The Las Vegas Raiders, long one of the NFL‘s “doormats”, might be done playing around. The Raiders put an end to trade rumors involving Maxx Crosby, their star pass rusher, by reaching agreement with the four-time Pro Bowler on a three-year, $106.5 million contract extension that makes him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the league.
New minority stakeholder Tom Brady has been regarded as a driving force behind the Raiders’ busy offseason — which has already seen the franchise make significant moves even before the start of free agency, let alone the 2025 NFL Draft. Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion as a player, has another mandate next: to find Las Vegas‘ solution at a position he knows all too well.
Raiders keeping tabs on Sam Darnold?
ESPN analyst and former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky has predicted that the Raiders will win the race to sign Sam Darnold once the former #3 overall pick hits free agency next Wednesday. The league-approved “tampering period” begins Monday, and Vegas could make inroads with Darnold then.
“(Darnold) had a big 2024 season, and the Raiders desperately need a signal-caller,” Orlovsky wrote.
After receiving the dreaded “draft bust” label, Darnold revived his career with the Minnesota Vikings in 2024. Working under NFL Coach of the Year Kevin O’Connell, Darnold finished fifth in the NFL with 4,319 passing yards; he tossed 35 touchdown passes and led the Vikings to the playoffs with a 14-3 record, though he received criticism for the Vikings’ consecutive season-ending losses to the Detroit Lions (with the NFC North division title on the line) and to the Los Angeles Rams (on the first weekend of the playoffs).
Darnold, 27, will hit free agency as the Vikings did not franchise tag him; while the franchise hopes to bring back Darnold in 2025, Minnesota is set to move forward with 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy behind center, and a team like Las Vegas will offer Darnold a chance to continue starting.
And this is how Brady’s vision for the Raiders unfolds. With new general manager John Spytek and Super Bowl-winning head coach Pete Carroll now installed, Las Vegas expects to be more competitive in 2025 after getting Crosby to sign on the dotted line, too. Brady’s pull as minority owner — not to mention Las Vegas’ strategic location and the Raiders’ “sleeping giant” status — might be what the franchise needs to return to the ranks of the NFL’s elite and challenge the Kansas City Chiefs for AFC West supremacy.
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