Cowboys Sent Raiders Multiple Offers For Maxx Crosby; Latest On Ravens’ Process
Maxx Crosby is back with the Raiders, thanks to the Ravens‘ controversial nixing of a blockbuster trade. While trade talks could reignite ahead of the draft or perhaps as far down the road as training camp, the All-Pro edge rusher has reaffirmed his commitment to the Raiders.
A number of teams were in the mix for the star defender, but the Cowboys were viewed as the runners-up to the Ravens. Baltimore’s decision to give up two first-round picks won the March trade derby — before it all unraveled days later — but Dallas made an aggressive pursuit that involved a few offers.
The Cowboys initially proposed a trade of Osa Odighizuwa and the second of their two first-round picks (No. 20) for Crosby, ESPN.com’s Ryan McFadden reports, before sweetening the deal. After Las Vegas rejected the proposals with Odighizuwa, McFadden indicates Dallas submitted a deal including its top first-round choice (No. 12) to go with a third-round pick. After the Raiders rejected that, the Cowboys submitted what is believed to be their final proposal: No. 12 and a second-round pick.
Because of the Quinnen Williams deadline deal, the Cowboys do not own a second-rounder this year. The Raiders seemingly rejected an offer of No. 12 and the Cowboys’ 2027 second-rounder. Understandably, the Ravens’ offer of two firsts made the Raiders’ decision easy.
Now that the Ravens backed out of the deal due to long-term concerns about Crosby’s knee, the Cowboys and other teams are free to make another run at a trade. But the Raiders are unlikely to fetch two first-rounders for a player the Ravens — external skepticism about the team’s motivations notwithstanding — failed on a physical.
Dallas considered moving back into the Crosby running after the failed trade, per McFadden, but the team has not made another run here. Though, Jerry Jones said that door is not closed. The Cowboys have been quite active with high-profile D-line transactions over the past year. They have gone from re-signing Odighizuwa (four years, $80MM) to trading him to the 49ers for a third-round pick. That trade came about because Dallas acquired Kenny Clark in the Micah Parsons deal and Williams months later. The Cowboys later reunited Clark with former Packers D-line mate Rashan Gary, who accepted a pay cut to facilitate the trade.
Gary and Crosby are in different leagues as pass rushers, with the former coming up as a Green Bay cap-casualty candidate before the Pack found a trade taker. The Cowboys also re-signed Sam Williams and used a 2025 second-round pick on Donovan Ezeiruaku.
The team would obviously upgrade with Crosby opposite Gary in Christian Parker‘s new 3-4 defense, but as our Ely Allen pointed out recently, Dallas bringing in a player Baltimore failed on a physical (as Cowboys team doctor Dan Cooper consulted with the Ravens, though he did not make the final call) stands to be a longer-odds proposition compared now that this information is out. A previous report also indicated the Cowboys are standing down.
Some in the Raiders’ building doubt the Ravens nixed the trade purely based on concerns about the eighth-year veteran’s knee, per McFadden, who adds Baltimore had a “full understanding” of Crosby’s meniscus injury and rehab timeline before making the trade. Casting further doubt on the Ravens’ much-debated plan to acquire Crosby and sign Trey Hendrickson, one GM (to put it mildly) does not believe Baltimore intended to pair both edge rushers, Jason La Canfora notes on Casino.org.
Other execs are skeptical regarding the Ravens’ decision, per McFadden, who indicates it is believed the Raiders were transparent about Crosby’s rehab timeline — one long expected to last months, not weeks. But long-term concerns about a “degenerative” knee issue, rather than Crosby’s 2026 status, have been mentioned as the reason for the trade being called off. The Ravens were hesitant to meet Hendrickson’s $40MM-per-year asking price, McFadden notes, joining others in that regard (teams viewed the ex-Bengal as more likely to land $25-$27MM-per-year range, which is roughly where this wrapped). Hendrickson’s price coming down allowed the Ravens to pivot from Crosby quickly, inviting considerable scrutiny from around the league.
An irked Crosby was back at the Raiders’ facility early the next morning, and Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer adds the longtime Las Vegas pillar appreciated both John Spytek and Klint Kubiak reaching out shortly after the failed trade. Joining our Adam La Rose in this assessment, Breer does not anticipate the Raiders trading Crosby before Week 1. The veteran reporter views the trade deadline as the more logical reevaluation point. By that point, Crosby (29 in August) will have had a chance to display full health after an expected recovery from a Jan. 7 meniscus surgery.
Additionally, some in the agent community viewed the Ravens’ conservative reputation — having never traded a first-round pick for a veteran — as a reason the Raiders should have been leery here. The opportunity for the Ravens to add Hendrickson without giving up two firsts has called many to cite this as an example of an organization getting cold feet, and the physical not taking place until Tuesday put both teams in a bind due to free agency’s peak hours unfolding before that point.
The most notable Raven or Raider transaction to occur in that time brought Tyler Linderbaum to Las Vegas on a three-year, $81MM deal (a pact essentially coming fully guaranteed) that set a record for all interior O-line accords. The Raiders may not have signed both Malcolm Koonce (one year, $11MM) and Kwity Paye (three years, $48MM) had they known Crosby would end up staying, McFadden adds. Though, the team has run into endless trouble finding complementary Crosby rushers. Perhaps this snafu could prove beneficial on that front.
While Crosby going from requesting a trade to being recommitted to the Raiders represents a fascinating development — especially with Vegas not initially seeking to trade him — more departure rumors will undoubtedly return at some point. But the Raiders may now need to see their best player rebuild his trade value. That could certainly lead to a Crosby-Paye-Koonce-Tyree Wilson EDGE setup in place to open the season.
QB Ty Simpson To Work Out For Jets
Alabama’s Ty Simpson, considered the second-best quarterback prospect in this year’s class, is firmly on the Jets’ radar. Simpson will hold a private workout for the Jets on Friday, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
New York added a potential new starter when it reunited with Geno Smith earlier this month, but the 35-year-old is considered a stopgap option for the rebuilding club. The need for a long-term answer remains obvious for the Jets, who have seen recent first-round QB selections Sam Darnold (third, 2018) and Zach Wilson (second, 2021) flame out in their uniform.
Owners of the second overall pick this year, the Jets once looked like frontrunners to draft either Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza or Oregon’s Dante Moore this April. Any chance of that went up in smoke when Moore decided to stay in school in mid-January, leaving Mendoza as the clear choice for the Raiders at No. 1 overall.
Simpson took over as the second passer in this class when Moore returned to Oregon, but it would be a surprise to see the Jets grab him with their first pick and pass on one of the impact defenders available. The Jets also hold the 16th pick, however, and could consider Simpson with that selection.
Simpson was not thought of as a shoo-in first-rounder until recently. But thanks to a strong showing at the Combine, he could go in the top half of Round 1. A team that uses a first-rounder on Simpson would be taking a major gamble, though, considering the recent history of similarly inexperienced college QBs. Anthony Richardson, Mitchell Trubisky and Dwayne Haskins all went in the first round in the past decade despite making 15 or fewer starts in college. None of them lived up to the billing, though it may be too soon to completely write off the 23-year-old Richardson.
Simpson, also 23, was an understudy to Bryce Young and then Jalen Milroe in his first three seasons at Alabama. Finally taking the reins last year, the 6-foot-2, 208-pound Simpson completed 64.5% of passes, threw for 3,567 yards, and tossed 28 touchdowns against five interceptions in 15 games. Simpson earned a second-team All-SEC nod and helped guide his team to a College Football Playoff berth. Alabama’s season ended when Mendoza’s Hoosiers crushed the Crimson Tide, 38-3, in the CFP quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl. The two QBs could face off again soon in the NFL, perhaps in a Raiders-Jets matchup.
Fernando Mendoza To Visit Raiders
With the quarterback-needy Raiders owning the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, there is an overwhelming expectation they will select Indiana signal-caller Fernando Mendoza. Last year’s Heisman Trophy winner will visit the Raiders in two weeks, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Mendoza, who will take part in Indiana’s pro day on April 1, was a resounding success in his lone season with the Hoosiers. After transferring from California, where he threw 30 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 19 starts from 2023-24, Mendoza found a new gear in helping transform Indiana into a national championship-winning powerhouse. While guiding the Hoosiers to a stunning 16-0 record, Mendoza completed 72% of passes, threw for 3,535 yards on 9.3 per attempt and tossed 41 touchdowns against six picks.
Comparing the 6-foot-5, 236-pounder to former Falcons MVP-winning quarterback Matt Ryan, Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com ranks Mendoza as the top prospect in this year’s class at any position. With Oregon’s Dante Moore and Texas’ Arch Manning opting to stay in school for at least another year, Mendoza is widely considered the only QB in the running to go first overall. The Raiders have not taken a first-round QB since they chose all-time bust JaMarcus Russell at No. 1 in 2007, but they are poised to end that 18-year streak next month.
Assuming Mendoza heads to Las Vegas in a few weeks, he will become the central figure in a significant rebuild. The Raiders flamed out en route to a league-worst 3-14 record under the head coach-quarterback duo of Pete Carroll and Geno Smith in 2025. Team brass (owner Mark Davis, part-owner Tom Brady and general manager John Spytek) brought in Carroll and Smith in an effort to compete last season, but those two are already out of the organization.
Rookie head coach Klint Kubiak, the offensive coordinator of the Super Bowl-winning Seahawks last season, will play a major role in developing Mendoza. After hiring Kubiak, the Raiders beefed up their roster in advance of Mendoza’s arrival. As part of a free agent spending spree, they added center Tyler Linderbaum, linebackers Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker, defensive end Kwity Paye and receiver Jalen Nailor, among others.
While the Raiders nearly traded their best player, defensive end Maxx Crosby, the Ravens backed out of a deal that would have sent two first-rounders to Las Vegas. Although trade rumors centering on Crosby persist, retaining him would boost the team’s odds of improving in Year 1 of the Mendoza era.
Had the Crosby blockbuster with Baltimore gone through, the Raiders would have acquired the 14th pick in this year’s draft. They are instead set to make their second choice at No. 36. Alabama receiver Germie Bernard could be a second-round target for the Raiders. They hosted Bernard last week, according to Vincent Bonsignore of the California Post. The Las Vegas native would “love” to play for his hometown team, per Bonsignore.
Jeremiah’s 50th-ranked prospect, the 6-1, 206-pound Bernard hauled in 64 catches for 862 yards and seven touchdowns in his senior season. Bernard spent last season working with Ty Simpson, the second-rated QB prospect in this year’s class. He could soon team with Mendoza in Las Vegas, which is still light on pass-catching complements to tight end Brock Bowers.
Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes Throwing, Season Opener Still In Question
The NFL news cycle began to stir a bit this afternoon after Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes posted a short clip of himself dropping back to throw a pass just 100 days removed from serious knee surgery. The All-Pro passer showed encouraging signs of progress in his movement, but he still has a long way to go before he can return to the field healthy. 
Mahomes’ season-ending injury came in the 15th week of the NFL season, when the 30-year-old rolled out right for a pass then tripped over an opposing defensive lineman after releasing his throw. It was quickly announced that he had torn his ACL. As reports the next day delivered news of his surgery, further reports showed that he had also torn his LCL in the prior day’s game.
The late-season timing of the injury, combined with the additional damage to the LCL, painted a grim timeline of recovery that would make a 2026 season opening debut tough to swing. The serious injury was unfamiliar territory for the usual ironman quarterback. Never missing more than a pair of games due to injury in the NFL, Mahomes now stared down long recovery that would require months of rehabilitation.
According to ESPN’s Nate Taylor, Mahomes has taken to recovery like a fish to water. Per his head coach, Andy Reid, “He’s around here all the time. He spends a ton of time here, seven hours a day. He’s in there cranking away and making progress every day. It’s great to see.
“(Athletic Trainer) Julie (Frymyer) grinds on him and makes sure he stays on task and challenges him. He keeps showing up. That’s about half the battle on these things when you have these injuries. It’s not going to be a pleasant thing. Every day, you’ve got to fight through it, and you’ve got to attack the challenge of the workout and rehab. He’s doing a great job with that.”
Being the 100th day since coming out of surgery, today stood as a checkpoint for Mahomes. Based on his current capabilities, Kansas City is “optimistic that Mahomes is on track to participate — even in a limited capacity — in the team’s voluntary offseason practices” expected to start in May. That is certainly a benchmark to watch, but Mahomes has his eyes on a date further in the future.
When asked if he’d be ready for Week 1 of the 2026 season, Mahomes told reporters, “The doctors said I could, but I can’t predict what happens throughout the process. That’s the goal, to play Week 1 and have no restrictions. You want to be out there healthy and give us the best chance to win. I hope to do some things in OTAs and training camp and be able to do things there.”
With the diligence he’s shown so far in rehabbing, Mahomes stands every chance of making it back to the field in time. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, though, if he isn’t ready to take the field in September, Mahomes will simply have to sit and keep working his way back. Rapoport characterizes Kansas City’s medical staff as very good and conservative. We’re a long way from that point, though, so Mahomes has time to make things happen.
Bears To Add Another C?
The Bears made a concerted effort to address their center position this offseason, and according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune, they’re not done yet. 
After seeing their starting center, Drew Dalman, retire at the age of 27, the Bears started their offseason aggressive, getting in the race to sign the top free agent center, Tyler Linderbaum, out of Baltimore. When the price of that transaction grew beyond their sights, Chicago quickly moved on to Plan B: trading for Patriots center Garrett Bradbury.
Bradbury will fill the role well, but he only has one year remaining on his current contract. Because of this, Biggs believes the Bears could be looking to add once more to the center spot, this time through the 2026 NFL Draft. Two weeks ago, Biggs reported that the Bears had sent a large contingent to the pro day at Kansas State. Per Biggs, the team’s focus was on the Wildcats’ center, Sam Hecht.
Hecht is widely viewed as one of the top center prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft, and with the rate that centers usually go in the draft, there’s a chance Chicago could end up getting Hecht with any of their four draft picks in the first two days, anywhere from No. 25 overall to No. 89. With Bradbury already locked in for the year, this would allow Hecht to sit and develop for a year or get some practice at the other interior positions to develop some versatility until taking over the center job in 2027.
The Bears saw their young quarterback, Caleb Williams, take a big step forward in Year 2 and are now looking to build around him, starting with the man snapping him the ball. Bradbury works for the day, but Chicago may have tomorrow in sight as it continues to evaluate the draft prospects at his position.
Extensions Have Limited Lions’ Free Agent Spending
The Lions and general manager Brad Holmes have done an outstanding job of drafting in recent years, and as a result, they’ve had to be a bit more frugal in free agency this offseason. On a recent appearance on the Lions Collective podcast, Holmes explained how extensions to key contributors over the past few years, and expected extensions over the next couple of years, have put Detroit in a position in which it must think carefully about its free agent spending. 
In 2024 and 2025 alone, the Lions have already dedicated big money extensions to quarterback Jared Goff (four-year, $212MM), defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (four-year, $180MM), wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (four-year, $120.01MM), right tackle Penei Sewell (four-year, $112MM), defensive tackle Alim McNeill (four-year, $97MM), safety Kerby Joseph (four-year, $86MM), and wide receiver Jameson Williams (three-year, $80MM), among others. Holmes anticipates that more long-term agreements will be expected in the near future for young key contributors like running back Jahmyr Gibbs, linebacker Jack Campbell, tight end Sam LaPorta, and safety Brian Branch.
As a result, their moves in free agency have been extremely limited. In 2025 and 2026, Detroit has only signed two players to multi-year contracts with significant annual value, cornerback D.J. Reed (three-year, $48MM) in 2025 and center Cade Mays (three-year, $25MM) in 2026. In addition, they were forced to watch cornerback Carlton Davis and offensive guard Kevin Zeitler walk in 2025 and linebacker Alex Anzalone, cornerback Amik Robertson, defensive tackle Roy Lopez, defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad, and wide receiver Kalif Raymond depart this offseason.
“When we’re looking at the constraints we had financially entering in, we’re not going to be able to do a lot of multi-year deals,” Holmes explained. “For what we’re trying to do with these extensions that we have upcoming, the implications that it would have on our cap would be — I don’t want to call it crippling, but it would have been hard to overcome. We were kind of limited in how many multi-year deals that we actually could get.”
This has forced the team to fill out the rest of the roster with one-year deals for cheap veterans with high upside. Holmes’ draft success is forcing the Lions to find unique ways to fill their top-heavy roster of stars with the right players at the right price.
Minor NFL Transactions: 3/25/26
Here are Wednesday’s minor NFL transactions:
Detroit Lions
- Signed ERFA tender: K Jake Bates
Los Angeles Rams
- Re-signed: RB Ronnie Rivers
Bates just finished his second season as the Lions’ placekicker and as the NFL’s leader in made point after attempts, thanks to a potent Lions offense scoring enough touchdowns to put the league lead within reach. The Arkansas product converted 64 extra point attempts and 54 more this year, though he has missed five in the NFL’s lengthened format.
In field goals, Bates took a bit of a step back in Year 2. Converting 26 of 29 tries last year, Bates more than double his misses in his sophomore campaign, increasing his number of conversions to 27 but on 34 tries. All of those misses have been from distance, though, as Bates has been perfect from inside the 30-yard line (aside from PATs). He’ll get another season to try and earn a big contract with today’s signing.
WR Denzel Boston To Visit Steelers
The Steelers made a notable receiver addition when they acquired and extended former Colt Michael Pittman Jr. on March 9. Despite landing Pittman, the Steelers could also make a significant investment at the position in April’s draft. Washington receiver Denzel Boston, a potential first-round pick, will visit the Steelers in April, Mike DeFabo of The Athletic reports.
This will be the second summit between Boston and Pittsburgh, who met at the Combine in February. The 22-year-old has also booked visits with the Browns and 49ers since then. Those teams own firsts near the bottom of the round, as do the Steelers (No. 21). With Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com and Dane Brugler of The Athletic each ranking Boston as the 25th-best prospect in this class, there is a strong possibility he will come off the board in the late first or early second.
In the Steelers’ case, drafting the 6-foot-4, 212-pound Boston would give them a trio of 6-4 receivers atop their depth chart. Boston would join Pittman and D.K. Metcalf to catch passes from a to-be-determined quarterback. Last year’s starter, Aaron Rodgers, remains a free agent, but the Steelers are holding out hope he will continue his career at age 42 in 2026. In the event Rodgers returns, he could work with a vastly improved receiving corps if the Steelers add Boston or another high-end prospect to team with Pittman and Metcalf. Although the Steelers went 10-7 and won the AFC North in 2025, they did so despite a down year from Metcalf and a lackluster group of receivers behind him.
There are concerns over Boston’s speed, especially after he skipped the 40-yard dash at the Combine and his pro day, but he is considered a sure-handed red zone threat. After languishing behind the likes of Rome Odunze, Jalen McMillan, Ja’Lynn Polk and Germie Bernard in his first two seasons at Washington, Boston took on a much bigger role in the Huskies’ offense in 2024. Over 13 games that year, Boston racked up 63 catches for 834 yards and nine touchdowns. In a 12-game junior season last year, Boston easily led the Huskies in receptions (62), yards (881) and TDs (11) en route to third-team All-Big Ten honors.
RB Najee Harris Visits Seahawks; Raiders Meeting Planned
4:28pm: Harris plans to meet with the Raiders next, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. The Raiders have an unquestioned starter in 2025 sixth overall pick Ashton Jeanty, but Chris Collier and Dylan Laube are the only other running backs on their roster. Collier and Laube have combined for just 13 NFL carries.
4:04pm: Still recovering from a September 2025 Achilles tear, free agent running back Najee Harris is on the hunt for his next team. The former Steeler and Charger visited the Seahawks on Wednesday, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network relays.
While it is unclear when Harris will return to full strength, agent Doug Hendrickson posted a video of the 28-year-old “looking great” while running on a treadmill on Monday. Seattle has since become the first known team to show interest in Harris, whose next contract will fall short of the one-year, $5.25MM deal he signed with the Chargers last March. The investment did not work out for Los Angeles, which got just three games, 15 carries and 61 yards from the normally durable and productive Harris.
Before joining the Chargers, Harris spent his first four years in Pittsburgh and did not miss a game. The 2021 first-rounder from Alabama eclipsed 250 carries and 1,000 rushing yards in each of his seasons with the Steelers. With a 3.9 YPC average, Harris wasn’t especially efficient, but he scored 34 touchdowns as a Steeler (28 rushing, six receiving). Aside from a 74-catch rookie campaign, the 6-foot-1, 242-pounder averaged around 35 receptions per year in Pittsburgh.
As the reigning Super Bowl champions, the Seahawks’ roster is light on question marks. However, there is a need at running back, where the Seahawks lost former starter and Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker to the Chiefs in free agency. The Seahawks may also go some portion of next season without new No. 1 RB Zach Charbonnet, who tore his ACL in a divisional-round win over the 49ers. Signing Harris would give them another back recovering from a serious injury. For now, free agent pickup Emanuel Wilson, George Holani and Cam Akers are among Seattle’s healthy backfield options.
Ravens Want To Extend WR Zay Flowers
The NFL’s wide receiver market has exploded in the last few years. Nine players now make more than $30MM per year, topped by Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who officially signed his $42.15 AAV deal with the Seahawks on Wednesday.
The next receiver to cash in might be the player who was drafted two slots after Smith-Njigba in the first round of the 2023 draft: Ravens Pro Bowler Zay Flowers. Picking up the 25-year-old’s fifth-year option – projected by OverTheCap to be $27.3MM – is considered a “formality,” according to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, with Baltimore already looking forward to an extension.
Locking Flowers into a long-term deal this offseason offers a number of benefits. First and most obvious is the production, which has ascended in volume and efficiency across each of his first three years in the NFL. In 2025, Flowers ranked seventh in receiving yards, 11th in catches, and 14th in yards per target. His 2.53 yards per route run trailed only Puka Nacua and Smith-Njigba among wide receivers, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
Another obvious positive is contract control. As Zrebiec notes, an early extension guarantees that Flowers does not get anywhere near free agency where other teams can lure him away with eye-popping sums of money, as the Raiders did with Tyler Linderbaum this year.
That control also has a significant financial impact. Just look to Kyle Hamilton‘s extension last summer as an example. He received a $25.1MM AAV, but he still had two years remaining on his rookie deal (including his fifth-year option). That resulted in an overall contract of six years and $121.8MM ($20.3MM per year).
Assuming that the Ravens pick up Flowers’ fifth-year option, he will be owed $31.7MM over the next two years. He has not produced at the same level as Smith-Njigba or Ja’Marr Chase, the only two receivers earning $40MM per year, nor Nacua, who will likely join them this year. But a four year extension worth $35MM annually – a top-five mark for the position – would extend Flowers’ deal to $171.7MM over six years (28.6MM per year).
Flowers’ agent and the Ravens’ front office will haggle over the exact numbers, but that estimate illustrates the urgency and upside of agreeing on an extension this year.