Trade 1
March 24, 1978
Buffalo Bills received 1979 first round pick (#1-Tom Cousineau).
NFL Trade History
Tom Cousineau NFL Trade History
TradeVerdicts connects Tom Cousineau to 2 exact public NFL transactions involving Buffalo Bills, San Francisco 49ers, and Cleveland Browns.
2 Recorded trades
3 Teams represented
1978–1982 Trade-history span
Player Transaction Context
Why Tom Cousineau Appears in the Trade Database
This profile follows Tom Cousineau across 2 recorded transactions from March 24, 1978 through April 24, 1982. Each connection below comes from the database relationship for that transaction rather than a name-only search.
Trade 2
April 24, 1982
Cleveland Browns received Tom Cousineau.
Across this profile, the recorded verdicts are Buffalo Bills Win. The timeline spans 1978–1982 and 3 represented teams.
How to Read This Profile
Trade History Overview
Every transaction below comes from an explicit player-to-trade relationship in the TradeVerdicts database. Name-only substring matching is not used.
The cards summarize the date, teams, assets, grades, and verdict. Open the full trade page for the complete analysis and sourcing context. Grading standards are explained in the TradeVerdicts methodology.
Chronological Timeline
2 Recorded Trades
Trade 1 of 2
Buffalo Bills and San Francisco 49ers
Buffalo traded O.J. Simpson to San Francisco for five draft choices spread across three drafts. The package included the 1979 No. 1 overall pick and the 1980 second-round selection used on Joe Cribbs. Not every pick became a Bills star, but the volume, premium position and later productive players gave Buffalo far more long-term value than Simpson provided the 49ers.
Assets Received
Buffalo Bills
- Pick 1978 second round pick (#38-Scott Hutchinson)
- Pick 1978 third round pick (#65-Dan Fulton / Danny Fulton)
- Pick 1979 first round pick (#1-Tom Cousineau)
- Pick 1979 fourth round pick (#83-Ken Johnson (c))
- Pick 1980 second round pick (#29-Joe Cribbs)
San Francisco 49ers
- Player O.J. Simpson
Team Grades
Trade 2 of 2
Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns
Buffalo turned Tom Cousineau's rights into a premium package headlined by Cleveland's 1983 first-round pick, which became No. 14 overall and Jim Kelly. Two additional future selections also went to Buffalo. Kelly's eventual Hall of Fame career and role in four consecutive AFC championship teams make this one of the clearest long-term wins in Bills trade history.
Assets Received
Buffalo Bills
- Pick 1983 first round pick (#14-Jim Kelly (Edward))
- Pick 1984 third round pick (#77-Rodney Bellinger)
- Pick 1985 fifth round pick (#119-Matt Darwin)
Cleveland Browns
- Player Tom Cousineau