Broncos trade for Su’a Cravens from Redskins

The Denver Broncos are bolstering their defense, trading for safety Su’a Cravens from the Washington Redskins in exchange for a draft pick swap.

After signing quarterback Case Keenum in free agency, Denver Broncos general manager John Elway is now turning his attention to the defense. On Wednesday morning, the Broncos agreed to swap fourth and fifth-round picks with the Redskins, and outright trade a fifth-round choice, in exchange for safety Su’a Cravens.

Cravens, 22, was a second-round pick out of USC by Washington in 2016, but he never panned out in the nation’s capital. The Redskins saw Cravens play 11 games as a rookie and record 34 tackles with an interception. However, Cravens didn’t play a single game in 2017 after talking about retirement prior to Week 1. Cravens decided to continue playing but never made an appearance on the gameday roster, working his way back from a concussion.

With Cravens coming to Denver, he adds a bit of versatility to the back end of the defense. The starting safeties are still projected to be Darian Stewart and Justin Simmons, although the USC product could push for playing time. In subpackages, look for the 224-pound safety to play a hybrid linebacker role, helping to shore up the unit against the run.

Next: Best NFL player from each state

Meanwhile, Washington is moving on from a young player with an uncertain future. The Redskins are in the midst of a soft rebuild after allowing Kirk Cousins to leave via free agency, and replacing him with Alex Smith via trade. Early projections would have the Redskins no higher than third in the NFC East.