What's Next for the Raiders After Trading Khalil Mack
The Oakland Raiders are on the NFL’s most interesting teams heading into the 2018 season. They brought back Jon Gruden into the coaching spotlight on a 10 year contract to go along with their eventual relocation to Las Vegas as a way to energize the Raider nation for the foreseeable future. But one move could change the entire outlook on the Raider’s future; the trade of star pass rusher Khalil Mack.
Over the past few days Khalil Mack was in trade rumors all around the NFL landscape and while it seemed to be just speculation, the Raiders did the unthinkable and traded their franchise defender to the Chicago Bears few a slew of draft picks including two 1st round picks. Not only did they trade Mack but also included a future 2nd round pick in the trade as well which only adds to the compelling nature of this trade. When the trade was made official, fans around both the Raiders and Bears went to social media to express their feelings on the move along with several Raiders players who seemed to be shocked by the news. Trades happen all the time in the NFL, but not a trade including a top player like Khalil Mack.
Now that the trade is done and Mack is officially a Bear after signing a historic contract worth over $140 million dollars, the focus is now on the Oakland Raiders and their plans for 2018 and beyond. Not only did they move on from Mack, but the team also released former 2nd round pick Mario Edwards Jr. as well as Martavis Bryant, whom the team traded a 3rd round pick for earlier this off-season. It’s apparent that the Raiders are retooling their roster in an interesting way and one can only look towards the future and what the impact will be on this season. There is no turning back now for the Raiders and only thing to do now is look at the future and what the Raiders can do to bring dominance back to the silver and black.
Regardless of what happens this season, the spotlight will be on the Raiders in next year’s draft having two picks in the 1st round picks in a draft that looks to be stacked with defensive talent. So what can the Raiders can to regain the trust of the fans bring some excitement to the Raider nation? It’s simple; go all in on Ohio State’s Nick Bosa or Houston’s Ed Oliver. Both Bosa and Oliver are wide regarded as the top prospects in the 2019 NFL Draft and arguably two of the most dominant defenders in college football. If the Raiders can somehow package both of their top picks to land on of those star prospects that would bring excitement to the defense for sure.
The other route Oakland could take is to add a top talent to both offense and defense and if they keep both picks, they may be possible. For example, the team could use the earlier of the two picks to add a pass rusher like Clemson’s Clelin Ferrell or Michigan’s Rashan Gary while adding a top notch WR like South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel or Arizona State’s N’keal Harry with their other top pick. This would give Oakland two exciting players to build around for the future and would add some excitement to the team that was lost from losing Mack.
Now either of these moves may not bring every Raider fan back on board entirely but it should help in the long term success of the franchise and will certainly excite new fans once the move to Las Vegas is official. Needless to say, the Raiders will be one of the most talked about teams not just in 2018 but in 2019 and beyond and it can all be traced back to one move- the trade of Khalil Mack.