Su’a Cravens could make interesting trade target for Kansas City Chiefs
By Matt Conner
If the Washington Redskins are going to put Su’a Cravens up for a trade, the Kansas City Chiefs would do well to offer at least a low round pick.
The Washington Redskins have a decision to make: do they want to keep Su’a Cravens or not?
The answer to that question will cause ripples in the defensive market this offseason one way or another, but it all rests first of all on the decision made by Washington’s front office personnel.
Cravens is a linebacker/safety hybrid who flashed enough potential for Washington to make use of him but also for other teams to want him. However, he comes with some serious (and rare) baggage: namely that he literally quit on his team. Technically, he retired, but suffice it to say, there’s a lot of quizzical looks in Cravens’ direction at this stage of the offseason.
The full story goes like this: the Redskins chose Cravens in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft and he showed the ability to make an immediate impact. One week before the next season, he informed the team he was retiring from the NFL. Instead of officially retiring, he was talked into letting the Redskins place him on a roster exemption, so to speak, and he sat out this entire last year.
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All through this process, Cravens sought treatment for post-concussion syndrome and apparently decided he was ready to play again. Most recently he was reinstated by the NFL and is now available for Washington.
This brings an important quandary up for the Redskins. On the one hand, Cravens is cheap, young, effective and the investment has already been made. On the other, the locker room distraction and uncertainty of whether he’ll follow through this time would be a cloud over the franchise. Would it be better for the Redskins to just trade him away for something to recoup part of their investment while not having to worry about it from here on out?
If the Redskins decide on the latter and they open the doors to let him leave, it’s likely that teams are going to have to trade for him rather than wait for his release. Enough teams will take a chance on someone like Cravens to create a bit of bidding, but the drama will likely also scare off most.
For a team like the Chiefs, however, it feels like the perfect sort of buy-low opportunity. Chiefs general manager Brett Veach has already made these sorts of low-risk, high-ceiling deals for the likes of offensive lineman Cam Erving and linebacker Reggie Ragland. Imagine if the Redskins would trade Cravens for a 6th or 7th round choice that could even be conditional in that it becomes a 5th if Cravens plays 16 games. That would be a great offer.
The Chiefs have further holes at linebacker given Kevin Pierre=Louis is a free agent, and safety is also a serious issue where the team might release Ron Parker, faces a decision on Dan Sorensen and Eric Berry is returning from a season-ending injury. The position overall is getting older and someone like Cravens is cost-controlled for another three seasons. It’s a good get for the right price.
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However, none of this matters if the Redskins decide to keep Cravens in house. They’ve made the investment and the smart money is on them trying to recoup all that they can out of it. But if not, the Chiefs should be there on the other side of the phone with at least an interest in what the potential price would be.