The Baltimore Ravens are among five teams that have spoken with Jarvis Landry's agent about a trade for the three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver, a source told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
The Ravens just can't overspend for Landry, despite being extremely desperate for an impact wide receiver.
Baltimore doesn't have the cap room or the justification to pay Landry's reported asking price of $14.5 million per season, much less a draft pick that would be required to complete a trade with the Miami Dolphins.
Consider this: Four of the five wide receivers who earn more than $14 million per season -- Antonio Brown, DeAndre Hopkins, A.J. Green and Julio Jones -- have career averages of 13.5 yards per completion or higher. Landry's is 10.1.
The general rule is teams don't pay top-five money to slot receivers who regularly don't take the tops off defenses. Landry delivered four catches of 25 or more yards last season. In comparison, Mike Wallace had six for Baltimore.
There's no debate that Landry can improve a Ravens passing attack that ranked No. 29 and watched its receivers struggle catching the ball at times. Landry is young (25) and is a record-setting receiver. He caught more passes than anyone else in their first four seasons (400 receptions).
Landry brings consistent hands, proven production in the red zone and a good track record of extending drives on third downs. But the Ravens' bigger need is finding an explosive playmaker who can get strong-armed Joe Flacco out of his habit of throwing short.
Baltimore has neither the cap space or draft picks to splurge, either. The Ravens rank among the teams with the least amount of cap room with $9.6 million, and they didn't get the anticipated third-round compensatory pick.
The better value is to wait for the wide receivers who will be getting cut for cap reasons. A potential release is Green Bay's Jordy Nelson.
Baltimore typically doesn't pursue unrestricted free agents, and that pool of available wide receivers could dwindle if Jacksonville's Allen Robinson and the Los Angeles Rams' Sammy Watkins get the franchise tag.
Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said Friday that he's looking forward to changing the look of the wide receiver room. That could signal the exits of Wallace (free agent) and Jeremy Maclin (potential cut), increasing the pressure for Baltimore to add playmaking weapons for Joe Flacco.
The best option to get a wide receiver in his prime might be Landry, which could explain the interest in him. Other teams that have been linked to Landry are the Chicago Bears, San Francisco 49ers and the Cleveland Browns -- all of whom have more than $63 million in cap space.
Newsome has always adhered to the motto "right player, right price" throughout his career. Giving up a draft pick and a premium contract to Landry wouldn't fit that saying, although that could change if the Dolphins remove the tag (Miami is over the cap) and Landry's targeted price goes down.