INDIANAPOLIS \u2014 The trade speculation. The rumors. The non-answers. The revelations. Through one day of the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine, the rumor mill is already spinning in Indianapolis, where top draft-eligible prospects will be doing interviews as well as physical and medical evaluations with all 32 teams throughout the week. Here are my four takeaways from Day 1, which featured media availabilities with a large swath of NFL head coaches and general managers: C.J. Stroud rumors symbolic of just how steep decline has been Two years ago at this time, C.J. Stroud seemed to be on a superstar trajectory and on track to challenge the likes of Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson in the AFC. He\u2019d just put together one of the best rookie quarterback seasons in league history, leading Houston to a playoff victory. Tuesday, we saw Texans general manager Nick Caserio shoot down rumors that Houston could move the former No. 2 overall pick. “Moronic,” he said, in part. Caserio\u2019s response is justified, sure. But the speculation is emblematic of just how much \u2014 and how quickly \u2014 the perception of Stroud has tumbled. After an underwhelming second season in 2024, the former Ohio State star continued his inconsistent play this past year, hurting the high hopes of a Texans team that boasted arguably the NFL\u2019s best defense. Stroud completed 64.5% of his passes for 3,041 yards and 19 touchdowns against eight interceptions in 14 games in 2025. He added five interceptions and five fumbles (two lost) in Houston\u2019s two playoff games, including four picks in the divisional-round loss to New England. “He\u2019s our quarterback,” Caserio said. “He isn\u2019t going anywhere.” As should be the case. Stroud’s decline since his outstanding rookie season is alarming, but not so much so that the Texans \u2014 or anyone \u2014 can forget what he\u2019s shown he can be at his peak. The biggest thing is that a mega extension doesn\u2019t make sense this offseason (he\u2019s eligible for a second contract, as he\u2019s completing three full seasons). The logical move would be to pick up the fifth-year option on his rookie contract by the May 1 deadline \u2014 that would give him a fully guaranteed $27.249 million for 2027 \u2014 then revisit his future after the 2026 season. Raiders\u2019 return in potential Maxx Crosby trade could surpass Micah Parsons deal While saying multiple times that he expects Maxx Crosby to be a Raider in 2026, Las Vegas general manager John Spytek wouldn\u2019t go as far as to say that the All-Pro defensive end is untradeable. “We\u2019re always listening,” Spytek said. Of course, those remarks will only add fuel to the trade speculation surrounding Crosby. That thought started gaining momentum at the end of last season, when the five-time Pro Bowler was frustrated with the team\u2019s decision to place him on season-ending injured reserve with two games left in the year. FOX Sports\u2019 Jay Glazer reported ahead of the Super Bowl that Crosby is likely done in Vegas. Considering the time of year, Spytek\u2019s “we\u2019re always listening” remark could be interpreted as\u00a0keep the offers coming! If you\u2019re a contending team with a pass-rush need, it would essentially be malpractice not to at least poke around and give the Raiders a call. Glazer has said when the news of his discontentment broke last season, “no less than 20 teams” reached out to him. In August, the Cowboys traded Micah Parsons to the Packers for defensive tackle Kenny Clark and two first-round picks. Parsons is two years younger and Crosby has two fewer All-Pro nods in the last five seasons, but it\u2019s reasonable to believe that what the Raiders can get for Crosby could exceed what Dallas got from Green Bay for Parsons. Why? Demand, for one. Few, if any, league observers believed that the Cowboys would actually trade Parsons, a young superstar pass rusher. Many of Jerry Jones\u2019 previous contract disputes with cornerstone players ended with said players staying put in Dallas. It\u2019s a big part of the reason why Parsons getting traded to the Packers was a seismic shock for the league. In Crosby\u2019s situation, though, his discontentment is well known and has been for months. That means more teams can line up, which drives up his value for the Raiders, who are in an advantageous position for a quick rebuild. Las Vegas ranks second in cap space ($91.5M), per Over The Cap, and holds eight picks in the upcoming draft, including the No. 1 overall pick. And that\u2019s with Crosby still on the roster. Two offensive-minded HCs give up playcalling Broncos coach Sean Payton and Panthers coach Dave Canales both announced Tuesday that they\u2019d be relinquishing playcalling responsibilities in 2026 to their offensive coordinators. In Denver, that\u2019s Davis Webb, who was a hot candidate in the past head coach interviewing cycle. In Carolina, that\u2019s\u00a0Brad Idzik, who\u2019s entering his third season as the team\u2019s OC. The most clear benefit for head coaches is that it allows them to take more of a CEO-like role running their teams. They get to spend significant time with all three units \u2014 not just the phase they specialize in. Non-playcalling head coaches have had more visible success as of late. Mike Vrabel led the Patriots to the Super Bowl in his first year as coach. Nick Sirianni has had the Eagles in two of the last four Super Bowls. I\u2019m not sure this will become a\u00a0massive trend. The Seahawks’ Mike MacDonald, after all, just became the first defensive playcalling head coach to win a Lombardi Trophy. The likes of Sean McVay, Kyle Shanahan and Andy Reid are all still calling offensive plays. But I do believe relinquishing playcalling responsibilities could be more commonplace for teams looking to retain promising assistants. The 31-year-old Webb in Denver is a great example. The Broncos pass game coordinator and quarterbacks coach last season, Webb received several head coach interviews this offseason before ultimately returning to Payton\u2019s staff. Fewer trades, non-premium position players poised to define 1st round of draft Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said Tuesday that there\u2019s an “old-school” feel to this year\u2019s draft class. “You’re always going to O-line, D-line, those positional values are there,” he explained. “You see them in free agency. But at the same time, I mean, arguably, some of the best players in this draft are maybe at non-premium positions. When you look at the Ohio State linebacker [Arvel Reese], the Notre Dame running back [Jeremiyah Love], the safety from Ohio State [Caleb Downs]. So, those are really, really good players. It\u2019s hard to find fault with their tape. Really solid. But again, some of those more premium positions \u2014 interior D-line, edge rushers \u2014 they’re hard to find.” This is just one general manager\u2019s opinion, but many league observers and draft analysts have shared this sentiment. And this was already shaping to be a quiet first-round trade type of draft, with there only being one consensus blue-chip quarterback (Indiana\u2019s Fernando Mendoza, who\u2019s expected to go No. 1 to the Raiders). Don\u2019t be surprised to see “best available” be a true emphasis for teams across the NFL at the top of the draft this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
INDIANAPOLIS \u2014 The trade speculation. The rumors. The non-answers. The revelations. Through one day of the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine, the rumor mill is already spinning in Indianapolis, where top draft-eligible prospects will be doing interviews as well as physical and medical evaluations with all 32 teams throughout the week. Here are my four takeaways<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32259"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32259"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32259\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32259"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32259"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onlinebettingnewyork.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}