Michael Crabtree Free Agency Fits: Eagles, Dolphins, Raiders
Coming off a torn Achilles tendon in 2013, Michael Crabtree entered the final season of his rookie deal with the 49ers with something to prove. Unfortunately, this injury is one of the toughest to fully recover from, limiting his overall performance in 2014.
He finished last season with just 698 yards and four touchdowns. He’s expected to sign a one year “prove it” contract, similar to what Jeremy Maclin did last season after he tore his ACL. He still remains unsigned, but his services are still a hot commodity. Any team with questions marks in their receiving corps would be foolish not to take a look at Crabtree, who had a break out season (1,105 yards 9 touchdowns) before his devastating injury. Teams might have to look past his attitude issues, but the right situation can fix that.
Philadelphia Eagles
Eagles
The Eagles were one of the top movers and spenders so far this offseason. They lost their top two offensive weapons, and are left with sophomore Jordan Matthews and Riley Cooper.
While drafting someone like Jaelen Strong or Nelson Agholor is is popular option, they still have needs in the secondary and finding better depth for their offensive line.
Chip Kelly’s (apparent) plan is to sign as many free agents to run his plug-and-play offense as he can, and draft whatever holes are left. The NFLPA released its Public Salary Cap Report of every team earlier this week, showing the Eagles still have $8.2 million left of their 2015 cap.
To put this into perspective, Jeremy Maclin’s “prove it” deal Chip Kelly gave him was worth $6 million, with $3.5 million guaranteed. That came with out seeing him in game action following the ACL injury he suffered in the preseason. Signing Crabtree to a prove it deal shouldn’t be that hard for Chip and Co.
Miami Dolphins
Crabtree has been linked to the Dolphins this offseason, even visiting them earlier this week. He left the facility without a contract, leaving some to wonder if he’s either not healthy or his demands are too high.
They have just under $10.2 million left on their cap, which is more than the aforementioned Maclin deal. The Dolphins might not love that number, but Crabtree’s stats are much better than what they have left. After trading Mike Wallace, 2nd year receiver Jarvis Landry and Kenny Stills are Ryan Tannehill’s top targets. While Landry had a good rookie season, the addition of Crabtree could open up the field for him.
Oakland Raiders
Aug 28, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) gestures during the game against the Seattle Seahawks at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The Raiders were supposed to be the big spenders in free agency, but they ended up signing a bunch of “land of misfit toys” players. They were supposedly all in for Randall Cobb, but they lost out on him early.
If Oakland wants Derek Carr to succeed in the NFL, they need to find him more than Andre Holmes and James Jones (which shouldn’t be that hard). Crabtree played a big part in the development of Colin Kaepernick, which could be a big draw for the Raiders trying to develop Carr. They entered the week with $21.4 million remaining cap space, so keeping Crabtree in California shouldn’t be difficult financially.
Crabtree is used to winning, so coming to Oakland might be tough for him to swallow.