Las Vegas Raiders News & Rumors

Contract Details: Crosby, Gregory, Campbell, Conner, Jensen, Dissly, Glowinski

Here are the details from the latest agreed-upon contracts around the league:

  • Maxx Crosby, DE (Raiders): Four years, $94MM. The Raiders gave Crosby a $13MM signing bonus and have fully guaranteed his 2022 and ’23 base salaries ($3.5MM, $10MM), Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes. Crosby’s 2024 base ($19MM) will become fully guaranteed in 2023. Crosby’s 2025 and ’26 salaries ($21MM apiece) are nonguaranteed. There are $200K-per-year incentives included for All-Pro nods as well.
  • Randy Gregory, OLB (Broncos): Five years, $70MM. Denver is giving Gregory a $10MM signing bonus and has the pass rusher attached to $4MM and $14MM base salaries in 2022 and ’23, respectively, per Brad Spielberger and Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus (on Twitter). Both years are fully guaranteed, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Gregory’s deal includes $1MM roster bonuses in 2025 and ’26.
  • De’Vondre Campbell, LB (Packers): Five years, $50MM. Green Bay is giving Campbell a $15MM signing bonus and has backloaded the base salaries. Campbell’s first two salaries check in at $1.1MM and $1.45MM, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com tweets. They spike to just north of $7MM by 2024. A $3MM roster bonus is also due on Day 3 of the 2023 league year, with a $2.9MM roster bonus due at the same point on the 2024 calendar.
  • Ryan Jensen, C (Buccaneers): Three years, $39MM. Jensen will see $23MM fully guaranteed, Dan Graziano of ESPN.com tweets. His 2022 breakdown goes $1.5MM base salary and $12.5MM roster bonus. $9MM of Jensen’s $12.5MM 2023 base salary is fully guaranteed, and the other $3.5MM shifts to a full guarantee on Day 5 of the 2023 league year.
  • Will Dissly, TE (Seahawks): Three years, $24MM (max value). The deal includes a $9.3MM signing bonus but is light on guaranteed salary. Dissly’s $1MM 2022 salary is fully guaranteed, while Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets the 2023 base ($5.64MM) is guaranteed for injury. The injury-prone tight end’s 2024 base ($6.49MM) is nonguaranteed.
  • James Conner, RB (Cardinals): Three years, $21MM. Conner’s deal includes $13.5MM guaranteed, per Kyed and Spielberger (on Twitter). Conner’s 2022 and ’23 base salaries ($1.75MM and $5.75MM) are fully guaranteed.
  • Mark Glowinski, G (Giants): Three years, $18.3MM. The Giants included a $4.5MM signing bonus, and Glowinski will have cap figures of $3.35MM (2022), $7.75MM (2023) and $7.2MM (’24). Glowinski is due a $1MM roster bonus in 2023 (Twitter links via The Athletic’s Dan Duggan).

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/15/22

We’ll keep tabs on today’s minor moves here:

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Miami Dolphins

Philadelphia Eagles

Tennessee Titans

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/11/22

Here are today’s minor roster moves around the NFL:

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Dallas Cowboys

Houston Texans

Las Vegas Raiders

New York Giants

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Raiders, DE Maxx Crosby Agree On Extension

Not long after reports of extension talks surfaced, Maxx Crosby will see a big raise. The Raiders locked down their Pro Bowl pass rusher Friday, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport of NFL.com report (on Twitter). The Raiders announced the extension agreement.

Crosby agreed to a four-year, $98.98MM extension; the deal includes $53MM guaranteed. This is a considerable development for a player who entered the NFL as a Day 3 pick from a mid-major program.

This contract bumps Crosby into the upper echelon of edge rushers. At nearly $25MM annually, the former fourth-round pick is now the league’s fourth-highest-paid defensive player. Crosby’s deal tops Aaron Donald‘s, with only T.J. Watt, Joey Bosa and Myles Garrett‘s contracts coming in ahead of his.

This is obviously a major commitment from the Raiders, who saw Crosby quickly usurp draft classmate Clelin Ferrell as their cornerstone defensive lineman. An Eastern Michigan product, Crosby is just 24 and already has 25 sacks on his resume. He played a big part of Las Vegas clinching a playoff berth in Week 18, dominating against the Chargers to cement the team’s first postseason appearance in five years.

Crosby’s extension agreement ties him to the Raiders through the 2026 season. The Raiders are transitioning to a new regime, with Patrick Graham set to take over the defense. Friday’s contract terms certainly illustrate the Dave ZieglerJosh McDaniels duo’s faith in Crosby, acquired in Jon Gruden‘s second draft running the Raiders. The team still has Yannick Ngakoue under contract for one more season, while Ferrell and Carl Nassib are also signed through 2022.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/10/22

The deadline for teams to extend tender offers to their restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents looms next week. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:

RFAs

Non-tendered:

Raiders To Release LB Cory Littleton

One of the top free agent signings two years ago, Cory Littleton will be back on the market. The Raiders have informed the veteran linebacker he will be released, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.

The Raiders brought in multiple veteran linebackers last year and have since hired a new head coach and GM. Although it is not certain, Littleton is certainly a candidate to be designated as a post-June 1 cut. If not, the Raiders would save just $1MM and see $14MM in dead money.

A post-June 1 designation would bring just a $4MM dead-cap hit this year. Las Vegas reworked Littleton’s contract three times over the past year and change, leading to the sizable dead-money number. Indeed, the Raiders are using this designation, Tashan Reed of The Athletic tweets. While the team will not be able to use the cap savings until June, it avoids this eight-figure dead-money sum hitting in 2022.

Despite his production with the Rams, Littleton did not live up to his contract with the Raiders, who signed him to a three-year, $35.25MM deal in 2020. After Littleton played 90% of Las Vegas’ defensive snaps in 2020, one-and-done DC Gus Bradley limited his work to 57% last season. Littleton, who impressed in coverage as a two-year starter with the Rams, made 98 tackles last season and 82 in 2020. He topped 120 stops in both his final two Rams slates.

The Raiders brought in both K.J. Wright and Denzel Perryman at the position. With Patrick Graham now in the DC role, it will be interesting to see how the Raiders address this group. Wright and Nicholas Morrow are free agents, while Perryman and Nick Kwiatkoski remain under contract for 2022.

Raiders’ Kolton Miller, Kenyan Drake Rework Deals

The Raiders have restructured the contracts of left tackle Kolton Miller and running back Kenyan Drake (Twitter link via Field Yates of ESPN.com). Between the two moves, the Raiders have carved out an additional $14.525MM in cap space for this offseason. 

[RELATED: Raiders, Crosby In Talks]

Drake joined the Raiders last year on a two-year, $11MM deal. Serving as the Raiders’ second-leading rusher behind starter Josh Jacobs, Drake tallied 254 rushing yards, two touchdowns, and a solid 4.3 yards per carry average last year. He also added 29 grabs for 283 receiving yards and one TD through the air. Unfortunately, his season ended in December with an ankle fracture suffered against Washington.

Around that same time, Miller agreed to a three-year extension worth upwards of $18MM per year. At that time, the advanced metrics were only so-so on his play. But, last year, Miller graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 6 ranked tackle (86.3 overall score) in the NFL. By all accounts and measures, the UCLA product has steadily improved with every season. Miller has played on every snap for the last three seasons and, in 2021, he allowed just 35 total pressures.

The Raiders will direct some of this cash to free agency, though they’re also looking to lock up standout defensive end Maxx Crosby.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/9/22

The deadline for teams to extend tender offers to their restricted free agents and exclusive rights free agents looms next week. We’ll keep tabs on the latest here:

RFAs

Non-tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/8/22

Here are the latest NFL minor moves:

Denver Broncos

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Las Vegas Raiders

New Orleans Saints

San Francisco 49ers

Raiders Hire Drayton, Schuplinski, Ash

  • Ex-Josh McDaniels Patriots coworker Jerry Schuplinski is now on the Raiders‘ staff as a senior offensive assistant. A Pats staffer from 2013-18, Schuplinski was the Giants’ QBs coach the past two seasons. The Raiders have also hired ex-Jaguars DBs coach Chris Ash to the same position, added ex-Packers special teams coordinator Maurice Drayton as their assistant ST coach and hired Cameron Clemmons as their assistant O-line coach. Additionally, Las Vegas is keeping Jon Gruden‘s son, Deuce, on staff as a strength and conditioning assistant.