The Colts should trade away T.Y. Hilton for a 2nd round pick according to PFF

As we start to get into the season with teams getting settled into what they are and injuries beginning to take their toll, we begin to see teams thinking about making some last minute trades, especially with the trade deadline looming on October 30^th.

Pro Football Focus has put together a list of trades they would like to see made by every team, and it includes the Colts in a couple different places.

The first one is pretty ridiculous given the showing we just saw from the Colts’ backup wide receivers, but PFF thinks that the Colts would be best served by trading away T.Y. Hilton, one of their most valuable offensive weapons, to the Washington Redskins for a 2^nd round pick. Here’s what the article had to say:

A year ago, the Colts seemed more than open to the possibility of dealing their star wide receiver, so long as the price was right. Hilton would give the Redskins a much-needed injection of talent at the receiver position and a presence on the outside that they’ve been missing since the departures of Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson. One of the best deep threats in the game, Hilton would almost certainly be an upgrade to a receiving corps that has combined for only 258 deep receiving yards so far this year, the worst mark among offenses.

So all this is fine and good. It is mostly true as well, Hilton would certainly offer an upgrade for the Redskins’ roster. He’d be an upgrade to any wide receiver room. The problem is if you’re going to propose a trade, you have to choose one that actually holds a benefit for the other party as well. That’s sort of the way trades work.

I mean, if you’re just going to propose something absurd, why not Andrew Luck to the Jaguars for a 1^st rounder? That is a totally viable option, right? It helps the Jaguars tremendously! I know, I’m being unreasonable to expect some critical thinking.

Elsewhere in the article they suggest that the Colts should send a 3^rd round pick to the Denver Broncos for Shaquil Barrett to help improve their defense on the edge. While I am not opposed to adding depth to the Colts’ defensive line, Barrett typically plays as an outside linebacker for the Broncos. In Matt Eberflus’ defense in particular, they are very concerned with scheme fit, and they aren’t trading away a 3^rd round pick for a guy who is not quite in line with what they are looking for.

The reasoning for the Colts making this move isn’t much better:

Denico Autry and Jabaal Sheard have played well for the Colts through Week 4, but the depth behind the two is lackluster, to say the least. Barrett, who has earned a respectable 71.6 overall grade through four weeks, is losing snaps to rookie Bradley Chubb. There’s no better time to shoot over a trade offer than now if the Colts want to upgrade along the edge of their defense.

I’m not going to tell you that the Jihad Ward and Kemoko Turay are better than Bradley Chubb. What I will tell you is that they both have more sacks than either he or Barrett. Denico Autry has been a good contributor on defense, but he missed two weeks with injury, which they don’t bother to mention. His absence didn’t prevent the Colts from continuing to march toward one of their most productive years in terms of sacks.

Speaking of sacks, they also don’t mention that Margus Hunt has 4 on the season and has played out of his mind. In fact, they don’t mention him at all. If you’re ever tempted to listen too closely to the grades put out by PFF or care too much about what they think, remember things like this. You can bend the stats to say a lot, but you’ve got to put the time in watching the film as well.

So what do you think? Are you ready to trade away T.Y. Hilton for a 2nd round pick? If so, you could probably work for PFF!