Ravens trade for New York Jets running back in ESPN proposal

Keep the rumors coming, folks!

As we get closer to the NFL trade deadline on Oct. 31, the rumor mill is starting to heat up on a daily basis. You already saw the first dream trade involving the Ravens when we covered PFF's proposal.

Today, we're doing the same with another, perhaps even wilder, proposal from an ESPN analyst that involves Baltimore and the New York Jets.

As long-time scribe Bill Barnwell of ESPN sees it, there might be a case to be made for the Jets to move on from running cak Dalvin Cook just weeks after signing him as a free agent earlier this season.

The Ravens would be giving up a 2025 fifth-round pick while acquiring both Cook and a 2025 fourth-round pick. Here is how Barnwell explained the transaction.

"The Ravens would be buying some additional draft capital and adding a veteran back as a flier to help plug another hole caused by injuries. J.K. Dobbins is out for the year (Achilles), while Justice Hill has been battling a turf toe injury. General manager Eric DeCosta has turned to veterans Kenyan Drake and Melvin Gordon III with limited results, but Cook was a more productive back as recently as last season. Adding Cook into the mix would land Baltimore some upside and limited downside, given the guaranteed victory in terms of draft capital. New York would actually be giving up extra draft capital to get Cook out the door for a swap of selections in the 2025 draft. It's better to give his carries to Hall and Israel Abanikanda and roll the $3.4 million over to 2024."

- Bill Barnwell, ESPN

The Jets acquired Cook to bolster their backfield once the Vikings moved on from the aging superstar rusher before the season.

Back then, the move made sense for the NY Jets as they expected to pair QB Aaron Rodgers with Cook. That, of course, has not been possible after Rodgers suffered an injury a few snaps into the season ruling him out for the remainder of the year. The Jets are now 2-3.

Barnwell thinks this trade would make sense for the Ravens after losing J.K. Dobbins for the full season with a torn Achilles. On top of that, the analyst thinks that Baltimore should also be able to get a favorable pick swap in the deal.

As Barnwell pointed out, the Ravens have already tried to patch the backfield by signing veteran Melvin Gordon III through training camp, and later adding former Raven Kenyan Drake. None of the two has been a world-beater, so it might make sense to add another, more proven piece to the running back room.

Cook has racked up yards of late. He's coming off putting together four consecutive seasons of 1,000+ yards rushing. He is "only" 28 years old, and he's playing under a reasonably cheap one-year deal in New York.

As Toni Lombardi of RSR noted, "this proposed trade would hit the Ravens 2023 cap to the tune of an estimated $3.9M if the trade is pulled off just before the deadline," which means that the franchise "would have to make some salary cap modifications," most probably restructuring some of their larger contracts.