Mere hours after they acquired All-Pro safety Jessie Bates III, the Jacksonville Jaguars agreed to a trade with the New Orleans Saints to acquire defensive tackle Davon Godchaux. According to The Athletic, the Jaguars will send a conditional 2028 sixth-round pick to the Saints in exchange for the veteran lineman. That pick can turn into a 2027 sixth-rounder if those conditions are met. 

It should be noted that the Jaguars do not currently have a 2027 sixth-round pick, moving it in a trade with the Giants for offensive lineman Daniel Faalele in August. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, if the conditions are met to upgrade the pick, any 2027 sixth-round pick the Jaguars eventually acquire would go to New Orleans. Jacksonville is currently projected to receive two sixth-round compensatory draft picks, according to Spotrac. 

The Jaguars had been in the market for a defensive tackle in the wake of DaVon Hamilton's injury. The starting tackle suffered a torn quad in Week 8, which produced an opening in the middle of the defensive front. This move fills that gap, just like the Bates deal sealed a hole in the secondary, where Eric Murray was lost for the season due to an elbow issue.

Jacksonville's defense may already be Super Bowl-caliber, so the Godchaux acquisition should prevent any drop-off and keep the Jaguars in the hunt for the AFC's No. 1 seed. The unit ranks No. 5 against the run at just 89.3 yards allowed per game and is second-best in scoring at 15.1 points per game.

Godchaux heads to the fourth different team of his career since his arrival in 2017 as a fifth-round pick and will primarily make his impacts in run defense. He has not recorded a sack since 2022 but remains proficient against the rush and owns 15 tackles on the season with one of them coming in the form of a tackle for loss.

Godchaux started five of the Saints' first eight games and could slot directly into the Jaguars' lineup upon his arrival ahead of the Week 10 road game against the Tennessee Titans. Coach Liam Coen could either insert Godchaux into action or have him come off the bench in favor of Ruke Orhorhoro, who would have likely started if not for the trade. Arik Armstead remains the other starting interior defensive lineman.

Davon Godchaux trade grades

Jaguars: B+

The Jaguars are going for it. General manager James Gladstone is busy ahead of the trade deadline and successfully plugged two holes on the defense to keep Jacksonville squarely in the championship hunt. Godchaux is no game-changing addition but one who will do exactly what the Jaguars need, which is to plug gaps in run defense. What's more, they conditionally traded a draft pick they do not even own yet, which is some savvy negotiating on Gladstone's part. Since the Jaguars are projected to secure two compensatory sixth-rounders in 2027, that pick will likely vest and go to the Saints, but they will still have one left over.

Saints: B

The Saints own the fourth-worst run defense in the NFL, so Godchaux was clearly not working for them. The pick they got in return for him is decent compensation for a non-impact player. Plus, when they traded for Godchaux a year ago, they gave the New England Patriots a seventh-rounder, so they got that back and a little more by parting with him. It is only a slight upgrade in draft capital, but anything helps for a team that might not even make the playoffs in the league's worst division.