Everyone is talking about Tom Brady as the most important piece of the 2020 free agent puzzle, but Raider fans should keep an eye on the status of another quarterback rumored to be getting a new zip code.
For all the mockery that’s going around of the Matthew Stafford trade rumors (mostly because Detroit would assume $32M in dead cap by trading him), the Lions have to consider taking Tua Tagovailoa with the no. 3 pick.
Stafford is 32 years old and how many chances do you get to draft a quarterback like Tua?
Sure, the Lions would eat some dead money by trading Stafford, but they’d get a high pick or two in return and the future would look much brighter in the long term. Plus, there’s the option of trading Darius Slay and saving another $10 million on next year’s cap. By trading Stafford and Slay, both of whom are entering the distant side of their prime, the Lions would come away with about the same salary cap number in 2020 as they would if they kept both players – plus they’d have a stockpile of additional draft picks.
So where do the Raiders come into play?
Well, Jon Gruden needs a cornerback and having just turned 29, Darius Slay might still have a few good years left.
If the Lions trade Stafford, there is a good chance Slay wouldn’t be far behind and the Raiders would be wise to check in on what the Lions would want for him.
So don’t ignore the Stafford rumors.
The Lions might have to eat some money to trade him, but if Stafford stays he’ll count for around $80M against their salary cap over the next three years. Doesn’t that sound like the even bigger waste of money than eating a little more than a third of that in dead money?
twitter: @raidersbeat
Stafford is in a very similar situation as Carr. Good QB on a perennially bad team. He’s not the issue with the Lions, their terrible team building is. Sound familiar? Stafford has plant of years of high level QB play left, if only the Lions could get out if their own way and actually build a good team. Maybe Raiders will do the same before Carr’s career is wasted.