Raiders trade WR Bryan Edwards to Falcons

Days after the Raiders signed Keelan Cole, they are moving on from one of their other auxiliary wide receivers. They are trading Bryan Edwards to the Falcons, Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal tweets.

The Raiders will add a 2023 fifth-round pick in this deal and send the Falcons a 2023 seventh, according to ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter. It should not surprise anyone that this pick swap-based deal is reminiscent of the kind of trades the Patriots made frequently in recent years, with the Raiders’ new regime coming over from New England.

Two years remain on Edwards’ rookie contract; this will both give a former Day 2 pick a fresh start but also provide an opportunity to impress for a team with a thin receiving corps. Although the Falcons drafted Drake London eighth overall, they entered Friday light on supporting-casters at the position. Edwards will join the likes of Olamide Zaccheaus, Auden Tate, Damiere Byrd and KhaDarel Hodge.

This trade marks another Raiders separation from an early-round 2020 draftee. They have waived Henry Ruggs and Damon Arnette and traded Lynn Bowden Jr. and Edwards. The 6-foot-3 target battled injuries as a rookie but did show progress last season, hauling in 34 passes for 571 yards and three touchdowns. Las Vegas’ Dave Ziegler- and Josh McDaniels-led regime, however, has since acquired Cole, Demarcus Robinson and Mack Hollins, crowding the depth chart around top targets Davante Adams, Darren Waller and Hunter Renfrow.