The Raiders have found their veteran quarterback in Geno Smith and according to The Athletic’s Tashan Reed, the team reached a decision to pursue Smith after meetings with input from five key figures in the organization.
“After striking out in their effort to trade for Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford last week, minority owner Tom Brady, [Pete] Carroll, general manager John Spytek, offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and quarterback coach Greg Olson held meetings at team headquarters in Henderson, Nev., to chart the path forward at quarterback,” Reed reported on Saturday.
“After those meetings, the Raiders came to a consensus that Smith was the best veteran quarterback available this offseason. Why was Las Vegas so set on acquiring a veteran quarterback? Coming out of the NFL Scouting Combine last week, several members of the Raiders’ offensive coaching staff preferred adding a proven veteran to taking a dice roll on a rookie quarterback, according to league sources.”
With Smith expected to sign a long-term deal before the start of the season, the Raiders don’t have to enter the draft with a sense of urgency at the quarterback position.
But according to Reed, there is still a chance the Raiders will jump on a quarterback in the first round.
“The Raiders’ acquisition of Smith doesn’t eliminate the possibility of them taking a quarterback in the 2025 draft,” Reed said. “They’re still considering a quarterback as early as the first round, according to league sources.”
“After all, the Raiders knew they were aiming to add a veteran quarterback last week and still met with prospects at the combine, including Miami’s Cam Ward, Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, Texas’ Quinn Ewers and Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart,” Reed continued. “According to league sources, the Raiders came away particularly impressed with Milroe and Ewers after going over X’s and O’s and film.”
If Brady and the gang give Smith the kind of contract they are rumored to be considering, it seems like a long the Raiders would spend a first-round pick on a quarterback – especially considering a separate report at The Athletic has already indicated the team is “lukewarm” on the quarterbacks at the top of this year’s draft.
For what it’s worth, Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter said there is a chance Smith could be in line for a five-year deal that is effectively more like a two or three-year deal.
“I am hearing that it may end up being a five-year, $200 million deal with Geno,” Carpenter said the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast. “But you have remember something in the NFL. That doesn’t mean it’s a $200 million deal because you have to look at guaranteed money and everything else. It could be a five-year, $200 million deal, but it’s one that the Raiders could get out of after two or three years.”
The most likely quarterback scenario in the draft will be a day 2 or 3 quarterback like Will Howard or Jalen Milroe ultimately ending up in Las Vegas.
There has been hype around Quinn Ewers, but his game film wasn’t good this year and that’s going to be hard for teams to ignore as they evaluate him between now and the end of April.
Shedeur Sanders is the quarterback everyone has been linking to the Raiders and there has been a growing sense in recent weeks that he may slide in the draft, possibly to the end of the first round.
If Sanders takes a tumble, would a late first-round pick or an early second-round pick be too early to pair with a veteran quarterback who just signed a $100+ million deal?
x: @raidersbeat
The Raiders better not draft Shedeur Sanders because he will beat Geno Smith out. The Raiders will have egg in their face