The Oakland Raiders continue to make news as they rebuild a roster that went 4-12 in each of the last two seasons. This time it’s a report from Adam Schefter over at ESPN that indicates Oakland is close to dealing a late-round pick to the Houston Texans for quarterback Matt Schaub.
This trade obviously makes sense from a Texans standpoint. They are able to rid themselves of signal caller who regressed a great deal last season and was set to earn a whole heck of a lot of money should he be on the active game day roster throughout the next couple of seasons. In addition to that, Houston just inked another veteran quarterback in the form of Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Anything that general manager Rick Smith and Co. might be able to squeeze from the Raiders in this deal would be gravy.
BREAKING: Raiders are expected to trade a 2014 late-round pick to the Texans for QB Matt Schaub. (via @AdamSchefter) pic.twitter.com/6G5adiiNTE
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) March 21, 2014
For the Raiders, it also makes a ton of sense. Let’s check in on four reasons why.
1. Low Risk, Medium Reward
Remember, Schaub is only one year removed from being an above-average starting quarterback. He completed over 64 percent of his passes for 4,008 yards with 22 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in leading the Texans to a 12-4 record back in 2012.
Sure the 2013 season was a complete and utter disaster for Schaub. That along with his contract are the two primary reasons that Houston was shopping him. Does one year of poor play override five solid seasons as a starter? That’s a question Oakland will surely find out within the next seven months or so. However, looking at his entire body of work, there is some reason to believe that he will be able to rebound from last year’s dumpster fire.
As it stands, Oakland spent a late-round pick (likely a seventh) on a quarterback that has had a nice amount of success over an extended period of time in the NFL. If he pans out, the Raiders will be paying him a nice chunk of change. If not, they wont. Which brings me to my next point…
2. Contract
You look at what Schaub is due in total money over the next three seasons, $54.4 million, and this looks like a disaster waiting for a Raiders team that has worked so hard to get out from under a hellish cap situation.
Less than $1 million in guaranteed money for Schaub. If he sucks in training camp and rookie 2nd/3rd looks good, Raiders can cut him.
— Christopher Hansen (@ChrisHansenNFL) March 21, 2014
Schaub’s money is guaranteed based on him being on the active game-day roster. He’ll get $1 million for each game that he suits up. As Hansen points out, if it doesn’t work out in camp, the Raiders can cut him for pretty much nothing.
It’s always important to look more at basic contract figures around the NFL. When you decide to just look at total numbers of a contract, you are doing yourself a disservice. In this, the Raiders have picked up a player that will get paid if he performs and won’t get paid if he doesn’t. It’s that simple.
3. Gives The Raiders Flexibility
Oakland can still go out there and spend the No. 5 overall pick on a quarterback. Schaub is a stopgap option on a rebuilding team. There is no one that realistically expects him to be around for the long haul. This deal, however, does enable McKenzie and Co. to look in another direction should their quarterback target not be there at five.
Maybe they go with a franchise book end in the form of Greg Robinson or Jake Matthews. They could also double down on what is all of a sudden a solid wide receiver corp by drafting Sammy Watkins from Clemson. Heck, should either Khalil Mack or Jedeveon Clowney fall to five, the Raiders could be all over that.
Based on this deal and with the working understanding that quarterbacks selected in the top five are usually expected to start immediately, it seems to reason that the Raiders will likely wait until later in the draft to address that position.
Should someone like Derek Carr or Johnny Manziel fall to the back end of the first round, Oakland could call a team that’s selecting there in order to move up. From what I hear they love Carr, so that could be a decent option. If not, there are plenty of second-tier quarterbacks the Raiders could target as developmental options behind Schaub.
4. He’s an Upgrade
Maybe the most important aspect of this deal. Schaub has to be considered an upgrade over Matt McGloin and Terrelle Pryor, two of the quarterbacks that Oakland ran out there last season. Both had their good moments, but it’s highly unlikely that either will be anything more than a back-up caliber quarterback in the NFL.
The Raiders get a veteran in Schaub that has starting experience and has been successful in the NFL. They do so with minimal cost should he not perform up to the level we saw prior to last season. If he does, the money Oakland doles out to him won’t matter all too much.
Photo: Jim Brown, USA Today