The Las Vegas Raiders have been left scrambling in the wake of the Baltimore Ravens pulling out of the Maxx Crosby trade. In that time, it appears their plans in free agency have come to a halt.
The Raiders were huge spenders the first couple of days, but an over $30 million salary cap hit is back on the books. Las Vegas is going to have to rethink their approach, but in the meantime, they’re losing a free agent.
According to NFL insider Jordan Schutlz, the Miami Dolphins are signing defensive back Lonnie Johnson Jr. to a one-year contract.
Former second-round pick was with Las Vegas last season and now heads to Jeff Harley’s defense in Miami.
Johnson spent last season with the Raiders and played in nine games. He had previously said he was hoping to return to the team, but that was when Pete Carroll was still the head coach.
The former second-round pick of the Carolina Panthers missed half of last season with an injury, but worked hard to get back on the field. Even at 30, he clearly still has a lot of passion for football.
In those nine games with the Raiders, he had 25 combined tackles and two passes defended. He’ll bring some veteran depth to Jeff Hafley’s Dolphins defense this season, and could even compete for my starting job.
What Could Raiders’ Free Agency Look Like Going Forward?
Even with the Raiders’ spending spree, they were still expecting to have a ton of salary cap space. They should still have some room, even with Crosby coming back on the books.
However, they still have draft picks they need to sign and many roster spots to fill. They’re not going to be able to make any other big deals unless they find a different Crosby trade.
That seems unlikely at this time, so the Raiders will likely have to figure out how to create some cap room. That can be done with restructures, but this is certainly not how the team wanted to do things this offseason.
Raiders Defense Can be Good
If the Raiders end up keeping Crosby, they shouldn’t be too sad about it. He’s still one of the best pass rushers in the NFL and is 28. There’s a reason the Ravens were going to give up two first-round picks for him before backing out.
The Raiders have also made some big additions to the defense. Defensive ends Kwity Paye and Malcolm Koonce were signed. The team also signed linebackers Quay Walker and Nakobe Dean. Cornerback Taron Johnson is coming over in a trade.
The team does have talent on defense heading into the season and should continue to add more through the draft and free agency. The Raiders’ biggest need after trading Crosby was arguably at defensive end.
It hurts to lose the two first-round picks they were supposed to get, but at least the Raiders are getting an elite pass rusher back. Plus, Crosby is going to be highly motivated to prove that the Ravens made the wrong choice. If Crosby is still on the team at the start of the season, the Raiders should be getting an All-Pro defensive end.
Raiders Lose Former Second Round Pick DB to Dolphins in Free Agency