Veteran NFL linebacker Kyle Van Noy gave fans insight into what happens when a player is traded. The Jacksonville Jaguars traded for former Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Jordan Davis on Tuesday.
Van Noy was asked on social media about the logistics of a trade from a player’s perspective in response to a video interview between Davis and a local sports network.
“Super interested in the logistics of NFL trades,” a person with the username @BRIAN7HOMASJR wrote in a Nov. 10 post on X.
“Do the Eagles get him on the next flight out and then relay that information to the Jaguars or do the Jaguars take control the second the trade is done? And what happens to the player’s properties and assets.”
The Van Noy replied and broke down his experience.
“I was traded back in 2016 to the patriots from the Lions. I got a call from the Lions GM at the time saying I was traded (he forgot to tell me until the end of the call where I was traded to),” Van Noy wrote.
“They set a flight up with you as fast as possible. They want you on the first flight out, essentially because they want/need you to get a physical done right away so the trade can go through or have a [Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Maxx] Crosby situation where they say ‘failed physical.’ This to me is what fans don’t know.”
On the subject of property, Van Noy said that it is the same as anyone else moving for work.
If a player bought a house in the city, he can sell it through a real estate agency; if he rents a home, he is on the hook for rent for the remainder of the term, even though he is not living there.
“The only thing when I was traded the team took care of was moving,” he wrote. “Teams give you a certain amount of money for movers and shipping your car. Lastly, team takes care of about 10 days or 2 weeks paid for a hotel room until you can find your own living. This could have changed but I’m sure it’s the same. That’s how trades work.”
Van Noy was drafted by the Lions out of Brigham Young University in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
In each of three seasons, he was relegated to a backup role behind the Lions’ more established linebackers such as Ashlee Palmer, DeAndre Levy, Tahir Whitehead, Jon Bostic and Josh Bynes.
Midway through his third year, he was shipped off to New England. The trade was fortuitous: he was part of the Patriots squad that won Super Bowl LI; he was named starter in 2017 and spent three years as a starter, winning Super Bowl LIII with the team in 2019.
He has since lived as a mercenary, spending a year with the Miami Dolphins, then returning to the Patriots in 2021, then a year with the Los Angeles Chargers, then three years with the Baltimore Ravens. He currently plays for the Minnesota Vikings.
Van Noy and the social media user who posed the question were replying to a video interview from sports network Action Sports Jax after Davis got off the plane at Jacksonville International Airport. In the interview, Davis expressed his emotions about joining the Jags defense.
“I’m just optimistic about the future,” he said. “I’m optimistic about me playing a role, and being who I am, and being a piece to add to this already good team. And however far that we go, I hope to be a part of it.”
