The Raiders defense wasn’t awful on Sunday. They held Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs explosive offense to 28 points and somehow ended the game with three scoreless quarters. Kansas City couldn’t run the ball at any point in the game, but thanks to a handful of miscues in the secondary, Sunday will go down as another Hall of Fame type performance by Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes.
The Raiders pass rush wasn’t great yesterday, but that’s hardly a good excuse for consistently letting Chief receivers get behind the secondary on what seemed to be about every other play in the second quarter. With Johnathan Abram (shoulder) done for the season and Karl Joseph once again quiet in coverage, it might be time for the Raiders to consider a trade for Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Joseph is probably gone after the season and Fitzpatrick still has three years on his rookie deal, as well as a team fifth-year option. We know that general manager Mike Mayock loved Fitzpatrick in the draft last year, so why not throw a first-round pick at the Dolphins?
The challenge, as this point, is that no one knows what the Raiders two 2020 first-round picks are going to look like. Giving up a top-10 pick for Fitzpatrick would not be a great deal for the Raiders. But giving up a pick later in the first round wouldn’t seem like a bad idea.
Then again, if the Raiders don’t button up a few holes in the secondary, their own first-round pick might very well end up in the top five or 10.
There’s also the small detail of where Fitzpatrick wants to play. He reportedly isn’t happy with his ever-changing role in Miami, but would he be happy in a full-time role at safety with the Raiders? His ideal position seems to be slot corner, but the Raiders already spent big money on Lamarcus Joyner at that position.
Whatever the case, the Raiders probably should be proactive with their secondary going forward. Mahomes is going to terrorize the AFC West for at least another 10 years and the Raiders had better keep improving their secondary if they want to keep up. Adding Fitzpatrick, even at a premium, seems like a reasonable place to start.
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Joyner’s contract should not play into the decision, since there is no dead cap after next year.
I agree about pursuing Fitzpatrick. They have enough cap space, especially since Antonio Brown is gone. The young defensive line has talent and will continue to develop, but what we all saw happen yesterday against the Chiefs is proof that the Raider’s secondary needs to be top notch to have a chance against the top teams in the NFL. Also, without AB, the Raider’s offense will simply not be as dynamic as originally thought, which translates to fewer points scored. That being said, if forced to give up a first round pick to get Fitzpatrick it should be their second one.
We have to look at the next decade and decide who will be there. A trade Fitzpatrick will help towards that future. Understand we have two big time QB’s in our division that we see twice a year. Tried of the smiles from KC players. And rumors have it that the Chiefs are looking into getting Fitzpatrick too. We can’t allow that. He can’t go to any team in our division. It’s time to make the move.