The Buffalo Bills made a couple of huge trades on Friday afternoon. In the first, they sent No. 1 wide receiver and former No. 4 overall pick in the 2014 draft Sammy Watkins to the Los Angeles Rams along with a 2018 sixth-round pick, and received cornerback E.J. Gaines and a 2018 second-round pick in return.
The team announced the trade via its official Twitter account.
We've acquired CB E.J. Gaines and a 2018 2nd round pick from the Rams for WR Sammy Watkins and a 2018 6th round pick. pic.twitter.com/jssDP1sVBw
— Buffalo Bills (@buffalobills) August 11, 2017
Watkins, 24, has been a good player for the Bills whenever he's been healthy on the field, but has struggled the last two years with injuries to his foot. The Bills declined to pick up his fifth-year option earlier this offseason, fueling speculation that he might be moved by the team's new management. Those rumors have now come to fruition.
Watkins immediately becomes the highest-upside wide receiver on the Rams, who also acquired former Bills wideout Robert Woods as a free agent earlier this offseason. He will likely slide right in as Jared Goff's No. 1 wideout as he attempts to rebound from his miserable rookie season.
The second trade saw the Bills send cornerback Ronald Darby to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for wide receiver Jordan Matthews and a 2018 third-round pick.
The Bills, meanwhile, added a whole bunch of draft value in these deals. They now own two first-round picks (theirs and the Chiefs', the result of a draft-day deal that saw the Chiefs move up for quarterback Patrick Mahomes), two second-round picks (theirs and the Rams'), and two third-round picks (theirs and the Eagles') in the 2018 draft.