The Buccaneers are shopping Darrelle Revis and trade rumors have the Oakland Raiders and Cleveland Browns As two teams that could be interested in a move, while the Philadelphia Eagles and New England Patriots have been identified as teams that could be interested in the Tampa Bay corner if he is released instead.
Revis reportedly will not take a pay cut and that puts the possibility of a trade and his release as the two most likely outcomes of this situation with the Buccaneers. According to ESPN.com, the team started shopping Revis ahead of the deadline for free agency to start and for teams to be under the cap and so far the Cleveland Browns and Oakland Raiders have emerged as possible options. Any team that trades for Revis needs the space for his massive contract and $16 million this season and the raiders and Browns happen to have some of the highest totals in cap space in the league.
The Raiders easily could do the deal and still have money to spend, but the problem is that the Buccaneers want two first round picks for him and that is something Oakland is unlikely to part with. According to Pro Football Talk, the Browns connection to Revis is through Mike Pettine, his former coordinator in New York and the fact that the team has financial flexibility makes it a fit as well. On top of that, the Browns have an extra first round pick after making the Trent Richardson trade and while they do not want to give up two picks, to get Revis it could be worth it.
The 28 year old star is considered to be one of the best cornerbacks in the league and now he could be moving again after previously getting traded by the Jets. The team could cut him as well and now the Jets are keeping tabs on this, as a pick they got in the deal last year between the two teams is conditional and it could be a third round pick if Revis remains on the roster past 4 pm on Wednesday.
The Eagles and Patriots have been identified as teams that would be interested in signing Revis if he is released, but in Philadelphia the ghost of high paid cornerbacks past lives in Nnamdi Asomugha, who was signed to a huge deal and he ended up making over $20 million for two terrible seasons with the team. The Eagles could add someone like Revis, but they need to clear space for it and they can't have one player dominating the cap from the cornerback position again, but it sure would help a pass defense that wasn't very sharp last season.
The Patriots like Revis and always have and if they lose Aqib Talib in free agency, they could be players as well. The Raiders have the space to make a trade for Revis, but Reggie McKenzie must decide if that's the right move for the team now that they finally are in the situation they want to be in financially after years of breaking to down.