The Raiders are having a pre-move liquidation sale where simply EVERYTHING MUST GO!
Yes, the Raiders are open for business, having already traded Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper for three first-round draft picks.
And the scuttlebutt around the league is that coach Jon Gruden would be open to moving quarterback Derek Carr for another first-round pick.
I don’t see that move on the horizon — as much as Gruden believes in backup AJ McCarron, it’s probably too early for the Raiders to move on from Carr — but I do have three proposals that the Raiders (and the rest of the NFL) should consider:
Trade: Kelechi Osemele to the Houston Texans
(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
The Raiders’ indomitable left guard is currently a question mark to play Sunday against the Colts, but when he’s healthy, there are few in the NFL who are on his level.
The Raiders, of course, would need a massive return to move Osemele — they’ve seen how left tackle Kolton Miller has played without KO covering for him.
But the Texans would be well served to make a big move for the big man. Houston appears to have the clearest path to the AFC South crown, and with all the talent on that roster — particularly on the defensive side of the ball — they should go all-in on what could be a short Super Bowl contention window. Add in Bill O’Brien’s mercurial “seat” and he has more incentive to be bold.
And looking at the Texans, the only real problem — the only Achilles heel I see — is their offensive line, which is downright terrible and required Deshaun Watson to drive to Jacksonville last week.
Yes, the Texans’ offensive line is so bad that their quarterback wasn’t allowed to take a 70-minute flight, mid-season. That’s next-level.
And yet they’re still atop the division and the favorites to hold onto that spot.
Osemele is exactly what they need to get to the level of the Chiefs and Patriots (who appear to have taken a step back this year) — seriously — and they have the cap space to take on his contract, which is extremely team-friendly in 2019 and 2020.
Would the Texans be willing to move a first-round pick for Osemele? He’s certainly worth it, and Gruden would be hard pressed to turn a deal like that down — it’s hard to justify big contracts for guards in a zone-blocking system, even one as unquestionably awesome as KO.
Perhaps the Raiders — already flush with first-round picks — should go for some second-day accrual if the Texans balk at a first-round pick. Would two second-round picks — Seattle’s in 2019, Houston’s in 2020 — get the job done?
Trade: Jared Cook to the Patriots or Bengals
(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
I am fully aware that there is no viable backup to Cook on the Raiders’ depth chart if they trade him, but if you’re going to tank, you need to put future needs over the team’s current ones. Despite what Gruden says, his team is tanking.
And Cook is a pending free agent and he could provide tremendous value to a few playoff-contending teams in the second half of the season.
The Patriots — who can never have enough tight ends and lack a second viable pass-catcher at the position — and Bengals — who lack a viable NFL starter at the position — both come to mind.
Can Gruden get a bidding war going and land a fourth-round pick for Cook?
If so, he should move on from Cook and promote Paul Butler from the practice squad for the final stretch of the season. It won’t do a damn thing to help the Raiders today, but that’s not what this season is about, is it?
Trade: Karl Joseph… and Jordy Nelson to the Packers
(WIRE)
The Packers desperately need a safety and while Karl Joseph isn’t much of a safety, both teams should be desperate enough to make a deal for the West Virginia product.
And while I’ve heard and read a lot of different values attached Joseph’s name and it’s nice for fans to think that the Raiders could recoup some serious value for him, I tend to believe those who say that Gruden will take just about anything for him at this point and that the rest of the NFL knows it. Yes, that means a day-three pick for a recent first-round pick.
But if the Raiders want to recoup some value, they would be well-served to toss in an old Green Bay friend, Jordy Nelson, into the deal.
The 33-year-old receiver can be cut without penalty at the end of the season, and the Packers could use some help at wideout, too. Nelson certainly knows the system around those parts.
Will the Packers have enough pride to admit that they shouldn’t have let Nelson go in the first place? Beats me, but the pair of Jospeh and Nelson would bolster a Packers team that’s living on the edge of relevancy. Plus, Green Bay has an extra sixth-round pick in April.
Toss in a fourth with that sixth and the Raiders would be hard to turn down that deal for a non-factor player and a veteran receiver.
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