NFL Trade Rumors
The in-season trade deadline may have passed by a few weeks ago, but trade rumors are a 24/7, 365 kind of thing around here. If we’ve learned anything about the NFL in the past few years, it’s that teams are more willing to be aggressive and creative than at any point in a long, long time.
With time to mull things over and start to look ahead to 2026, there were more players who popped as potential trade candidates — beyond the list of eight who came up as first glance earlier this month. Here’s a look at another batch of big names who might end up on the move:
The Raiders have been turning down trade interest in Crosby for two years now, including at the trade deadline in both 2024 and 2025. But eventually if the league keeps knocking, perhaps the door will crack open — especially because it’s looking more and more like Crosby will be playing for his fourth different head coach in four years in 2026. Crosby has seen just one winning season in seven years in Las Vegas, and the Raiders look poised for another rebuilding year in his eighth.
So far, Crosby has elected not to push for a trade, saying that he wants to be part of bringing the glory days back to the Raiders. The team has done its part to make sure Crosby’s loyalty is rewarded, too, either signing him to a new deal or modified contract in three of the past four seasons. The most recent was a three-year, $106.5 million extension this past offseason, before he’d even played a down for HC Pete Carroll and GM John Spytek.
Ordinarily deals like that would preclude any trade because of the dead money left behind from signing bonuses and restructures. However, that’s not the case for Crosby. Trading him in 2026 would leave just $5 million in dead money and save the Raiders the entirety of Crosby’s $30 million guaranteed salary. It’s similar to the contract for Jets CB Sauce Gardner which didn’t preclude New York from dealing him just a few months after inking him to a market-setting deal. Teams took note of how the Jets structured Gardner’s deal and you can bet they’ve made the same observation with Crosby and the Raiders.
There are two ways Crosby could end up on the block. The first is if the veteran reaches his limit with all the losing and starts applying pressure on the front office to send him out of town. His leverage isn’t great with four years left on his contract; however, teams tend to want players who are bought in and want to be there. While Crosby can’t force a trade, his voice does matter in the situation.
The Raiders could also decide on their own that dealing Crosby makes the most sense for where they are as an organization. Crosby is a foundational piece — one of the league’s elite pass...
