It's officially trade season in the NFL, and if history is any indication, it's only a matter of time until the Baltimore Ravens join in on the fun.
Tuesday saw the mid-season trade frenzy begin with a bang, as the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills acquired star wide receivers in Davante Adams and Amari Cooper, respectively. There's still almost three full weeks until the trade deadline, so more fireworks are sure to follow.
Baltimore has shown a tendency to be aggressive at the deadline, acquiring players such as Marcus Peters, Yannick Ngakoue and Roquan Smith mid-season. Even last year, when the Ravens didn't make any big mid-season trades, they pushed hard for star running back Derrick Henry before ultimately signing him this offseason. This team absolutely has Super Bowl potential, and one more addition could end up pushing them over the top.
According to the Baltimore Sun's Brian Wacker, one possible trade target is edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney, who spent last season with the Ravens and finished second on the team with 9.5 sacks.
"At 31 years old, Clowney isn't sticking around for a long and messy rebuild [with the Carolina Panthers] after signing a two-year, $20 million free agent deal in the offseason," Wacker wrote. "That makes him an attractive trade piece for a contender," Wacker wrote. "Baltimore certainly fits the bill, and he'd fit right in to return after matching his career high with 9 1/2 sacks for the Ravens last season.
"Clowney would also be affordable to the salary cap-strapped Ravens ($4.12 million of room, per Over The Cap) since Carolina already paid him his $8 million signing bonus plus six game checks, thus reducing his $6 million cap hit for this season significantly."
Playing for his hometown team, Clowney hasn't been able to replicate the success he had in Baltimore last season. The former No. 1 overall pick has just one sack in five games, which somehow ties him with two other players for third-most on the team (two players have 1.5).
At 1-5, the Panthers aren't making the playoffs any time soon, so sending Clowney back to Baltimore to recoup some value could be in their best interest. For the 31-year old, a reunion with the Ravens could give him his best chance at a Super Bowl.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/ravens/ as Ravens Urged to Bring Back Pro-Bowl Defender.