The Las Vegas Raiders have an intriguing core of offensive players in Brock Bowers, Ashton Jeanty, and Fernando Mendoza. However, on defense, there’s Maxx Crosby, but the veteran turns 29 in August and doesn’t fit with this young core.
As a result, the Silver and Black will have to identify players down the road who they believe could be part of a core group once the front office feels this rebuild is over.
One simple way is to draft those players, but could the Raiders explore the trade market and find a young defender who could be one of the faces for the team’s defense?
Wynston Wilcox of FanSided put together a list of teams that could realistically trade for Philadelphia Eagles‘ Jalen Carter, and one of those teams is Las Vegas. Moreover, Wilcox noted that he could see Carter going to the Raiders with Crosby heading to Philadelphia.
“This is one of the more intriguing pitches on this list for a couple of reasons,” Wilcox wrote in a July 16 article. “The Las Vegas Raiders could benefit from an elite defensive lineman that’s young enough to build around. At the same time, it also solves their Maxx Crosby problem.
“Not that the Raiders are necessarily eager to trade Crosby, but they put him on the market this offseason, got a deal and it flopped. They haven’t been aggressive in trading him, but they could have the perfect opportunity to capitalize on his value while getting a solid return in Carter.”
Jalen Carter Would Be Compelling Piece for Raiders Rebuild
Last season, Carter played 640 snaps on defense for the Eagles, leading to a 60.0 overall PFF defensive grade. Moreover, he generated 41 total pressures, three sacks, 30 hurries, and eight QB hits. Meanwhile, against the run, recorded 18 solo tackles.
Furthermore, Wilcox noted that Carter would be an ideal fit for the Raiders if they had to move Crosby as part of this trade idea.
“The Raiders were aggressive this offseason in building this roster, drafting Fernando Mendoza and plugging quite a few holes on both sides of the ball,” Wilcox added in his article. “The Raiders could benefit from adding Carter while also getting draft capital in return to continue turning this roster into a playoff-contending one…
“While they may not get as much in return for Carter because he’s that good, they could still get a good haul for Crosby and help them turn their attention to a younger roster with potential.”
Nakobe Dean on What Maxx Crosby Brings to a Team
In a June 26 appearance on the NFL Network, Raiders linebacker Nakobe Dean recently spoke about the impact he’s seen from Crosby as Las Vegas looks to be a competitive team in 2026.
“He hasn’t been out there on the field with us, but he’s out there working,” Dean said. “We see him working and rehabbing every day. His positive attitude is infectious. He says what’s up to everybody. You can kind of see how he knows everybody.
“With me coming in and not knowing anybody, I’m trying to learn everybody’s name and be able to dap up everybody the way he does. Like I said, his positive energy is infectious even though he’s not on the field. You can tell he really wants to win. He’s ready to get to it. I’m excited. I can’t wait to have him on the field with us.”
Raiders Receive Intriguing Trade Pitch for Eagles’ Jalen Carter