According to reports in recent days, the Raiders have been active in their efforts to upgrade at a few positions, and the assumption has been that cornerback and wide receiver are two positions they would like to address if an opportunity arises.
“They’re out there poking around the league, looking for any advantage to improve the [team]. They’re being very aggressive,” Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter said this week on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast.
Of course, every team is looking to find players in the last week of August, but the Raiders might be hoping to find a couple of starters in the next couple of weeks. Additionally, the backup quarterback situation in Las Vegas isn’t quite as encouraging as it was two weeks ago.
Aidan O’Connell had a great start to training camp but has struggled in two preseason games, and if an intriguing trade option pops up at the quarterback position, head coach Pete Carroll has never been shy about adding quarterbacks.
Carroll also loves a reclamation project and according to Corbin Smith, who covered Carroll in Seattle, the former Seahawks head coach has been a fan of Anthony Richardson for a long time.
With Richardson officially losing his job to Daniel Jones on Tuesday, the Colts could be inclined to salvage a draft pick for their former first-round pick and the Raiders could be a team to watch.
It’s only speculation at this point, but if Carroll has a high opinion of Richardson, it makes sense for the Raiders to at least reach out to the Colts and see what they would want for him.
Every indication is that the coaching staff in Las Vegas still has confidence in O’Connell, but a change of scenery might be something that would benefit everyone involved.
O’Connell could be an upgrade in Indianapolis as their no. 2 quarterback, and Richardson would surely welcome an opportunity somewhere else.
If the decision makers in Indianapolis are ready to turn the page on Richardson, who just turned 23 in May, there might not be many better fits for his career than Las Vegas.
x: @raidersbeat
Someone is smoking a bad pipe if they think Richardson is an NFL caliber QB. Not worth more than a flyer 7th rounder.
I wouldn’t give up much draft compensation for Richardson, but I do think that he would be a lot better backup QB than AO. Bring him on board if the price is right!
I probably wouldn’t do more than a 6th, or maybe a 5th with a pick swap. Or maybe the Colts might want a player the Raiders aren’t high on. Richardson didn’t even complete 50% of his passes last year, which would have been bad 50 years ago, and is disastrous these days. I thought taking him in the top 10 was insane a few years ago. That said, he has some rare gifts and traits, between his running ability and arm strength. He could contribute right away with some gadget plays and short yardage situations while working on becoming serviceable at, like, everything else you need to play QB in the NFL. I can see some potential upside if the price is right.
I think Spytek ,and Carroll are to smart to do something stupid like that!
Anybody is an upgrade at this point.