Grading the trade: Colts send DeForest Buckner back to the San Francisco 49ers hours after moving Quenton Nelson
The Indianapolis Colts are sending DeForest Buckner back to the San Francisco 49ers right after moving Quenton Nelson. We graded the deal from the Colts’ side, and the draft math tells the real story.
Well, we said earlier that the Indianapolis Colts trading Quenton Nelson would kick off a fire sale, and that has been proven right. The Colts are now trading defensive tackle DeForest Buckner back to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a fourth-round pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.
As many Colts fans and NFL fans know, Buckner originally came to Indianapolis in a trade that cost the Colts a first-round pick. Now he heads back to the Bay Area for a Day 3 selection. On the surface, that looks like a steep drop in value. In reality, the context makes it a much better return than it appears.
So let’s get into the trade and grade it.
DeForest Buckner trade details
- Colts send: DT DeForest Buckner
- 49ers send: 2027 fourth-round pick
- Buckner’s age: 32
- Buckner’s sacks: Four
Why the 49ers made the DeForest Buckner trade
From the 49ers’ standpoint, this is one of the better teams in the NFL. San Francisco just lost its first game on Sunday, but as usual with that squad, the injuries have piled up. That is especially true on the defensive line.
Alfred Collins and TJ West are on injured reserve. Nick Bosa has also been dealing with a calf issue. When your defensive front is that banged up, you go out and find help.
The 49ers did exactly that. San Francisco now has Osa Odighizuwa and Buckner in the middle of that defensive line, which gives the defense a veteran presence inside as it tries to hold its spot near the top of the NFC.
Why the Colts’ decision to trade DeForest Buckner makes sense
For the Colts, this move is not unexpected. Buckner is 32 years old and still productive, with four sacks so far. He is far from a player who has fallen off.
But, just like with Nelson, Buckner is in a contract year and was going to hit free agency. If he walked, the best Indianapolis was probably going to get back was a fifth-round compensatory pick under the league’s formula.
So why not trade him? Why not see what you can get?
Frankly, I think this is about as good as Indianapolis could have asked for. The Colts turned a likely fifth-round compensatory pick into a fourth-round pick. That is a small swing, but it is a positive swing in draft capital, and the team didn’t have to wait on a formula to get it.
The A to Z Sports NFL Trade Simulator backs that up. It does lean toward the 49ers, but it is not nearly the fleecing that happened earlier in the Colts’ deal with the Seahawks. That is an important distinction. Indianapolis didn’t give Buckner away. It got fair value for a 32-year-old on an expiring contract.
Grading the trade for the Colts
I’m giving this trade a B-minus for the Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts recouped a fourth-round pick when the best-case scenario if Buckner walked was a fifth-rounder. Indianapolis comes out ahead on the draft capital, even if only slightly.
The model still leans toward San Francisco, and that makes sense. The 49ers are adding a productive interior lineman to a contending roster at the cost of a mid-round pick. That is a deal most contenders would make every time.
Still, for a player at his age, one the organization clearly wanted to do right by, and one who is still producing, getting some good draft capital back is a win for the Colts. Buckner gets to return to a contender in the city where his career started, and Indianapolis gets another asset as this fire sale continues to take shape.
The way I see it, the Colts made the most of a situation that was going to end with Buckner leaving one way or another. Now the question is who goes next.
