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With Tuesday’s trade deadline quickly approaching and the Ravens returning to work after their Week 8 bye, there has been plenty of discussion over general manager Ozzie Newsome potentially having another trick up his sleeve to augment the defending Super Bowl champions.
Below the .500 mark this late in a season for the first time in the John Harbaugh era, the 3-4 Ravens would benefit from a potential upgrade at a number of positions, including wide receiver, tight end, center, and even safety. History suggests that most trade discussion results in being little more than talk-radio material as the NFL’s deadline activity pales in comparison to the other professional sports in most seasons, but Harbaugh wouldn’t say whether he anticipated a move being made on Monday afternoon.
“I wouldn’t comment on that anyway if I did,” Harbaugh said, “so it’s probably best just to stay away from that.”
Though not entirely impossible, imagining the Ravens pulling off a second in-season trade after dealing fourth- and fifth-round picks to Jacksonville for left tackle Eugene Monroe earlier this month seems like a stretch after Newsome had never completed a trade in the middle of a season in the 18-year history of the franchise. Baltimore is also working with slightly less than $2 million in salary cap space, eliminating many scenarios for high-priced players who might become available.
According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, the Ravens are “deep in the process” of trying to add a wide receiver as a number of intriguing names are reportedly on the market, but what that exactly means remains to be seen as Tuesday’s 4 p.m. deadline approaches.
Here’s a list of the plausible names — Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald and his gigantic contract don’t fit that description — being discussed with a thought on each:
Kenny Britt, Tennessee
Contract status: 2013 base salary of $897,500 and will become a free agent at the end of the season
Skinny: The Titans’ reported asking price of a third-round pick is way too high and will likely come down, but is Britt even worth a late pick with the lack of production accompanying his well-documented baggage off the field?
Josh Gordon, Cleveland
Contract status: 2013 base salary of $558,355 and has two years remaining on his rookie deal
Skinny: I’m still trying to figure out exactly why the Browns want to trade a talented — and admittedly troubled — 6-foot-3 receiver in his second year, but they surely aren’t dealing him to a division rival for any kind of reasonable price.
Hakeem Nicks, New York Giants
Contract status: 2013 base salary of $2.75 million and will become a free agent at the end of the season
Skinny: The Giants have said consistently that they’re not trading Nicks and a two-game winning streak actually gives them a shot in the mediocre NFC East, meaning they’ll be asking for way too much to even entertain the possibility.
Greg Little, Cleveland
Contract status: 2013 base salary of $602,500 with one year remaining on his rookie deal
Skinny: Too many drops and not enough upside make this unappealing and the Browns aren’t looking to do Baltimore any favors as was already mentioned.
Jon Baldwin, San Francisco
Contract status: 2013 base salary of $1.061 million with one year remaining on his rookie deal
Skinny: This third-year wideout has already been traded once and has three receptions this season for the receiver-needy 49ers, making you wonder why any team would give up anything for this 2011 draft bust.
