The Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears have a common need ahead of the Nov. 4 NFL trade deadline on Tuesday, and that need comes at cornerback.
The Colts are thin at cornerback thanks to an injury to Charvarius Ward and the unexpected retirement of Xavien Howard. Injuries to Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon have left the cupboard bare in Chicago.
According to ESPN's Dan Graziano, both teams are indeed in the market for help on the defensive side of the ball, with Graziano specifically mentioning the Colts' interest in a cornerback addition.
"The Colts have the best record in the league through eight weeks (7-1). Their offense looks unstoppable, but they could use help on defense and have been asking about cornerbacks for several weeks," Graziano writes.
"The Bears might fit better as one of the 'in-betweeners' at the deadline, but they've shown enough to convince themselves they can compete for a playoff spot in Ben Johnson's first year as coach," Graziano added. "GM Ryan Poles tends to be active this time of year, and the Bears need help on defense as well."
FOX Sports Jay Glazer added on Sunday that the Bears are expected to be one of the most aggressive teams at the trade deadline, so that adds to the smoke that Graziano is supplying.
While Graziano did not say what positions the Bears are looking at exactly, we can make an educated guess that cornerback is one of them because of the aforementioned reasons.
With both teams seemingly in the market for a cornerback, that could lead to the two squads battling it out for the same players.
Among the most commonly mentioned names we've seen in cornerback rumors are the New Orleans Saints' Alontae Taylor, the Cincinnati Bengals Cam Taylor-Britt and the Seattle Seahawks' Riq Woolen.
Three potential options for Chicago and Indy are already off the board, a list that includes Roger McCreary (Los Angeles Rams), Jaire Alexander (Philadelphia Eagles) and Michael Carter (Eagles).
The Colts and Bears will have until 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday to get something done.
NFL trade rumors