Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders departed Oakland and became the Los Angeles Raiders from 1982-1994. However, prior to the 1995 season the Raiders returned to Oakland, where they would remain until 2020. The NFL approved the Raiders application to relocate to Las Vegas in 2017, and the team officially made it's move to the Sin City in 2020.
The Raiders have won three Super Bowls in their franchise's history. They won their first one in 1976 (Super Bowl XI) under legendary head coach John Madden. Madden was not at the helm for their next Super Bowl victories, which came in 1980 (Super Bowl XV) and 1983 (Super Bowl XVIII). The Raiders are in the AFC West division with the Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos, and Los Angeles Chargers.
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USA Today
23 minutes ago
- USA Today
ESPN names this 2nd-year WR as Ravens' 'biggest surprise' of the 2025 offseason
ESPN named the biggest off-season surprise for all 32 NFL teams and 2nd-year wide receiver Devontez Walker was the Ravens most impressive performer In some sense, Devontez Walker is still a rookie after seeing action in just nine of Baltimore's 17 regular-season contests after dealing with injuries and inconsistency coming out of training camp. The former UNC pass catcher was supposed to provide a deep threat for quarterback Lamar Jackson, but finished his rookie season with just one catch, albeit for a touchdown. The Ravens are 12 days from rookies and select veterans reporting for training camp, and Walker is looking to break out and draw attention as the fourth or fifth option in a stacked wide receiver group. ESPN recently looked at the most outstanding off-season performer for all 32 teams, and Walker was the most impressive player exiting the Under Armour Performance Center for summer break. The 2024 fourth-round pick was Baltimore's most consistent wide receiver during spring practices and recorded two of the biggest catches of minicamp. On the first day, Walker made an over-the-shoulder grab 20 yards downfield. On the second day, he delivered an acrobatic grab over cornerback T.J. Tampa along the sideline. Walker is looking to become a bigger part of the passing game after a forgettable rookie season, when his only catch was a 21-yard touchdown. He appears to be the front-runner to be Baltimore's No. 4 wide receiver behind Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman and DeAndre Hopkins. "Every day, all he does is show up and go 100 miles an hour," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. -- Jamison Hensley When everyone is healthy, Walker is the fourth wide receiver on the Ravens roster at best, but he offers potential to be a deep threat. The rookie had one catch on three targets for a 21-yard touchdown over nine regular-season games in 2024. The former UNC star was a healthy scratch until his NFL debut in Week 7 against Tampa Bay. The highlight of his first year was a 21-yard touchdown reception against the Giants for his first NFL catch in Week 15. Most of Walker's work came on special teams, as he logged 153 snaps and 55 on offense. Walker ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, and he'll look to be Lamar Jackson's big-play weapon.
New York Times
34 minutes ago
- New York Times
Rockets targeting 3 key free agents
The Lakers appear to have their starting center in the 2018 No. 1 pick. Meanwhile, teams are discussing a potential seven-team trade. Ezra Shaw / Getty Images Kiyoshi Mio / Imagn The Rockets are working quickly to secure meetings with Dorian Finney-Smith, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard at the outset of free agency, team sources tell The Athletic. The veteran trio sits atop Houston's wish list of two-way, win-now players. The organization is hoping to move quickly to secure additional depth after re-signing key rotation pieces in recent days. Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images Armed with the $14.1 million mid-level exception, the Lakers are expected to chase Milwaukee Bucks center Brook Lopez and the Atlanta Hawks' Clint Capela, with the surprise addition of Portland Trail Blazers center Deandre Ayton as another target on their list. The Lakers are not making calls gauging Austin Reaves' trade value, one of the sources said. As free agency begins, the Lakers are motivated not to sacrifice long-term flexibility as they begin to arm themselves for a potential run at another superstar to pair with Luka Dončić as soon as next summer. Reaves, who turned down a nearly $90 million extension last week, is viewed as a key piece alongside Dončić, the star the team is building around in the present and future. Joe Ingles will sign a one-year, $3.6 million deal to return to the Minnesota Timberwolves, a team source confirmed. ESPN was first to report. Johnny Juzang — who will be released by the Jazz, per ESPN — has a BORD$ value of $2,831,914 and a salary of ... $2,840,000. I'm surprised the Jazz waived him with three non-guaranteed years still left on his deal, an extremely cap-friendly arrangement that would have set the Jazz up to use his contract in future trades or keep him as a cheap fifth guard. I bring all this up because any team with a trade exception worth at least $2.58 million can claim Juzang, 24, off waivers. His 2025-26 salary would be guaranteed, but the acquiring team would get two non-guaranteed years on top of that. Jaime Valdez / Imagn You can probably rule out the Toronto Raptors, now without a president of basketball operations, being too active in free agency, barring a trade that radically changes their financial circumstances. Assuming they let Jamison Battle's contract guarantee and sign second-round pick Alijah Martin at a deal starting at the minimum, they will have 14 players on guaranteed deals while butting right up against the luxury-tax threshold. Although they have some small-ball center options in Scottie Barnes, Jonathan Mogbo and ninth pick Collin Murray-Boyles, they could probably use a more traditional center behind Jakob Poeltl. However, that would take them into the luxury tax, even with just a minimum salary. It is not uncommon for teams to go into the year as a tax-paying team, deciding whether or not to duck below the threshold before the trade deadline. That is what the Raptors will probably do. Another option: trading Ochai Agbaji, who will be battling for minutes on the wing with Gradey Dick and Ja'Kobe Walter, into another team's midlevel exception. Agbaji is in the final year of his rookie contract, making $6.38 million this year. Agbaji had a nice season last year, and it is probably worth keeping him around and letting the three (plus, uhh, Battle) battle it out. Having some wing depth behind Brandon Ingram is a good idea, yes?. Moving Agbaji is an option, though, if they are concerned about letting this play out throughout the season. Justin Ford / Getty Images Oklahoma City Thunder All-NBA wing Jalen Williams will have wrist surgery this summer, team president Sam Presti said Monday. He is expected to be full healthy by the start of next season. Williams suffered a ligament tear in his wrist in a game against the Phoenix Suns late in the regular season and played through it during the playoffs, Presti said. The Thunder knew he would need surgery at the end of the season. Williams, 24, is eligible to sign a maximum contract extension this summer. Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images Nickeil Alexander-Walker, the 26-year-old Timberwolves guard, now seems likely to get more than the midlevel exception, most likely via sign-and-trade. How is this possible in a market where Brooklyn is the only cap space player? For one, that seems to no longer be the case. Detroit appears set to operate as a cap room team, one with $16.9 million in space right now that could increase via trade in the coming hours. But the other reason is Atlanta's $25 million trade exception from the Dejounte Murray trade. That exception is a potential avenue for the Hawks to move to the front of the line in sign-and-trade talks with Minnesota, which will not want to take back any money but would love a draft pick to replenish its coffers (not to mention a big trade exception of their own for next summer). Atlanta could even 'recycle' the exception for another 12 months by sign-and-trading Caris LeVert to a third team as part of the same transaction. The Hawks are currently $33 million below the tax line, so retaining LeVert while also signing NAW would seem a tight squeeze. Soobum Im / Getty Images Deandre Ayton is a surprise name on the market after his exit from Portland, but my BORD$ formula puts his number at $12,633,013 for the coming season, just below the projected nontaxpayer midlevel exception of $14.1 million. Ayton averaged 14.4 points and 10.2 rebounds in 40 games last season, but he projects more as a high-level backup than a starter at this point. He'll rebound and can slide his feet on the perimeter, but his low motor constantly frustrates, and offensively, he's all 2-point jump shots. He's not even a notably good shooter, and all the jumpers make him alarmingly allergic to free throws, with just one for every eight field goal attempts. Ayton shot 82 percent at the cup last season and was more offensively potent in his Phoenix years. Entering his age-27 season, can he get some of the back? Brooklyn's plan to re-sign Ziaire Williams to a two-year, $12 million contract with a second year team option, according to ESPN, means the Nets technically have $24 million in cap room remaining. But that amount can be more than doubled by renouncing cap holds on Day'Ron Sharpe, Trendon Watford and Cam Thomas, waiving three small non guaranteed contracts and moving Williams' money into their room exception. The correct answer too how much room the Nets have is still 'whatever they need.' Michael Reaves / Getty Images On Friday, the Chicago Bulls traded Lonzo Ball straight-up to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Isaac Okoro. Once again, no draft picks are coming the Bulls' way. For the second straight summer, the Bulls did a favor for a contending team and received the bare minimum in return. The failures of this front office to sustain a competitive team and their disregard for a common-sense approach to rebuilding have again made the team a curiosity in the NBA and an object of ridicule in Chicago. Last year, the Bulls dealt Alex Caruso, their most valuable trade chip, to the Oklahoma City Thunder for point guard Josh Giddey, whom the Thunder were looking to move. Caruso was the kind of player OKC needed to win a title, and lo and behold, it worked out exactly as planned. This time around, Cleveland, which should battle Indiana as the top team in the East next season, was looking to get out of the last two years of Okoro's three-year, $33 million deal and add a backup point guard capable of meaningful minutes. We'll see how that unfolds this season. Read the rest of my column in the link below below. GO FURTHER Did Bulls take step forward or step back? They're in same place they always are Troy Taormina / Imagn As the Phoenix Suns rebuild their roster, adding size, length and toughness, their success next season likely will come down to a key question: How will players wired to score like Devin Booker and Jalen Green co-exist in the same backcourt? Booker, 28, is an organizational pillar, eligible this summer for a two-year extension worth $150 million that will keep him in place through the 2030-31 season. He is Phoenix's career scoring leader and arguably one of the top 15 players in the league. The problem is that Booker was not at his best last season. Although he put up substantial numbers, his shooting percentages were among the worst of his career. He needs to rebound. Green, 23, is the centerpiece of a recent trade that sent superstar Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets. Once one of America's top high school prospects, the athletic 6-foot-4 guard skipped college and played a season for the G League Ignite before the Rockets selected him with the No. 2 pick of the 2021 draft. Green played in Houston for four seasons, averaging 20.1 points and 3.4 assists. To better understand how this might work, The Athletic spoke with four coaches who have worked with Green at the professional level, as well as a 10-year NBA veteran who serves as a television analyst for the Rockets. Their experiences with Green reveal his path to this point, and it might provide a glimpse of his future. Read on for their answers. GO FURTHER How Jalen Green and Devin Booker can co-exist in a Suns backcourt and reversal Ethan Miller / Getty Images Because the Bucks moved themselves under the prohibitive second apron at last season's trade deadline by moving Khris Middleton and AJ Johnson to the Wizards for Kyle Kuzma, they will have a full set of salary cap exceptions at their disposal this offseason. That will be undeniably helpful as the Bucks have a large group of their own free agents that they would like to retain, but in another way, it will also limit what they can ultimately spend. If a team uses the non-taxpayer midlevel exception ($14.1 million) and spends more of it than the taxpayer midlevel exception ($5.7 million), that team is hard-capped at the first apron, which means they cannot exceed the first apron at any point in the 2025-26 season. So, as we go through the Bucks' free agents, it is important to note that using the non-taxpayer midlevel exception would put a cap on how much the Bucks can spend. But that might not end up being the only cap put on the Bucks' spending this offseason. Per league sources, there is some belief around the NBA that the Bucks would like to avoid the luxury tax this upcoming season. As we showed above, that would mean roughly $5.6 million less in spending power for the team this offseason. As we will show below, the Bucks' real feelings on this issue will likely be tested quickly because their free agent spending power is somewhat limited, now that they've agreed to a new contract with Bobby Portis. Read more in my Bucks free agency primer. GO FURTHER Bucks free agency primer: After retaining Bobby Portis, what's next for Milwaukee? David Berding / Getty Images With Naz Reid and Julius Randle in place, the Wolves will likely have to say goodbye to their other key free agent. Nickeil Alexander-Walker has likely priced himself out of Minnesota, which is trying to stay under the second apron to avoid repeater penalties on roster construction. Alexander-Walker is expected to land a deal for at least the nontaxpayer midlevel exception, and possibly higher, which is too rich for the Wolves to go to and not go over the second apron. The Wolves do have a few young guards and wings, including Terrence Shannon Jr., Jaylen Clark and Rob Dillingham, who the team believes are ready to step in and take Alexander-Walker's minutes should he move on. The Atlanta Hawks, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers, Detroit Pistons and Miami Heat are among a number of teams to watch in the hunt for Alexander-Walker. The Wolves have very little room to operate under the second apron as free agency is set to open on Monday. They declined options on center Luka Garza and forward Josh Minott to open up a little bit more wiggle room, giving them access to the taxpayer midlevel exception of $5.7 million. But the Wolves would only use it if they felt the player would make a real impact because of how close it would take them to the second apron and hamstring them next season if injury woes hit. Adding another ball-handler would be a priority with Alexander-Walker's likely exit. The Wolves could also look at adding another traditional center to play behind Gobert. Garza could also return on a minimum deal, team sources said. The Utah Jazz tendered a qualifying offer to center Oscar Tshiebwe, league sources tell The Athletic. This will make the former Kentucky star a restricted free agent The Jazz declined a qualifying offer on center Micah Potter, making him an unrestricted free agent Harry How / Getty Images There was no retirement announcement, no planning of a farewell tour. But yesterday's news that LeBron James opted into the final year of his contract — a first for him — made one thing extremely clear: This is the beginning of the end for maybe the best player to ever grace a basketball court. It's a fascinating double dose of reality, because of course a 40-year-old player entering his 23rd season is about to retire. James will become the longest-tenured NBA player ever this year, by both season total (23, topping Vince Carter's 22) and games played (he's 49 games behind Robert Parish's total of 1,611 games). But also … I don't think I ever truly expected James to retire, only because of how unremarkable his longevity has become. His career has spanned seven presidential terms now. LeBron playing in the NBA is just a part of the fabric of our reality. Yet it will come to an end — at some point. Read on for a quick explainer on where we are. This is an excerpt from The Pulse, The Athletic's daily newsletter. Sign up here to receive it in your inbox. Ronald Martinez / Getty Images You know how you can tell the Los Angeles Lakers' Luka Dončić era has officially begun? Because LeBron James had one of his classic media moments, with his longtime agent, Rich Paul, explaining James' decision to pick up his $52.6 million player option for next season in the kind of way that would have caused concern for his employer in years past, and it was met with the organizational equivalent of a shrug emoji. His leverage isn't what it once was these days, and that has everything to do with Dončić. 'LeBron knows the Lakers are building for the future, and he also wants to compete for championships,' Paul told The Athletic and ESPN. 'We understand the difficulty in winning now while preparing for the future. We do want to evaluate what's best for LeBron at this stage in his life and career. He wants to make every season he has left count, and the Lakers understand that, are supportive and want what's best for him. We are very appreciative of the partnership that we've had for eight years with Jeanie (Buss) and Rob (Pelinka) and consider the Lakers as a critical part of his career.' Only time will tell if this will be remembered as an early goodbye letter, but the tone of the messaging was such that it's fair to wonder how the LeBron-Lakers partnership will go from here. Read more on the current dynamic between James and the Lakers. GO FURTHER LeBron James' contract decision marks major Lakers shift — toward Luka Dončić Winslow Townson / Getty Images Denver Nuggets owner Josh Kroenke has had a difficult week. While discussing the limitations for teams that venture into the second apron, a payroll threshold well above the luxury tax that restricts the types of transactions an organization can make, Kroenke dropped what most fans consider a no-no. He referenced a three-time MVP, Nikola Jokić, and the word 'trade' in the same sentence. 'For us as an organization, going into that second apron is not necessarily something that we're scared of, (but) I think that there are rules around it that we needed to be very careful of with our injury history,' Kroenke told reporters on hand. 'The wrong person gets injured, and very quickly you're into a scenario that I never want to have to contemplate, and that's trading No. 15 (Jokić). 'We're very conscious of that, pushing forward, providing the resources that we can when the moment arrives. But that second apron — is it a hard cap? I'm not 100 percent sure. But it's something that teams are very aware of.' The reaction to Kroenke's honesty was not kind. Jokić is the NBA's consensus best player. How could an owner, especially one with a reputation of not wanting to spend money, possibly mention even in passing the thought of trading the greatest star in the franchise's history just because of a lowly payroll milestone? Such penny-pinching should be only for the paupers! The answer is because the second apron — even if it does trigger extravagant tax payments — is not just about the extra dollars. Read more about the impact of the second apron in my free agency notes column. GO FURTHER NBA offseason themes to watch: Pacers' roster-building, second-apron fears and more The Trail Blazers parting ways with Deandre Ayton was long in the works. His two-year tenure in Portland was marred by tardiness, tantrums and injuries, which in part led to Portland using its last two first-round picks on centers. Apparently unable to unload his expiring $35.6 million salary, the Blazers are negotiating a contract buyout, according to league sources. In 95 games with Portland, Ayton averaged 15.7 points and 10.7 rebounds, but he was unreliable on and off the court. On the court, he was sometimes benched because of effort, which led to sideline and locker room tantrums, and off the court, he was fined multiple times for being tardy to practices. He also sometimes blew off rehabilitation appointments while recovering from knee and calf injuries. He was a loud and light personality in the locker room and seemed well-liked by his teammates, but it was clear the organization didn't view him as a building block for its rebuild. Last season, Portland used the No. 7 pick on center Donovan Clingan, and this season, the Blazers selected Chinese center Yang Hansen with the 16th pick. Coach Chauncey Billups on Friday said the 7-foot-2 Yang is so talented that he will, without question, play this season, even though he is only 20. The Blazers at center also have veteran Robert Williams III and Duop Reath. In the past two seasons, Williams has appeared in only 26 games because of knee injuries, and Reath averaged 4.2 points in 46 games. GO FURTHER NBA Draft surprise: China center Yang Hansen picked at No. 16, dealt to Blazers Page 2
USA Today
38 minutes ago
- USA Today
Seahawks select offensive lineman in 2014 NFL redraft
2. Rams - Mike Evans4. Browns - Khalil MackRedrafting the 2014 NFL Draft using PFF grades and data 📊 The Seattle Seahawks did make a first-round pick in the 2014 NFL draft. The Seahawks were fresh off capturing their first championship in the franchise's 38 years history after defeating the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII. GM John Schneider traded the No. 32 overall selection in the follow-up draft to the Minnesota Vikings in exchange for Minnesota's second-and-fourth round picks (40th &108th). Seattle then traded down again, from No. 40 to 45, and made wide receiver Paul Richardson their first selection of the 2014 NFL draft. That proved to be a mistake. Richardson endured a disappointing four-year career with the Seahawks. After a teasing breakout campaign in 2017, the final year of his rookie contract, he signed a lucrative deal with Washington in free agency (and went on to disappoint again). The 2014 draft was a disappointing one for the Seahawks in general. Joining Richardson as the franchise's other top-100 pick was offensive tackle Justin Britt. Cassius Marsh and Kevin Norwood were among the other selections in the class. Remember them? As we all anxiously await training camp to start, Pro Football Focus recently conducted a 2014 NFL redraft. Always a fun exercise, PFF has the Seahawks keeping the 32nd pick this time around. They land offensive guard Trai Turner, who was actually taken in the third round. "Five-time Pro Bowler Trai Turner rounds out this redraft due to his solid stretch of play in Carolina, where he spent his first six seasons," PFF wrote. "Turner earned a 76.3 PFF overall grade in that span while contributing to some of the best Panthers teams in recent memory. Turner's best season came amid the Panthers' Super Bowl run in 2015, when he ranked as a top-eight guard in the NFL in PFF overall grade and PFF pass-blocking grade." Considering the offensive line struggles the Seahawks would encounter, Turner would have been a far better selection.
