Seven things Solak thinks for NFL Week 9
ESPN's Solak lays out seven NFL Week 9 takes, from a looming running back trade market to Justin Herbert suitors, before Tuesday's deadline.
Why Seven things Solak thinks for NFL Week 9 is trending
Seven things Solak thinks for NFL Week 9 is ESPN's Tuesday column where NFL analyst Solak runs through seven uncertain storylines he is watching heading into the last week before the trade deadline. The column published November 3, 2026, lands at the midway point of the season, with the trade deadline set for the following Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET. Solak is clear these are not predictions locked in from the previous week's action, they are things that might be true and will likely take a few more games to sort out. He closes with a handful of extra trade inklings he says he cannot shake.
The seven things on his list: running back trades are coming before the deadline, the Cowboys should trade Pickens, Irving will lead the Bucs to the NFC South title, the Steelers are going to win the AFC North, three teams should try to trade for Herbert, Campanile will be a head coaching candidate, and the Bears could be dangerous with Simmons.
The running back trade market Solak is watching
The splashiest name in the 2026 NFL trade deadline rumor mill is Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, and Solak thinks he could have the kind of impact Saquon Barkley had for the Eagles in 2024 or Derrick Henry had for the Ravens that same year. Barkley posted a 35.4% rushing success rate and averaged 4.2 yards per carry over the two seasons before he joined Philadelphia, and Henry posted a 37.8% success rate with 4.3 yards per carry over that same stretch. Taylor has a 41.2% success rate and is averaging 4.7 yards per carry over his past two seasons, ahead of both of those marks.
The Colts know what they have. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the Colts' asking price is in the range of the package Carolina got for Christian McCaffrey in 2023, a second-round pick, a third-round pick and more. Solak lists the Vikings, Giants, Broncos and Bengals as fits, with the Packers and Seahawks as possible surprise bidders. If Indianapolis gets that return for Taylor, it raises the price for everyone else on the board, including the Titans' Tony Pollard and the Jets' Breece Hall.
The Jets are not entertaining it. Head coach Aaron Glenn shut the door on Hall trade speculation after New York fell to 2-6 with a loss to the Raiders this past week. "We're in the business of keeping good players," Glenn said.
The other six things on Solak's list
Beyond the running back market, Solak is thinking through six more storylines heading into Week 9. He has the Cowboys trading Pickens, the Bucs riding Irving to the NFC South title and the Steelers winning the AFC North. He also has three teams circling a possible Justin Herbert trade, Campanile drawing interest as a head coaching candidate and the Bears looking dangerous with Simmons in the fold.
What to watch before Tuesday's trade deadline
None of this is locked in. Solak frames these as things he thinks might be true, not full predictions, and he says it will take the next few games to find out which ones hold up. The real test comes fast. The trade deadline hits next Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, so the running back market, the Herbert speculation and everything else on the list gets resolved or reshuffled within the week.
Facts per ESPN. Opinion is the taproom's.