The Las Vegas Raiders really shouldn't turn their nose up at any offer to improve their offense around presumed first overall pick Fernando Mendoza. Addressing the offensive line should be priority No. 1 this offseason, but finding effective pass-catchers for the rookie is also critical at this juncture.
Both the free agent market and the 2026 NFL Draft are expected to have game-changing wide receivers, and the Raiders would be best-suited to find some through that avenue. The only caveat would be if someone in the echelon of A.J. Brown or Justin Jefferson actually becomes available.
Dealing Maxx Crosby certainly isn't off the table this offseason, either, and if Las Vegas does want a top-flight receiver, the superstar defensive end could be involved in that theoretical trade talk. But ESPN just proposed an idea in which the Raiders trade Crosby to the Chicago Bears for... DJ Moore.
Moore is a good player, but that wouldn't really solve anything.
Raiders shouldn't want D.J. Moore in Maxx Crosby trade more than picks
ESPN's Bill Barnwell went through and proposed several major NFL trades, and of course, Crosby was included. But his proposal with the Bears isn't all that favorable for the Raiders, and it is unlikely that John Spytek would even stay on the phone with this offer on the table for more than 30 seconds.
Raiders get: WR DJ Moore, 2026 first-round pick
Bears get: Edge Maxx Crosby, 2027 fifth-round pick
Again, Moore is a fine player. He's got four seasons with over 1,100 receiving yards under his belt and can even run the ball a bit, too. But Moore has only eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards one time in the last four seasons, and he'll soon be 29 years old and coming off the lowest production year of his career.
His speed and versatility in alignment may be highly coveted in Klint Kubiak's offense, and if Frisman Jackson, who interviewed for the Raiders' offensive coordinator gig, comes to Las Vegas in any capacity, he has worked with Moore before. That familiarity would make the deal more palatable.
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But the expected return for Crosby is two first-round picks or something similar. Moore's value is not even close to approaching a first-round pick at this point in his career, and things get even worse with the Raiders also giving up a fifth-rounder in addition to Crosby.
Not to mention, Moore's salary cap hit is $28.5 million in each of the next two years before an "out" exists in the contract following the 2027 season. Moore had 50 catches for 682 yards and six touchdowns last year. That's fine production, but he's not worth nearly $30 million.
Players like Alec Pierce, Mike Evans, Deebo Samuel, Rashid Shaheed and Jauan Jennings will all be available this offseason as well, and each of them should be cheaper than Moore would be. And the Raiders wouldn't have to give up Crosby and a fifth-round pick in the process.
Plus, the last time the Silver and Black dealt an edge rusher to Chicago, it didn't exactly work out for them. That shouldn't negate the possibility of a future deal between the two sides, but unless the Bears are willing to pony up more than Moore (pun intended), Spytek should hang up rather quickly.
Better avenues exist to improve the wide receiver position.