The first time the Vikings reached out to the Raiders about a potential trade for Kirk Cousins was midday Monday, hours before Minnesota played the Bills on "Monday Night Football," league sources told ESPN and NFL Network.
During that call, the Vikings made it clear to the Raiders that they wanted to see how Monday night went first before having any further conversations about Cousins, but they would be in touch if needed.
Bright and early the next morning, hours after Minnesota's offensive meltdown, the Vikings called back, reaching out to the Raiders before 6 a.m. PT and setting the wheels in motion for a potential Cousins trade.
It was not a deal the Raiders wanted, nor were looking to make, especially when Minnesota's initial offer was a fifth-round draft pick, according to sources.
But once the Vikings upped their offer to a third-round pick, the Raiders had discussions about whether the trade made sense, and here's where they landed:
Not only would they be receiving a third-round pick, but they also would be freeing up $10 million in cash for the 2027 season, as the bonus guarantee owed to Cousins would shift to Minnesota's responsibility. It was not a trade that the Raiders enjoyed making, but it was one they believed would be in the best interests of the organization.
The Raiders also believed 2026 No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza has looked, in the word of one source, "phenomenal" in practice. There never was going to be a right time to insert Mendoza into the starting lineup, but Minnesota made this as good a time as any.
Cousins will start Sunday against the Packers at Lambeau Field, and Mendoza will make his first career start against the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks.
Competition committee to discuss trade snafus
The NFL's competition committee is expected to discuss a potential solution after multiple trades this week were voided or altered, according to sources.
In the last week alone: the Bengals declined to make a deal for linebacker Arnold Ebiketie after agreeing to terms on a trade with the Eagles; the Lions and Jets altered the compensation they initially agreed to in a trade for safety Andre Cisco; and the Broncos voided a trade with the Chargers for Daiyan Henley after concerns about the linebackers knee and the sides were unable to agree to revised compensation.
Last offseason, the Raiders and Ravens agreed to a Maxx Crosby trade before the star pass rusher failed his physical and the trade was voided.
Now front office executives are complaining, and the competition committee is expected to address the issue during the offseason.
Various font office executives last week pointed out that trades terms should not be negotiable once they are agreed to, as the Lions attempted to do in a deal for Cisco and the Broncos attempted to do with Henley.
Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh said as much to reporters Thursday, asserting that the loophole in the NFL's trade system needs to be closed so that teams cannot back out of deals.
The Eagles were not pleased that the Bengals reneged on their deal for Ebiketie after learning they would lose a third-round compensatory pick by making the deal, and the Chargers were unhappy that the Broncos tried to change the terms on their deal for Henley after he took a physical that led to questions about his knees.
It is an issue that bears watching this offseason, and some around the league believe rule modifications are in order.
A possible solution would be preventing the teams from altering draft picks after a trade is agreed upon, only giving teams the option to accept or not.
Arms race
The Jaguars and Bills will be in competition to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. But both were in competition for some of the same players ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline.
The two teams that were most aggressive in trading for Eagles defensive tackle Jordan Davis were the Bills and Jaguars, who wound up trading a first-and second-round pick to the Eagles.
The two teams that were most aggressive in trading for former Falcons safety Jessie Bates also were the Bills and Jaguars, who wound up trading second- and fifth-round picks to Atlanta.
After the Jaguars traded for Davis and Bates, the Bills pivoted to two safeties: Arizona's Budda Baker and Tennessee's Amani Hooker. The Cardinals declined to trade their respected veteran safety, but the Titans listened and agreed to trade Hooker and a fifth-round pick to the Bills for a second-round pick.
So in the end, two of the AFC's best each got better. They competed for some of the same players and now are expected to be competing for the AFC championship.
Keeping up with the Joneses
The San Francisco 49ers left no doubt how much they value quarterback Mac Jones.
When the Vikings called San Francisco as part of due diligence in their search for a quarterback, sources told ESPN that Niners general manager John Lynch informed Minnesota brass that it would take a second-round pick and more for Jones. Perhaps a second-rounder and a mid-round pick might have gotten a trade done.
Instead, because of the high cost associated with the veteran quarterback, the conversations ended there, and Jones remains a valued member of the 49ers.
This was not the first time the teams had spoken about Jones going in a possible trade, and not the first time San Francisco had set a price that high. Niners coach Kyle Shanahan views Jones as a franchise-caliber quarterback and would only trade him for a deal they had no choice but to accept.
And to add to that value, Jones won four of his first five starts in place of the injured Brock Purdy last year despite battling injuries of his own, and ended up with a 5-3 record and a QB rating of 97.4 for the season.
In the final year of his two-year, $8.41 million contract, Jones is a free agent after the season.
Check-ins
The Green Bay Packers and Broncos checked in on Titans running back Tony Pollard, whom Tennessee would not have traded for anything less than at least a third-round pick.
While the Eagles traded stars in Davis and center Cam Jurgens in the flurry leading up to the deadline, they held off trading another player who was wanted -- Dallas Goedert.
Sources say several teams inquired about the pass-catching tight end, including the 49ers. But the 31-year-old Goedert never got close to being traded, despite interest. He remains in Philadelphia and could even re-sign with the Eagles for 2027.