and Oakland Raiders. Though the Bengals have said that they have no plans to trade him, there isn’t much credence given to this denial, which is a common refrain among teams right before actually trading players. It was also not clear yet exactly when Green will return from injury, which could impact his trade value.
