Report: Raiders agree to trade Kelechi Osemele to the Jets
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders continued to make moves on Sunday, trading away Kelechi Osemele to the New York Jets to free up cap space.
Less than 24 hours after trading for star wide receiver Antonio Brown, the Oakland Raiders were at it again, trading away starting left guard Kelechi Osemele to the New York Jets. The trade of Osemele brings the Raiders a bunch of cap space, as they look to continue to revamp this roster.
Osemele was a star during his time in Oakland, but is coming off his worst of his three seasons with the team. The entire Raiders offensive line was decimated with injuries last season, but for most, Osemele was seen as a building block on this team moving forward.
The move, which was reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Josina Anderson, frees up $10.2 million in cap space, and comes with a dead cap number of $0. While Osemele was a great player for the Raiders, this was a necessary move, as that is just way too much money to spend on an offensive guard.
Jerry McDonald from the Oakland Tribune reported the Raiders will receive a fifth round pick from the Jets in return for Osemele and a sixth rounder.
With Osemele gone, Jon Feliciano is a guy who could fill in at left guard next season, but he has yet to show that he can be a starter at the NFL level. Their best case scenario may be to fill KO’s role via the NFL Draft in 2019, or insert newly signed Denzelle Good at right guard, and move Gabe Jackson to the left side.
Next. 5 reasons the Raiders won the Antonio Brown trade. dark
With four early draft picks this April, this is an area the Raiders could certianly target, as a guy like Jonah Williams from Alabama could be an instant starter at guard at the NFL level. There are also guys like Dalton Risner from Kansas State, and Cody Ford from Oklahoma who could step in right away for the Silver and Black, so this move could end up being another stroke of genius by Mike Mayock and company.