Martavis Bryant was brought to the Oakland Raiders via a third-round draft pick, and proved to be a misstep for the Silver and Black in 2018.
The Oakland Raiders’ group of receivers was a unit that lacked talent as the season progressed, and the cause was mostly due to the injury, however in certain cases it was the root of poor judgment. After taking the helm for a second time with the Raiders, Jon Gruden looked to get the jump on constructing the roster to his liking, even if it meant the cost of future draft picks.
In the case of Martavis Bryant, Gruden brought the controversial former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver to the Bay via trade. In April of 2018, the Raiders acquired Bryant and in exchange sent a third round pick in the 2018 Draft (previously acquired by the Cardinals) to the Steelers in return. Despite his talent, Bryant had a number of personal issues and the hope was that a change of scenery could re-ignite his production on the field.
Here’s our season grade for wide receiver Martavis Bryant.
Expectation
“Optimistic” would probably be the best term suited for Raiders’ fans reactions to the transaction that occurred on April 26, 2018. In the NFL, Draft picks are a luxury and if a franchise is willingly giving those away (a third-round pick no less) the hope is that they hit a home-run in terms of their thinking. The same can be said for the acquiring of Bryant, who indeed had talent but faced so many personal conduct issues and suspensions that ultimately downgraded his depth chart position.
Hope was really all Raiders fans could do, and so if Gruden truly felt that Bryant was worth the third-round pick that it cost to bring him to Oakland, then the expectation was that he’d become a focal point in passing attack. Martavis Bryant had a reputation for being a deep threat, and he’d need to showcase that through his chemistry with Derek Carr.
Reality
Take a look at his 2018 stats and the numbers speak for themselves. Even before the regular season started, Bryant was released by the Raiders on September 1, with a possible year-long suspension on the way for violating the league’s drug policy. Despite this, he was re-signed just ten days later. Bryant played in eight games, finishing with nine catches for 266 yards without a single touchdown. He was placed on injured reserve on December 5, and later was handed and indefinite suspension by the NFL on December 14 for violating the terms of his reinstatement.
A 2018 Raiders season that was filled with whiffs and mistakes, the acquisition of Martavis Bryant is definitely among them. He ultimately should never have been brought in to Oakland, and especially not for a third-round pick as the opportunity cost. The Martavis Bryant experiment was a failure for the Raiders, and should provide a reminder of the mistakes not to make going forward.
Looking Ahead
Martavis Bryant, already facing an indefinite suspension by the NFL, is an unrestricted free agent this coming offseason and has no business returning to the Raiders in the future. In the larger sense, it remains to be seen whether he’ll see playing time with an NFL team ever again, given his suspension status with the league and his history of issues off the field.
The only lesson the Raiders can take away from Bryant’s tenure with the Raiders is a blueprint of how to value draft picks, which have become more and more valuable and proven to be a luxury. The statement could never ring more true than for the Silver and Black in their current rebuild status as a franchise. Oakland is in desperate need of talent and with a plethora of draft picks coming this draft, the Raiders can’t afford to whiff big time once again.