The Indianapolis Colts made an aggressive push to land star pass rusher Trey Hendrickson in free agency because his market value was not where he had hoped. Sadly, things changed once the Baltimore Ravens trade for Maxx Crosby fell apart, and they swooped in and stole the NFL’s 2024 sack leader.

Now the Colts have to go back to the drawing board to figure out who they will add to upgrade the biggest weakness on the team’s roster: their pass rush. In this two-part series, I will share my top three options the team should consider, both in free agency and via trade.

This article will focus on trade targets. If you also want to see top free agent options for the Colts to consider, check out my top three free agent edge rushers for the team to consider.

They are still endeavoring to add an impact edge rusher. Time will tell whether they can still pull that off.

— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) March 11, 2026

Cardinals Josh Sweat

This may shock some people, as there is no reason to believe Josh Sweat is available via trade at this time. I do think there’s some sound reasoning that could make a separation make sense for both Sweat and the Arizona Cardinals, though.

Sweat will turn 29 years old later this month, and the Cardinals’ moves don’t really suggest they plan on contending this season. The team has a major need at quarterback after moving on from Kyler Murray, and so far, they’ve added Gardner Minshew to the room with Jacoby Brissett. If I were a veteran player like Sweat who still has two years left on my contract and hoping to play my way to at least one more major payday, now would feel like the time to demand a trade.

Anthony Richardson could also be part of the trade, making it three former Colts in the Cardinals’ quarterback room, which would give Arizona a young quarterback to take a swing at developing under new head coach Mike LaFleur.

The Cardinals would take on a massive dead cap hit to move on from Sweat. It would be nearly $32 million this season, and $16.5 next year, and $11 million in 2028. But it would save the team $8 million in 2027 and $12.6 million in 2028. The Cardinals already showed they are willing to take on a massive dead cap to prepare for the future.

Sweat led the Cardinals with 12 sacks in 2025 in his first year with the team after spending the first seven years of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he recorded 43 sacks. The signing was a big win for the Cardinals, with Sweat also having a 20.2% win rate on true pass downs according to Pro Football Focus. There’s also a bit of a deadline for a potential Sweat trade with him having a $7.22 million option bonus due on March 20. If the Colts or anyone else pulled off a trade for Sweat, they’d be able to utilize that by converting it and lowering his cap hit for 2026 if needed.

Vikings Jonathan Greenard

One of the top players that is reportedly on the trade block is Minnesota Vikings edge rusher Jonathan Greenard. Greenard just finished his second season with the Vikings, but wasn’t able to match the production he had in year one, when he had 12 sacks. After playing only 12 games, he recorded just three sacks but led the team with a 16.6% pass-rush win rate, which was up from 2024, when he had a 15.2% win rate.

Many think he can be had for a day two pick, which would be a steep price for the Colts, who already don’t own a first. But the truth of the situation is the team is in desperate need of an upgrade to their pass rush, and Greenard is the most realistic option they could land who would be an immediate upgrade and would be a great fit in Lou Anarumo’s scheme.

On his current deal, Greenard would count as roughly $19 million towards the cap for an acquiring team, but the expectation is that he would need a new deal to help orchestrate the trade. He is back to being fully healthy, so there is reason to believe anyone who would trade for him would be getting a player closer to what he showed in 2024 than what was shown in 2025. The Colts have to at least consider this option, in my opinion.

Steelers Nick Herbig

The last trade option in this article is a little different from the first two. Sweat and Greenard are proven starting pass rushers that teams would view as a sure thing upgrade to their edge room. Nick Herbig from the Pittsburgh Steelers would be a team that bets on the flashes he’s already shown and hands him his first full-time starting role.

Herbig is coming off the best year of his career with 7.5 sacks and six starts due to both Alex Highsmith and T.J. Watt having to miss time last year with injuries. What’s even more impressive is that Herbig has a 22.4% win rate on true pass downs this past year, according to Pro Football Focus, which was the most on the Steelers for any player with at least 50 pass rush snaps, including both the team’s starters, Watt and Highsmith.

Herbig is entering the final year of his rookie contract, and if he has another great year, it would be really hard for the team to retain him in free agency, with them already paying Watt and Highsmith. So a trade this offseason could make sense for both sides, as it would give Herbig a larger role elsewhere and show he is ready to be a full-time starter in the NFL.

The Steelers also don’t have a quarterback right now while they wait on decisions by Aaron Rodgers and Kyler Murray, so maybe they’d have interest in Anthony Richardson being a part of the trade.

Nick Herbig with the big sack to force a punt! pic.twitter.com/EyOj8n2zxv

— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) January 5, 2026

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