Raiders: Could we see Las Vegas make a trade for James Bradberry?
What makes the Raiders trading for Bradberry stray from a path of realism.
While the duo of James Bradberry and the Raiders might make all the sense in the world, I’m not so convinced Las Vegas still has interest in the Giants’ corner.
As I pointed out a few moments ago, understanding the Raiders’ initial interest in Bradberry was reported prior to acquiring Ya-Sin is important. After adding the former Colts’ cornerback to the roster, Las Vegas was reportedly interested in both Stephon Gilmore and Casey Hayward. Let’s talk about these two.
Before Gilmore officially agreed to a two-year deal with the Colts last week, inconsistent reports of the Raiders and Gilmore circled the NFL media for a month. Some sources noted the two sides had mutual interest and even went as far as saying they’ve negotiated from time to time, while others stated there wasn’t much talk between the parties.
At the NFL owners meetings, head coach Josh McDaniels cleared up the confusion as best as he could, mentioning there wasn’t noteworthy contact between the two sides. As time went on, it appeared this was the naked truth. Gilmore would eventually have a visit in Indianapolis, where he would sign with the team, facing seemingly no bid-war over the former Defensive Player of the Year.
Given these facts, it seems most reasonable to conclude the Raiders might’ve had legitimate interest in Gilmore at one point, but the rest was nothing more than speculating of Dave Ziegler bringing in another former Patriot – Ultimately meaning, Las Vegas was not actually in the cornerback market post-Yannick trade.
However, the Raiders were all also reportedly interested in bringing back Casey Hayward, which was a sweepstakes that went down well-after the Ya-Sin acquisition.
While this appears true, that Las Vegas was in the market for Casey Hayward after adding Ya-Sin to the roster, we must understand the circumstances of Hayward and Bradberry by comparing them.
What I mean by that is, Hayward was a Raider last year and flourished, so it only makes sense new general manager Dave Ziegler wanted him to stick around – Albeit, it isn’t too difficult to make the argument Bradberry is in the same boat. The corner currently in New York has played under Patrick Graham in each of his last two seasons, finding success himself.
So, what’s the real difference between Hayward and Bradberry? Their price points.
The Raiders were interested in retaining Hayward, and there’s no reason to believe Hayward didn’t wish to return. Had he found his way to Indianapolis with Gus Bradley, one could make the argument the veteran corner wanted to continue playing with his longtime defensive coordinator. However, that isn’t what happened.
Las Vegas lost out on the Hayward sweepstakes, as the former Raider signed a two-year deal with Atlanta for up to $11m combined. This upcoming season, Hayward’s cap hit is only $4m, before jumping up to $7m in year-two. Not to worry, though; There’s a potential out after year-one of his contract, if the Falcons with to move on ($2m dead cap hit on this out).
The very fact Las Vegas couldn’t offer such a reasonable contract themselves should speak volumes in the realism of trading for Bradberry, who’s cap hit for ’22 alone is double Hayward’s entire contract.
If Ziegler couldn’t at least match such a friendly offer without having to give up assets, I simply cannot imagine he would fork over more money for one-year of Bradberry than Hayward’s entire contract plus assets given to acquire Bradberry from the Giants.
Now, cap is a complicated thing – Just because Bradberry’s current cap hit this year with the Giants is $22m, it doesn’t mean the Raiders would have to honor that entire cap hit for the season. Still, the number would remain greater than Hayward’s contract in full, and don’t forget about those additional assets for compensation.
Given this information, it’s hard to believe this trade is on the horizon for the Silver and Black, but stranger things have happened, especially under this new regime. Will Bradberry find himself in a Raiders uniform this upcoming year? Only the future will tell us.