Raiders: Would Mike Mayock go after biggest Clemson Tiger of them all?

Is Deshaun Watson coming to Las Vegas a realistic possibility?

So we have confirmed two things, Mike Mayock loves players from Clemson and that Deshaun Watson is objectively a better QB than Derek Carr. Now the next thing to determine is whether this is even a realistic possibility and what it would cost to bring him to Las Vegas.

One NFL executive has stated that Deshaun Watson is worth at least three first-round picks and that the haul to get him out of Houston would be “insane”. There is of course a difference between what a player is actually worth and what a team is willing to give up for him, and also what Houston would be willing to accept in exchange.

Houston sold their stock in DeAndre Hopkins for pennies on the dollar and may not want to do that again but if Watson is agitating for a move they may have to settle for less than they want. The Houston Rockets went through something similar with James Harden but some could argue they got an “insane” haul from Brooklyn in exchange for his services.

Obviously, the NFL is not the NBA and teams still value their first-round picks, so what would it take for the Raiders to land Watson? A starting bid of Derek Carr and the 2021 first-round pick would likely not be enough but that could also be packaged with additional picks in later rounds to sweeten the deal.

Houston may ask for Carr and two firsts and the onus would then be on Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden to determine if that is too rich for their blood.

Carr is on a team-friendly deal relative to his level of production, making just under $20 million for the next two years, while Watson is due to collect $166 million over the next five years, so that is something for both teams to take into account. For the Raiders, that means they would have to make some other salary cap decisions which would further hamper a team that badly needs improvement on the defensive side of the ball.

The Raiders would have to make the decision if they want to go all-in on Watson and his salary at the expense of the flexibility of Carr’s contract and the mortgaging of the team’s future first-round picks. Carr’s contract is also set to expire after 2022 and he can be released after next season with no cap penalty if the team chooses to explore other options.

Ultimately it does not appear likely that the Raiders would make the move to try and land Deshaun Watson because they are not in a position to mortgage their future to improve one position when they have so many other glaring needs.

Jon Gruden has all the job security in the world but Mike Mayock does not so he needs to win now and the best path to that is to build up the team around their talented, and relatively cheap starting quarterback.

Some fans may be disappointed by the fact that Las Vegas won’t have a new number 4 under center but the cost of getting Watson would too high and would effectively be a hindrance to team success, no matter how good of a quarterback he is.