Suggested Steelers trade with Patriots would confirm Omar Khan's genius status

NFL roster cutdowns always leave us with a few big surprises. In the days leading up to the deadline to be roster-compliant, the Pittsburgh Steelers traded Kevin Dotson to the Los Angeles Rams in exchange for a pair of pick swaps in the draft over the next two years. Omar Khan proceeded by shipping Kendrick Green to the Houston Texans for a future 6th-round pick just before the deadline.

While Khan was wheeling and dealing, other teams were making some bizarre roster decisions. Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots had everyone scratching their head after the clock ticked down on the roster cut deadline.

In a completely unexpected move, the Patriots cut both of their backup quarterbacks to finalize their 53-man roster. This included fan-favorite, Bailey Zappe. Despite going 2-0 as a starter in place of an injured Mac Jones and managing a passer rating of 100.9 last year, per Pro Football Reference, the New England purged Bailey from their roster.

This leaves the Patriots with Mac Jones as the only quarterback on the team. Obviously, Belichick can't go into the season like this, and Jones will need a competent backup. This is where the Pittsburgh Steelers come in.

Steelers could add even more future draft capital with Mason Rudolph trade

Recently, FanSided staff writer Christopher Kline suggested that the Steelers should trade QB Mason Rudolph to the Patriots to be Jones' backup this year. In exchange, Cline has Pittsburgh getting a 5th-round pick in 2024.

If Omar Khan could make this happen, he would confirm his status as a next-level genius. Since November 1st of last year, Khan has already turned Chase Claypool, Kevin Dotson, and Kendrick Green into Joey Porter Jr. and increased draft capital in both 2024 and 2025. This would be the icing on the cake.

While some would argue that Rudolph is worth holding onto for the sake of emergency, it will be Mitch Trubisky who steps into the game if Kenny Pickett goes down -- not Rudolph. After shipping Rudolph to the Pats, the Steelers could turn around and stick it to New England by poaching Zappe off their practice squad.

Zappe obviously wouldn't be the only option to replace Rudolph as the QB3. Will Grier is another player who had an excellent preseason with the Cowboys, but there was no room for him on the roster after trading for Trey Lance. Still, in free agency, plenty of competent signal-callers remain.

If Khan could make this happen, it would prove to be yet another trade win for the Pittsburgh Steelers. As of now, this is nothing more than a proposed trade scenario, but it's one that could make sense for both teams and put another draft pick in Omar Khan's pocket for next season.