It’s officially rumors and leaks season
Indianapolis, IN — While the primary purpose of the NFL Combine is to evaluate this year’s crop of incoming rookies, it’s also a time when whispers around the league start getting louder as information leaks out to the media. Some news is about the NFL Draft and how teams feel about certain prospects, but not all with rumors surrounding free agency circulating throughout Indianapolis.
So, below are a few storylines surrounding the Las Vegas Raiders to keep an eye out for this week.
Quarterback Trade
This one shouldn’t be too much of a surprise seeing as it’s been reported several times that the Raiders are exploring options about trading up for a quarterback. Recently, the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the likelihood the Raiders make a move for a quarterback is a seven out of ten.
With all general managers in the same place, expect to hear more rumors like this since the combine provides an opportunity to do some face-to-face negotiation. Not only do you want to pay attention to what’s being said about the Silver and Black, but also the Falcons, Vikings and Broncos. Those will likely be some of the biggest competitors for the Patriots’ No. 3 overall pick, which appears to be the first selection that is up for sale at the moment.
QB4 Debate
This kind of goes hand-in-hand with the rumor above. If New England opts to stay put, then it’s likely that the consensus top three quarterbacks – Caleb Williams, Drake Maye and Jayden Daniels – will be off the table for Las Vegas. So, who the team prefers as their fourth option will say a lot about how they approach getting a new signal caller.
If it’s J.J. McCarthy, then they’ll likely have to leapfrog Atlanta to get McCarthy. However, if Antonio Pierce and Tom Telesco prefer Michael Penix Jr. or Bo Nix, then they might be able to sit back at 13 and get their guy. Or at least they’d only have to worry about getting ahead of Minnesota and Denver, assuming the Falcons still prefer McCarthy over Penix Jr. and Nix.
While Williams, Maye and Daniels won’t be throwing at the combine, the latter three are expected to participate and duke it out for positioning on teams’ draft boards. In other words, you’ll want to pay attention to the on-field drills during Saturday’s session and the buzz generated afterward.
Other Prospects/Positions
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Obviously, the Raiders will be looking for more than just a quarterback in the draft. The “X player has met with X team” reports typically don’t mean much at the combine since the clubs are trying to gather as much information on as many prospects as possible at this point in the game. However, the leaks about teams being interested in certain players do carry some weight.
That can provide some insight into how those initial meetings went and who impressed the team’s decision-makers with their character and football IQ on the whiteboard. Quarterbacks will be a part of those reports of course but pay attention to trends at other positions as well.
For example, if it gets leaked that the Raiders are interested or were impressed with Jer’Zhan Newton and Byron Murphy II, then that’s a decent sign that they’ll be looking for a defensive tackle in the first round if the passer they want isn’t available.
Josh Jacobs’ Contract Extension
It’s already been reported that the Raiders are not expected to place the franchise tag on Josh Jacobs for the second year in a row. However, the organization is reportedly going to engage in talks for a multi-year deal with the 2022 rushing champ, presumptively at a lower annual price tag than what the one-year tender would be.
Personally, I still think it’s a long shot that Jacobs returns to Las Vegas, but the reports that the team is willing to negotiate with his camp are significant. Expect to hear some leaks about the number Jacobs is looking for and what other teams are interested in him as his agent attempts to gain some leverage.
Hunter Renfrow’s Contract
To be honest, I wouldn’t expect much information to get out about Hunter Renfrow since it seems pretty cut and dry that the Silver and Black are just going to release him to gain some cap space. But, if he is willing to restructure his deal, that could be a good sign that the Raiders might be able to find a trade partner for him.
Again, this is probably unlikely, but you never know. Things move and change quickly in the NFL.
Silver and Black Pride will be on-site at the NFL Combine from Wednesday to Saturday, so be sure to check back for more information and daily recaps throughout the week. Also, follow Marcus Johnson and Matt Holder on X/Twitter to get immediate information on what’s going on in Indianapolis.