INDReceived
PEric DickersonThree-team blockbuster · October 31, 1987
The three-team Eric Dickerson megadeal
Indianapolis acquired Eric Dickerson, Buffalo acquired the rights to Cornelius Bennett and the Rams received two players plus six premium picks.
See where this happened in the 1987 trade deadline →The original receipt
Every asset in the deal
The arrows show what each team received—not which direction a player left.
BUFReceived
Buffalo Bills
+Rights to Cornelius Bennett · No. 2
LARReceived
Los Angeles Rams
PGreg Bell
POwen Gill
#Three first-round picks
#Three second-round picks
Why it happened
The bet each side made
The Colts wanted an immediate superstar, Buffalo wanted its unsigned top pick and Los Angeles chose a vast rebuild after its relationship with Dickerson broke down.
Why history remembers it
Dickerson immediately drove Indianapolis to its first division title, Bennett became a pillar of Buffalo's four-Super Bowl run and the Rams received one of the largest packages ever assembled.
The family tree
Where the picks and rights went
Selections, swaps and later trades are traced separately so a downstream player is not mistaken for a direct one-for-one return.
- 01
Buffalo branch · selected
Cornelius Bennett
Buffalo secured the unsigned No. 2 pick, who became a five-time Pro Bowler and key member of four AFC champions.
- 02
Rams package · modified
Six picks plus Greg Bell and Owen Gill
Los Angeles spread the return across multiple drafts rather than one direct replacement for Dickerson.
What changed
The consequences
- Indianapolis won the AFC East in Dickerson's first partial season.
- Dickerson won the 1988 rushing title with the Colts.
- Bennett became an All-Pro centerpiece of Buffalo's emerging defense.
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