Yahoo Sports No surprise: Jon Gruden sees 'a lot of potential' in trading draft picks
The Oakland Raiders have several needs to address this offseason. And with three first-round picks — fourth, 24th, and 27th — in this year’s draft, Oakland will have the opportunity to fill those holes in its roster. But the Raiders may not have all three picks by draft night. Why? Well, head coach Jon Gruden sees “a lot of potential” trading those picks, according to J.T. the Brick on “The Game Plan” podcast, via nfl.com.
Oakland received the 24th and 27th picks through trades with the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys. Gruden’s excited about possibly trading picks, which, of course, shouldn’t surprise anyone.
“I think that’s one of the things I’m really excited about” Gruden said. “[New Raiders general manager] Mike Mayock what he brings to the table, he’s got great resources around the NFL. He’s been in every building, he’s on a first-name basis; everybody knows Mike. And I think he’s gonna be on the phones quite a bit, not only with those two picks you talked about, who knows, we may move up with the No. 4 pick, we may move back with that pick. We’ll see how it all unfolds.”
For right now, though, the Raiders are studying free agents, especially young players whose contracts expire in 2019.
“That’s what we’ve been doing the last 10 days. We have been doing nothing but studying free agents, guys that’s contracts are up,” Gruden said. “Obviously we’re not looking to add players that are at the end of their career. We’re looking for blossoming young players. Those guys usually don’t get to free agency. So the pickings are slim, for everybody, but there are a couple diamonds in the rough. We’ll see where the market goes.”
Gruden says the team doesn’t want to spend all its money on free agents; instead, the Raiders want to save money in case a trade develops in the draft. Gruden says they don’t know which players they want to select.
What should the Raiders do with their picks?
Indeed, the Raiders have several needs. After all, this team finished with a 4-12 record after shipping linebacker Khalil Mack to the Bears and receiver Amari Cooper to the Cowboys. This team is devoid of talent on both sides of the ball. The Raiders have two options: trade up to select Heisman Trophy winner Kyler Murray at No. 1 or stay put.
OK, I probably know what you’re thinking: Oakland has Derek Carr, so why would the Raiders trade up for a quarterback? Carr has been mediocre at best over the past two seasons — throwing for 41 touchdowns and 23 interceptions. He hasn’t lived up to that massive $125 million contract he signed in 2017, so trading him to a quarterback-needy team would help the Raiders completely usher in a new era.
Cutting Carr before June 1 would be a terrible idea for Oakland because he would account for $27.4 million in dead money, according to OverTheCap.com. The Raiders need a player who could help galvanize and breathe life into a franchise that only recorded one winning season over the past 16 seasons.
But if the Raiders can’t find a trade partner for Carr, just stay put and select the best player available. If they are serious about turning this franchise around, it starts with adding a potential franchise quarterback. Murray fits the bill.
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