The Raiders went into the offseason with a serious need at wide receiver and despite investing heavily in other position groups on the roster, GM John Spytek didn’t make any major moves at wide receiver.
The addition of Jalen Nailor on a three-year, $35 million deal was Spytek’s big move at wide receiver, and based on reports from around the team, Nailor was the wide receiver the Raiders were zeroed in on from before the start of free agency.
So far, the Nailor signing hasn’t worked out great for Spytek and company as the 27-year-old wideout has just six receptions on the season and no touchdowns.
The wide receiver who has looked good, though, is soon-to-be-free-agent wide receiver Tre Tucker.
Tucker turned in a monster two-touchdown performance against the Bills on Sunday, and he hasn’t been held under four receptions in a game since week one.
At 5’8, 182 pounds, Tucker doesn’t fit the mold of a true no. 1 wide receiver, and maybe that’s why the Raiders chose not to extend his deal in the offseason.
But as of the third week of October, the best use of $35 million on a wide receiver would have been on Tucker, and not Nailor.
Nailor is all but tied to the roster for another year, and if the Raiders do decide to move on from him after the season, the cost would be nearly $14 million in dead money, according to Over The Cap.
What would the Raiders pay to keep Tucker now?
The gamble didn’t pay off to wait on Tucker’s contract, and Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter spoke with a league executive this week who believes the cost to extend Tucker’s deal now would be at least $14 million per year.
“I can’t see any scenario where his agent lets him sign for anything south of $14 million,” Carpenter said an anonymous NFL executive told him. “With a hefty signing bonus, I think a three-year $42 million deal is right in line. Perhaps, if the Raiders really love him, you go four years with a big bonus that could get a smaller number, but not being his agent, I can’t attest to that.”
To be fair to Spytek, there weren’t many people clamoring to extend Tucker’s deal in the offseason, but it sure seems like that would have been the best decision.
If Tucker continues at his current pace, he will end the season with 68 receptions, 1.049 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.
At Nailor’s rate, he will end the year 17 receptions and 172 receiving yards.
