If you’ve been following the Las Vegas Raiders lately, you may think the team consists of defensive end Maxx Crosby and quarterback Geno Smith, with QB Fernando Mendoza soon to join the club on April 23.
But the Raiders have holes all over the roster, and linebacker is one of them, which is what makes the impending release of Tremaine Edmunds by the Chicago Bears so intriguing. Las Vegas was rumored to have interest in trading for Edmunds well before his release, as written by Connor Byrne of ProFootballRumors.com.
Byrne cited a report by Jeremy Fowler of ESPN that Edmunds had “strong trade value,” with the Tennessee Titans and New York Giants also supposedly interested. But the Bears were unable to reach an agreement with any of these teams or whatever other potential suitors were involved, so now they’re moving on from him.
The linebacker has an impressive resume. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills back in 2018, and in his initial season he piled up 121 tackles, 12 passes defended, and a pair of sacks, interceptions and forced fumbles, according to Byrne. That started a long line of productive seasons for the 27-year old Edmunds, who’s been a reliable starter throughout his career.
His annual production has been consistent, too. The two-time Pro Bowler has made at least 100 tackles per season, with the rest of his stats including 59 passes defended, 14 interceptions and 8.5 sacks.
Edmunds won’t come cheap, though. His release, which was reported by Adam Schefter of ESPN in an article by Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk, will save the Bears $15 million, and he’s coming off a four-year, $72 million deal in which he consistently delivered the expected value.
The reason he’s a good fit for the Raiders is that they have a significant need at linebacker. Las Vegas signed Devin White to fill that need, and the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker who had ties to Raiders GM John Spytek had an interesting season, to say the least.
White was strong against the run, and he had some success rushing the passer early on before things went sideways in Las Vegas. But the linebacker also struggled in coverage, and there were also issues with White going MIA on his assignments, which was part of the general chaos that led to the hiring of new coach Klint Kubiak, who has overhauled the entire staff.
The Raiders also have enough cap space to afford Edmunds if they want to move on from White, which seems likely. They’re going to need a new stud on defense to replace Crosby, assuming that trade gets made, so there’s a fit here if the Raiders want to spend some of that cap money to get a new defensive anchor.