Unless you were living under a rock this offseason, you probably heard that the Las Vegas Raiders' attempt to trade superstar defensive end Maxx Crosby blew up in their face a bit. Before we get too riled up recapping those events again, let's just remember one thing: Crosby is happy to be a Raider.
And, by all accounts, Las Vegas is glad to have him back. Trading him was somewhat of a necessary evil, but the football gods have spoken, and Crosby is meant to be in Silver and Black. That doesn't mean that the trade chatter subsides immediately, but it at least delays it until the trade deadline.
Yes, the blockbuster Myles Garrett deal caused Crosby rumors to flare up again in both palatable and ridiculous ways. But until he gets back out on the field, which is expected in the coming weeks at training camp, no moves will be made. It is seemingly a dead period for major NFL moves.
That hasn't stopped a Seattle Seahawks expert from etching out a trade idea for his team to acquire Crosby, though. It was an admirable effort to have Seahawks GM John Schneider swindle John Spytek, but the proposed price just isn't high enough for the Silver and Black to seriously consider.
Las Vegas Raiders-Seattle Seahawks trade idea for Maxx Crosby falls short
Our good friend Lee Vowell over at 12th Man Rising, FanSided's dedicated Seahawks page, is doing what great writers do: Keeping things interesting in the depths of the offseason. Seattle lost some sauce on the edge since their Super Bowl victory, and Garrett now looms quite large in the NFC West.
So, Vowell wrote a piece about how the defending champions could pry Crosby from Las Vegas. Obviously, the starting point in any discussion is a first-round pick, but the sweetener that Vowell proposed was veteran safety Julian Love.
Love is undeniably a very good safety, and with both Jeremy Chinn and Isaiah Pola-Mao in a contract year, the Raiders could use more long-term stability at the position, this side of Treydan Stukes. But Love shouldn't really be the focal point in a Crosby trade discussion for Spytek.
First of all, Love is 28 years old. Outside of trading for Taron Johnson and signing Kirk Cousins, Las Vegas didn't add anyone older than 27 this offseason. If the Raiders want their return package to mimic what the Cleveland Browns got for Garrett, they'd need a promising youngster included.
To me, Nick Emmanwori would be the prize. His somewhat positionless ability as a "super nickel" is incredibly intriguing and would fit right in with what first-year defensive coordinator Rob Leonard seemingly wants to run. After all, Leonard is somewhat of a Mike Macdonald disciple.
But the problem is that, one, the Seahawks probably aren't going to give up Emmanwori, and two, Las Vegas drafted Stukes to fit that mold this offseason. To the second point, the Raiders could just employ both of them, with a tilt toward Stukes being that deep or free safety.
That first point may be tough to reconcile, though. A solid consolation prize would be Ty Okada, a former undrafted player who ascended into a major role for Seattle in 2026. Although he only has three years of experience in the league, he is 27, so he technically fits the timeline.
Okada is not in the same stratosphere as Emmanwori in terms of potential, nor in terms of value. He also plays almost exclusively free safety as well. But if the Seahawks swapped Love for Okada in this package, they'd also have to include another sweetener, probably a fourth or fifth-rounder.
Obviously, this conversation has centered around the safety position, just to keep things consistent with what Vowell was willing to give up and what the Raiders could need in return. Surely, Seattle has plenty of other pieces that could strike Las Vegas' fancy and fill a position of need.
In terms of Vowell's proposal, though, it falls a bit short. Love is good, and he may theoretically get the job done in a trade. But the Raiders' long-term questions, to me, are more at strong safety, and now is no time to trade for a free safety like Love or Okada and pigeonhole Stukes into the nickel.
Letting Stukes grow in his rookie season is pivotal to figuring out how the secondary looks in the future. So, if Las Vegas is going to throw a wrench into things on the back end, it should get someone who plays more in the box or has tremendous upside like Emmanwori.
Maybe leaving players out and gunning purely for compensation is an option, too.
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