The Las Vegas Raiders have a desperate need at the linebacker position, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers star Devin White could fix that in a hurry.
The 2023 NFL Draft is a few weeks away, and for the Las Vegas Raiders, some of the needs they had at the start of free agency are still there. One glaring need is the linebacker position, as they go into the draft with Robert Spillane and Divine Deablo as the only players considered legitimate contenders to start in 2023.
However, this past week, a huge name in the position group may have become available, as it was reported that Devin White from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would like to be traded. White was a big part of a Bucs team that won the Super Bowl a few years back, and he is also considered a player that 'got away' from the Raiders.
White was the No. 5 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Bucs, which is the draft that saw Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden reach at No. 4 for Clemson edge rusher Clelin Ferrell. While Ferrell was a very productive player for the Tigers, he was not considered a top-5 pick, and in fact, White was considered the No. 2 edge rusher in the class behind No. 2 overall pick, Nick Bosa.
Now, four years later, Las Vegas can right a wrong, but it could take significant trade assets to do so. We dive into three potential scenarios here.
Las Vegas Raiders: 3 trade scenarios for LB Devin White
We start out our three trade scenarios for Devin White with the team trading away their 2023 second round pick, selection No. 38, as well as their fourth-round pick, No. 109, to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for White.
Last year, general manager David Ziegler has no issues trading away the team's first and second round selections for Davante Adams, so I would not expect him to shy away from making big moves again this offseason. In White, he would be giving Patrick Graham another young cornerstone player he can build his defense around alongside star edge rusher, Maxx Crosby.
When experts go and re-draft the 2019 NFL Draft, White and Crosby are usually in the top-10, with some having them as top-5 picks as well. This would be a dominant combination, as not only is White a very capable linebacker, but he is an elite edge rusher, giving Crosby some help in that department as well.
The Las Vegas Raiders have been stocking up on wide receiver talent all offseason, bringing in the likes of Philip Dorsett, Jakobi Meyers, and Deandre Carter to man the position. They have also brought back Keelan Cole to the mix, so in terms of depth behind Davante Adams, there is no shortage.
Looking at the roster, one player who could be used as valuable trade bait at the position is Hunter Renfrow, who has become a fan-favorite since being selected in the fifth round of the same draft as White. David Ziegler has already shown he has no problem trading away Raiders star players, as he did with Darren Waller to the New York Giants, so he makes another big deal here.
Renfrow is an outstanding talent, and has far exceeded his draft slot since the team took him out of Clemson. However, he is also a man who plays a position with incredible depth, while the linebacker group is the exact opposite, so moving him for White could be something Ziegler thinks about this offseason.
Here is a trade that is certain to raise some eyebrows, as the Las Vegas Raiders trade a top-10 pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for Devin White. However, the Raiders also nab the No. 19 overall pick in this year's draft as well, so Ziegler will still have the ability to bring in a cornerstone player on Day 1 this April.
For the Buccaneers, the addition of Baker Mayfield should not make them shy away from targeting a quarterback in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, and moving up to No. 7 overall would allow them to do so. For the Raiders, this would add a talented linebacker to the mix, and allow them to use a mid-first round pick on another position of need, like cornerback.
Trading away a top-10 pick is never a popular thing to do, but when it comes to this Raiders defense, they need all the help they can get. With this move, they instantly upgrade at linebacker, as well as possibly in their defensive backfield, bolstering a defense that has significant issues on all three levels.