5 bold trade targets for Detroit Lions to address their wide receiver concern

2. Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals

Higgins is lined up to hit the free agent market next March. After he asked to be traded, he eventually relented and showed up to play on the franchise tag this year. The Bengals won't necessarily be inclined to trade him, now or closer to the trade deadline, but what if a team (the Lions?) made an offer that couldn't be refused....? Getting something for a player you may only get a compensatory pick for would have to be appealing.

Like Cooper and Adams, Higgins is a more of a potential trade deadline target than a before the season trade target for the Lions. The percentage odds they make a move for any of the three feel low, but if things go into the season the way it looks they'll be right now there should be no stone unturned to add an upgrade at wide receiver.

1. Courtland Sutton, Denver Broncos

If the Steelers can't get a deal for Aiyuk to the finish line, Sutton is easy to put among their possible fallback options and broadly he's an appealing potential trade target for a lot of teams. He had a contract squabble of his own with the Broncos this offseason, but a restructure got him to show up to work and he's under contract through 2025.

At 6-foot-4, 216 pounds, Sutton is a textbook definition of an "X" receiver the Lions don't have right now. He has topped 1,000 yards just once in his career, but he has topped 700 yards in five of his six seasons. The only exception is 2020, when he missed Week 1 and suffered a torn ACL in his Week 2 season debut.

Sutton can easily fit onto Detroit's balance sheet the next two seasons, with base salaries of $13 million (2024) and $13.5 million (2025).

Now, or closer to the trade deadline if circumstances dictate it better, Sutton makes all kinds of sense as someone the Lions should have on their trade radar if they end up in the market for a wide receiver.