On paper, the Detroit Lions don't need much ahead of the Nov. 4 trade deadline. They have showcased their depth amid a slew of injuries on the defensive side of the ball, and their offense has been as good as ever. Their dominant Week 7 win over the 5-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers demonstrated that they have everything they need to make a deep run to the Super Bowl.
That doesn't mean, however, that they shouldn't pursue trades at the deadline. The mantra should always be, "if you aren't getting better, you are getting worse," since teams around the Lions will be aggressively trying to upgrade their roster. You can never have too much depth in the NFL, and that is especially true when it comes to the pass rush.
Detroit's pass-rushing rotation has been playing well above expectations, most notably on the back of emerging stud Al-Quadin Muhammad. Yet, it is not the deepest position on the roster, despite being one of the most important. The drop-off after Aidan Hutchinson and Muhammad leaves plenty to be desired, and GM Brad Holmes would be wise to, at least, make some calls about available edge defenders.
Jaelan Phillips Is the Perfect Lions' Trade Deadline Target
One obvious candidate is Miami Dolphins pass rusher Jaelan Phillips. Even though there may be bigger stars on the market, like Trey Hendrickson, the Lions don't need that splashy of a move. Rather than giving up significant draft capital to go for someone like the Bengals star, the Lions should add more of a rotation piece like Phillips.
Phillips is in the fifth and final year of his rookie contract with the Dolphins. Since Miami is nowhere near a relevant team and is likely entering a rebuild, they will try to move on from their valuable veterans with any trade value rather than letting them walk in free agency. It would make very little sense for Miami to hold onto Phillips until the end of the season. Now that the 26-year-old defender is healthy and productive, it would behoove the Dolphins to trade him.
For the Lions, Phillips' contract status and injury history could help lower the asking price. The former first-round pick isn't considered to be the same star prospect he was when he entered the league due to his injury concerns. His previous two seasons were cut short due to a pair of injuries, first a torn Achilles, followed by a knee ailment last season. Those injury issues obviously slowed Phillips down a little, but he has been available to play and has been a solid performer through the first seven weeks of the season.
Phillips has played over 70% of his team's defensive snaps this year, putting up two sacks, two tackles for loss, and four QB hits. He has received a 79.7 pass rush grade from Pro Football Focus so far, the second-best mark of his career. This would put him behind only Aidan Hutchinson among Lions' edge defenders this season.
How interested Detroit will be should depend on the price tag, but it's hard to find a better trade deadline fit around the league for the Lions than Jaelan Phillips.