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By Max Dible
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Las Vegas Raiders entered this season with a new leadership regime, a new quarterback and a renewed sense of excitement for the future. But things haven't worked out the way the franchise had planned or the way a fanbase hungry for a winner had hoped.
Quarterback Geno Smith, a two-time Pro Bowler (2022, 2023) who won 27 games for the Seattle Seahawks over the last three seasons and led the team to the playoffs two years ago, has not played up to the $75 million contract extension to which the Raiders signed him after sending Seattle a third-round pick for his services.
Smith is leading the NFL with 10 interceptions and has thrown just seven touchdowns in seven games (2-5 record). Most recently, the AFC West Division rival Kansas City Chiefs pitched a shutout in a 31-0 routing of the Raiders that sent Las Vegas reeling into its bye week.
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If the team wants to be more proactive and act more urgently to potentially replace Smith, there is always the trade market to consider. Seth Walder of ESPN tied Las Vegas to a potential deal for Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins on Wednesday. The proposed trade would actually include a couple of second-round draft picks heading the Raiders' way for picking up the balance of Tagovailoa's $212 million contract that runs through 2028.
"Hear me out. This is the Brock Osweiler trade on steroids. The Raiders currently have $103 million and $174 million in 2026 and 2027 cap space, respectively. What I would propose here is the Dolphins send a 2026 second-round pick and 2027 second-round pick along with Tagovailoa in exchange for a 2027 fifth-round pick," Walder wrote.
"If that trade happened next week, Las Vegas would keep Tagovailoa through 2026 at a cost of roughly $70 million over that time, the vast majority fully guaranteed. It would get the Dolphins out of their tight cap situation so they can reset and rebuild, and it would be a more efficient use of resources for Las Vegas -- regardless of whether Tagovailoa ever takes the field for them or not."
The Raiders also have Kenny Pickett on the roster after the franchise traded a fifth-round pick to the Cleveland Browns to acquire him just ahead of the regular season, and fellow reserve signal-caller Aidan O'Connell is on his way back after breaking his wrist in the final preseason game in August.
O'Connell could be ready to play by Sunday when the Raiders host the Jacksonville Jaguars, but if Las Vegas though he was a long-term solution then the team wouldn't have traded for Smith in the first place.
The Raiders need an answer under center, and Pickett is more likely a trade chip ahead of the NFL's Nov. 4 deadline than he is a regular starter for Las Vegas at any point in however long his tenure there will be. The franchise might be best served to play out the year and hit the 2026 draft, which is comprised of a handful of promising QB prospects, with the intention of drafting a rookie and building for the future.
Read More: Raiders Predicted to Unload Multiple Key Players Before NFL Trade Deadline
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