The Las Vegas Raiders had moved on from their best player, which was clear from their activity in free agency this week.
After agreeing to a trade that sent star defensive end Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for two first-round picks on Friday, the Raiders saved $30.7 million in cap space. They used that money on a slew of free agents when the market opened.
[NFL News: Ravens back out of blockbuster Maxx Crosby trade]
Las Vegas is preparing for a culture shift with the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft. Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is expected to be the first pick, giving the Raiders a franchise quarterback that they have been chasing since earlier this century.
Here are all the players the Raiders have reportedly agreed to contracts with this week in free agency:
- C Tyler Linderbaum: $81 million (all guaranteed) over three years
- EDGE Kwity Paye: $48 million ($31.24 million guaranteed) over three years
- LB Quay Walker: $40 million ($28 million guaranteed) over three years
- LB Nakobe Dean: $36.03 million ($23 million guaranteed) over three years
- WR Jalen Nailor: $35.03 million ($23 million guaranteed) over three years
- CB Eric Stokes: $30 million ($20 million guaranteed) over three years
On Tuesday, after committing to each of these signings, the Ravens “backed out” of the agreement that would have sent Crosby to Baltimore, reportedly due to medical reasons.
The Raiders will be further impacted by the fallout of the Ravens’ decision as the two first-round picks will return to Baltimore, and it puts them in a financial crunch because they guaranteed contracts to additional free agents with money from Crosby’s contract coming off the books.
It remains to be seen what is next for Las Vegas after this trade has reportedly fallen through. The Dallas Cowboys were among the teams potentially interested in Crosby, but that was before free agency. Dallas agreed to acquire edge rusher Rashan Gary from the Packers on Monday in a trade.
Given the financial commitments the Raiders made in free agency, it still seems likely that Crosby has played his last snap for the franchise.
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