Colts 2026 Trade: Nelson to Seahawks, Buckner to 49ers

The Colts traded two of their most accomplished players in a single day on Tuesday, sending All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson to the Seahawks and three-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to the 49ers, per Adam Schefter and Ian Rapoport. Indianapolis is 2-5 and on pace to miss the playoffs for a sixth straight season, and both trades confirm that the front office is now building for 2027 rather than chasing this year.

Colts Trade Nelson to Seahawks, Buckner to 49ers: What Happened

Indianapolis sent Nelson to Seattle for a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick. Separately, the Colts sent Buckner to San Francisco for a 2027 fourth-round pick, a deal Indianapolis later confirmed after Schefter and Rapoport first reported it. The Colts already had no 2027 first-round pick on the board, since that selection went to the Jets in an earlier trade, which makes Tuesday's return in third-, fourth- and fifth-round capital the closest thing to a reset the front office can manage this late in the year.

Both moves came after Indianapolis fired general manager Chris Ballard, with Ed Dodds now running football operations and focused on accumulating draft capital for 2027 rather than patching a 2-5 roster.

The Players

Nelson was the sixth overall pick in 2018 out of Notre Dame and made the Pro Bowl in each of his first eight seasons, earning first-team All-Pro honors from 2018 through 2020 and second-team recognition three more times. He is on an expiring contract, and ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported that several teams had called about him before Tuesday's deal went through.

Buckner, 32, was the seventh overall pick by San Francisco in 2016 before Indianapolis traded a first-round pick to acquire him in 2020. He started all seven Colts games this season, finishing with 31 tackles and four sacks, and is a three-time Pro Bowler across stints with both franchises. He had publicly expressed frustration about playing for a 2-5 team before the trade sent him back to the organization that drafted him.

Both players were cornerstones of the Chris Ballard era in Indianapolis. Nelson was one of Ballard's signature draft picks in 2018, and Buckner was the centerpiece trade of that regime, acquired by sending a first-round pick to San Francisco in 2020. Moving both away in the same week the team moved on from Ballard is as clean a break from that era as a front office can make.

Why the Colts Are Selling

Indianapolis has not made the playoffs since 2020, and a 2-5 start has the team on pace to extend that drought to six seasons. With no 2027 first-round pick already on the board, trading two expiring, high-value veterans for a cluster of day-two and day-three picks is the clearest route back to draft capital the new front office has. Running back Jonathan Taylor, defensive lineman Grover Stewart and receiver Josh Downs have all been named as other veterans who could move before the Nov. 10 trade deadline.

Betting and DFS Impact

Losing Nelson removes the Colts' best run blocker from an offensive line that now has to find a new left guard on short notice, which is the kind of change that shows up in weekly rushing and sack-rate numbers before it shows up in a single highlight. Indianapolis sits at +1400 to win the AFC South per DraftKings, fetched Oct. 27-28 after both trades, already the second-longest price in the division; the full division board, including how Jacksonville benefits, is in our AFC South odds coverage.

On the other side, Seattle adds a proven interior lineman as a buyer with a roster worth upgrading, and San Francisco gets immediate depth on a defensive line that has been hit hard by injuries, with Nick Bosa limited to two games and Romello Height, Mykel Williams and Gracen Halton all banged up around him. Keion White had been the lone healthy, productive edge piece at 3.5 sacks before Buckner's arrival. For DFS purposes, neither trade is an instant lineup swing this week, since both players need time to install new systems, but both are worth filing as positive regression spots for Seattle's run game and San Francisco's run defense over the next few weeks.

What to Watch Next

The Nov. 10 trade deadline is the next checkpoint for whether Indianapolis moves Taylor, Stewart or Downs as well. Watch how quickly Seattle's line gels around Nelson and how fast Buckner integrates into a thin 49ers front seven. For the rest of the division picture now that Indianapolis is selling, see our AFC South odds breakdown, and the full NFL slate is on our daily picks page. StatSniper's Chad AI tracks roster moves like this inside the app, or you can ask Chad for the full breakdown.

FAQ

What did the Colts get for Quenton Nelson? A 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round pick from the Seahawks.

What did the Colts get for DeForest Buckner? A 2027 fourth-round pick from the 49ers.

Why are the Colts trading away their best players? Indianapolis is 2-5 and on pace to miss the playoffs for a sixth straight season. The front office, now led by Ed Dodds after Chris Ballard's firing, is prioritizing 2027 draft capital over this season.

Could the Colts trade anyone else before the deadline? Running back Jonathan Taylor, defensive lineman Grover Stewart and receiver Josh Downs have all been mentioned as possible trade candidates ahead of the Nov. 10 deadline.

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