The Dallas Cowboys built a dynasty out of a fire sale. In 1989, they turned Herschel Walker into a mountain of picks and players, and the 1990s belonged to Dallas. Indianapolis Colts are now running their own version of that playbook, and the Pittsburgh Steelers and Kansas City Chiefs are racing to see who gets the other side of the table.
“The Chiefs and Steelers have both offered Day 3 draft compensation to the Colts for Josh Downs,” NFL reporter Evan Sidery wrote on X. “After requesting a trade this week, a Downs deal is expected to go down after this weekend. Indianapolis will likely fetch a 4th or 5th-round pick for Downs after originally seeking a 3rd.”
Josh Downs has been part of the Indianapolis Colts since getting picked by the franchise in the 2023 NFL Draft. In his entire pro career, the 25-year-old has racked up 2,447 receiving yards in 54 games.
However, on October 28, reports surfaced that Downs wants to leave the franchise that drafted him by requesting a trade. While it was just rumors initially, later the WR did not even deny the trade request.
“I’m open to whatever. Whatever comes my way, comes my way and we go from there,” Downs said in a media interaction, per ESPN’s Stephen Holder.
Following Josh Downs’ blunt admission, reports surfaced that the Colts are asking for a third-round draft pick in exchange for the 25-year-old slot receiver.
That is when the Chiefs and Steelers emerged as the frontrunners monitoring his availability, and have now reportedly offered draft picks selected during Rounds 4 through 7 of the upcoming NFL Draft. But do the Steelers or Chiefs need a playmaker like Josh Downs on their roster?
In the Steelers’ case, the intention might be to upgrade their receiver corps to assist veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers in his final NFL season. The current hierarchy in Pittsburgh’s WR room has D.K. Metcalf leading the team with 374 receiving yards.
But behind him, the production drops off significantly. Young receiver Germie Bernard has stepped up with 27 receptions and 254 yards, and Michael Pittman Jr. has been limited due to injuries.
Hence, adding Downs would give the Steelers and Rodgers a pure slot target to move the chains. However, one could also argue against the possible move by pointing out that the Steelers already have young slot options on the roster like Roman Wilson, meaning Downs might crowd their future development plan.
But the same cannot be said for the Chiefs. Kansas City’s wide receiver room has been completely decimated by injuries through the first seven weeks of the 2026 season.
Top receiver Rashee Rice has missed time with a hamstring issue, and then Tyquan Thornton is also out for the remainder of the season. Even though Xavier Worthy has shouldered the WR1 load but has had a highly inefficient campaign, managing just 24 catches for 217 yards through six games.
Hence, the Chiefs might be in dire need of a playmaker like Josh Downs as compared to the Steelers. Yet Pittsburgh has entered the race to make things interesting for the three franchises involved while the trade window deadline of November 10 approaches.
Amid that, why did Downs want to be available for franchises like the Steelers and Chiefs, leaving Colts behind?
While the exact reason remains to be revealed, the triggering factor might be the Indianapolis Colts’ inevitable fire sale. Following a 2–5 start and the firing of GM Chris Ballard, Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon made it clear that a total roster overhaul was underway.
“Making this change during the season was a deliberate decision. Waiting would only delay the important work that needs to begin now,” Irsay-Gordon said in a statement. “We will conduct a thorough search for our next general manager and take the time necessary to identify the right leader for the future of this organization.
“I also want to be clear: This decision does not change our goals for the season. We have a lot of football in front of us, and I expect us to compete, improve, and win football games.”
Under interim general manager Ed Dodds, the Indianapolis Colts seemingly entered an immediate fire-sale mode, where they first traded away guard Quenton Nelson to the Seattle Seahawks for a 2027 third-round pick and a 2028 fifth-round selection.
Then, they followed it by trading back DT DeForest Buckner to the San Francisco 49ers in exchange for a 2027 fourth-round pick. Seeing the team strip down for a multi-year rebuild, Downs may have chosen to seek an exit rather than ride out a losing cycle.
However, as of October 30, 2026, Downs remains on the Colts roster and is actively in the game plan for Week 8. With the NFL trade deadline looming on November 10, 2026, it will be interesting to see if the Steelers or the Chiefs can break a deal to acquire the 25-year-old WR.