- Crosby traded to Ravens for two first round draft picks
- Vegas Raiders now looking at No. 1 and 14 picks in the upcoming NFL draft and the most salary cap space in the league
- Ravens’ Super Bowl odds adjusted after news broke
The Associated Press was reporting late last night that the Las Vegas Raiders had traded 5-time Pro Bowl defensive end Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens, a move that would immediately bolster a Ravens’ defence that had 30 quarterback sacks last season, 28th in the NFL.
5 Pro Bowls
Crosby had 10 sacks and 45 solo tackles in 15 games last season. He’s had double-digit QB sacks in four of his seven seasons in the league.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter was also reporting the news. The Ravens are led by an All-Pro quarterback, Lamar Jackson, and are in win-now mode. According to the media reports, the Raiders will receive two first-round picks from the Ravens, including the 14th overall pick in the NFL Draft April 23. The Raiders already own the No. 1 overall pick and are expected to use that to take quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
Raiders Load Up On Picks and Cap Space
Crosby trade chatter was one of the dominant NFL storylines during the NFL Scouting Combine last week in Indianapolis, including a news conference by Raiders general manager John Spytek where he said he fully expected Crosby to be in a Raiders uniform when the season started. He did also say he was willing to listen to trade offers.
However, there had been rumblings late last season that Crosby wasn’t happy being placed on injured reserve in December, shutting down his season, after suffering a knee. Crosby is 28 and reportedly didn’t want anything to do with a rebuild, which is what the 3-14 Raiders, under a new, young coach, Klint Kubiak, are looking at.
Full Rebuild for Raiders
That’s old for a defensive end in the NFL, and Crosby told “The Herd with Colin Cowherd” that was his eighth surgery in seven years.
“It’s something that I’ve gotten used to,” he told Cowherd. “It’s all about perspective, about how you approach what you want to accomplish. I’m willing to run that marathon.”
The trade can’t be announced until the NFL’s new year starts March 11 at 4 p.m. EST.
The Raiders also announced this week they are cutting ties with quarterback Geno Smith, who had signed a two-year, $75 million contract before the start of last season.
Betting Lines Adjusted
The Raiders are also looking at massive salary cap space, around $130 million according to overthecap.com, once the deal is announced, the most in the NFL. The Ravens are taking on a $35.5 million per year Crosby contract.
So minority Las Vegas Raiders owners Tom Brady, Spytek and Kubiak are under the gun now to knock the rebuild out of the park, with the draft picks and salary cap space.
Betting lines have been adjusted a little with the Crosby news: at theScore, the Ravens’ Super Bowl odds adjusted slightly, going from +1200 to +1000. The LA Rams are at +750, followed by the defending champion Seattle Seahawks at +800, then the Ravens, followed by the Buffalo Bills at +1100, and the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles at +1400.
Over at BetMGM, the Ravens have gone +1200 to +1000 post trade news to win the Super Bowl, +550 to +475 to win the AFC, and -110 to -160 to win the AFC North.
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