Gang Green Nation
The rare win-win trade in the NFL
It has been a decade since the Jets traded for Brandon Marshall. Let’s look back on the deal that brought the star wide receiver from Chicago to New York.
In March 2015, the Jets sent a fifth round pick to the Bears in exchange for star wide receiver Brandon Marshall and a seventh round pick.
Marshall only lasted two seasons in New York. However, one of those was arguably the greatest wide receiver season in Jets history. In 2015, Marshall was dominant, posting 109 catches for 1,502 yards, and 14 touchdowns. He was probably the biggest driving force behind a career season by Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Jets went 10-6, which remains the only season in which the team has posted a winning record since 2011.
Marshall’s second act with the Jets was nowhere near as good. Like many veterans on the 2016 Jets, he saw a steep decline in production. His numbers fell to 59 catches for 788 yards, and 3 touchdowns. The rebuilding Jets released him after the season. Marshall only played 12 more games in the NFL across two seasons with the Giants and Seahawks.
Along with Marshall, the Jets received a seventh round pick. They traded that pick to the then-St. Louis Rams for running back Zac Stacy. Stacy’s Jets career consisted of only 31 carries for 89 yards. His 2015 season ended with a broken ankle against the Buffalo Bills in a Thursday Night Football game, and he was waived the following offseason after a failed physical.
The Bears used the fifth round pick, 142 overall, to select safety Adrian Amos from Penn State. Despite going in the fifth round, Amos was a day one starter in Chicago. He spent four seasons with the Bears before signing with the Packers in 2019 where he spent four more seasons as a starter. Ironically, he ended up on the Jets in 2023 but was ineffective. He requested and was granted his release in December, and he caught on with the Houston Texans.
It isn’t often you can say a trade is win-win in the NFL, but I think it’s fair to say both teams got something good from this deal. The Jets got a transcendent season from Marshall who helped propel the team to its only winning year of the last decade and a half. The Bears got a quality starter in Amos. Everybody came away happy from this one.
